The San Diego Padres (12-12) and Chicago Cubs (12-9) open up a 3-game set at Wrigley Field Tuesday. First pitch is at 7:40 p.m. ET (MLB Network). Let’s analyze BetMGM Sportsbook’s lines around the Padres vs. Cubs odds and make our expert MLB picks and predictions for the best bets.
Season series: First meeting; Padres won 5-2 in 2022.
The Padres are hitting their groove, winners of 4 of the last 5 before Monday’s off-day. The crazy thing is they’re doing it despite that OF Fernando Tatis Jr. (.167), OF Juan Soto (.198) and 3B Manny Machado (.220) are failing to hit for a respectable batting average. The Friars are 7-4 on the road thus far.
The Cubs got off to a hot start but lost 3 of 4 to the Dodgers over the weekend. They’ve been playing well on both sides of the field, ranking 2nd in BA (.280) and OPS (.796); and 2nd in OBA (.214), 7th in runs/9 allowed (3.91) and 3rd in pitcher strikeouts (9.83).
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Padres at Cubs projected starters
LHP Blake Snell vs. LHP Justin Steele
Snell (0-3, 6.00 ERA) makes his 5th start this season. He has a 1.89 WHIP, 6.5 BB/9 and 10.5 K/9 in 18 IP.
- Last start vs. Atlanta Braves last Tuesday: 5 IP, 2 ER, 3 H, 3 BB and 5 K
- Has not faced Cubs since 2017
- Went 4-2 with a 3.06 ERA, 1.23 WHIP and 12.1 K/9 on the road last year
Steele (3-0, 1.44 ERA) makes his 5th start. He has a 0.88 WHIP, 2.9 BB/9 and 8.6 K/9 in 25 IP.
- Last start vs. Oakland Athletics Wednesday: 6 IP, 1 ER, 4 H, 2 BB and 5 K
- 1 start vs. San Diego last season on June 13: 7 IP, 1 ER, 6 H, 0 BB and 3 K
Padres at Cubs odds
Provided by BetMGM Sportsbook; access USA TODAY Sports Scores and Sports Betting Odds hub for a full list. Lines last updated at 10:10 a.m. ET.
- Moneyline (ML): Padres +110 (bet $100 to win $110) | Cubs -130 (bet $130 to win $100)
- Run line (RL)/Against the spread (ATS): Padres +1.5 (-190) | Cubs -1.5 (+155)
- Over/Under (O/U): 7 (O: -125 | U: +105)
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Padres at Cubs picks and predictions
Prediction
Cubs 3, Padres 2
Moneyline
The edge goes to Chicago Tuesday. They’re playing better on both sides of the field, and Steele has been one of the better starters in the league thus far. It’s supposed to be a miserable, 40-degree day. A California team is definitely at a disadvantage in those conditions.
Take the CUBS (-130).
Run line/Against the spread
This figures to be a close game. However, San Diego +1.5 (-190) is too much juice to consider to keep it within a run, and the Cubs -1.5 (+155) aren’t likely enough to pull away and win by multiple runs to warrant any action.
PASS.
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Over/Under
Chicago is 6-4 O/U in the last 10, and the Padres are 5-4-1. Again, it’s supposed to be 40 degrees with a 14-mph wind blowing in from left-center field. Those are two ingredients to keep the ball in the park Tuesday. The Under is 7-2-1 in the last 10 meetings in Chicago.
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