Barring the San Francisco Giants making the playoffs as a wild-card team, which seems unlikely, the Chicago Cubs play their final game in San Francisco on Wednesday afternoon as the teams close out a series. Chicago is favored on the MLB Lines behind Jon Lester, who almost signed with the Giants as a free agent a couple of years ago.
How to Bet Cubs vs Giants MLB Spread & Game Info
- When: Wednesday, 3:45 PM ET
- Where: Oracle Park
- Probable pitchers (away/home): Jon Lester/Tyler Beede
- TV: MLB Network
- MLB Spread: Chicago Cubs -1.5 (Total 8.5)
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Why Bet on Chicago?
The Cubs are 3-0-1 in their last four season series vs. the Giants but this week take aim at their first series win in San Francisco since a three-game sweep here in 2013.
Anthony Rizzo has reached the 20-homer mark for the seventh-consecutive season since 2013. He joined Billy Williams at the only Cubs left-handed hitters to turn the trick, as Williams reached 20 home runs 13-straight campaigns from 1961-73. Rizzo has reached base safely in 21 straight games since June 26 and is hitting .417 with a 1.119 OPS in his last 16 games. Rizzo this season has posted a .400 on-base percentage, fifth-best in the N.L.
Cubs All-Star catcher Willson Contreras is likely to be activated off the injured list on Wednesday. Contreras told reporters that “everything feels fine” after catching a bullpen session for Jon Lester and going through defensive drills. If he does get activated off the injured list on Wednesday before the contest against the Giants, it’ll mean the All-Star missed just the minimum 10 games before being reinstated. He’s been out of action due to a strain in the arch muscle in his right foot.
It’s lefty Jon Lester (9-6) on the bump. Lester allowed four runs on 12 hits across six innings and did not factor into the decision in Friday’s win over the Padres. He struck out six and did not issue any walks. The 12 hits are the most allowed in a start this season for Lester, but he was able to mitigate the damage by striking out six for the second straight start and not walking anyone. The veteran lefty will carry a 3.87 ERA and 1.35 WHIP into his next start. Lester is 3-4 with a 5.09 ERA on the road this season.
Over his last two outings, Lester has dropped his hard contact to a more manageable 33.3%. He has combated his 4.52 FIP by inducing groundballs 45.5% of the time and holding opponents to a .304 OBP by maintaining a healthy 5.3% walk rate.
Team Stats
Offense- Runs: 5.06
- Hits: 8.53
- Walks: 3.78
- Strike Outs: 9.09
- Runs: 4.41
- Hits: 8.43
- Walks: 3.30
- Strike Outs: 8.49
Why Bet on San Francisco?
Sam Dyson picked up his second save of the season by hurling a scoreless inning on Monday against the Cubs. Will Smith was unavailable, so it was Dyson who was called on to pick up the save. The 31-year-old has put together a very strong season as the set-up man for Smith this year with a 2.57 ERA, 0.92 WHIP and 47/7 K/BB ratio.
Monday’s eighth-inning comeback marked just the fourth time this season the Giants won when trailing after seven innings. They improved to 23-10 in one-run games, the best record in such game in the majors. Since July 1, the Giants’ outfield has been one of the most productive in the Majors ranking first in doubles, extra-base hits, runs, tied for first in RBI and seventh in home runs. Giants outfielders also have the most outfield assists in the Majors this season with 25.
The Giants’ Tyler Beede (3-3) continues to improve. He has allowed three runs or fewer in his last four starts. He’s coming off a sterling eight-inning shutout performance against reigning NL Cy Young Award winner Jacob deGrom and the Mets last Friday. Beede went pitch for pitch with deGrom in the outing, as the two starters exchanged zeroes for most of the game. Beede has now allowed three or fewer runs in five of his last six outings, lowering his ERA from 6.67 to 4.70 in that span. The 26-year-old has a 55:29 K:BB and 1.43 WHIP in 59.1 innings this season.
Giants’ starters have posted a 3.20 ERA since the All-Star break, which ranks as the fifth-best figure in the Majors during that span.
Team Stats
Offense- Runs: 4.43
- Hits: 8.11
- Walks: 3.02
- Strike Outs: 8.70
- Runs: 4.83
- Hits: 8.73
- Walks: 3.09
- Strike Outs: 8.74
Cubs vs Giants MLB Betting Trends
- Cubs are 5-1 in Lester’s last 6 Wednesday starts
- Giants are 6-16 in their last 22 Wednesday games
- Cubs are 1-6 SU in their last 7 games when playing on the road against San Francisco
- The total has gone UNDER in 9 of Chi Cubs’ last 13 games this season
- Giants are 7-1 SU in their last 8 games at home
- The total has gone OVER in 13 of San Francisco’s last 20 games against an opponent in the National League
Expert Final Score Prediction for Chicago Cubs vs San Francisco Giants
Chicago Cubs 4 – San Francisco Giants 3
