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There are several reasons why Baltimore is leading the AL East Division, but one is the shockingly good season being had by 34-year-old journeyman pitcher Albert Suarez, who is on the mound Thursday for a series finale against the Cubs.

The O’s are favored on the MLB odds according to MyBookie Sportsbook.

MLB Picks: Orioles -130, Cubs +110 (total 9)
Score Prediction: Orioles 5, Cubs 4

Chicago Cubs Moneyline +100

Want proof that the Cubs have been hugely disappointing this season, when they were favored at one point to win the NL Central? They have just one NL All-Star and that’s rookie pitcher Shota Imanaga.

He became the first Cubs rookie to be named an All-Star since Kris Bryant in his Rookie of the Year campaign in 2015. Imanaga joined Sam Jones (1955) as the only Cubs rookie pitchers to earn All-Star honors.

Imanaga is the first official rookie pitcher to make an All-Star team for Chicago since 1958, when rookie rules were first established by MLB.

Mark Leiter Jr.

Ahead of Tuesday’s game, the team activated reliever Mark Leiter Jr. from the 15-day injured list after missing two weeks due to a right forearm strain.

The 33-year-old righty holds a 5.16 ERA over 29.2 innings after throwing one scoreless inning vs. the Orioles on Tuesday.

In his last 39 games since May 26, outfielder Ian Happ has recorded a National League-leading 41 RBI, only trailing the Yankees‘ Aaron Judge (44) for the major league lead.

Happ is batting .280 with 10 doubles, a 1.025 OPS and has hit 12 of his 14 homers this season during the run.

Among qualified major league rookies, Michael Busch ranks first in OPS (.838), SLG (.473), OBP (.365) and walks (38), is tied for the major league-lead in homers (12) and ranks third in average (.273) and runs (42).

Justin Steele on the Hill

It’s lefty Justin Steele on the mound here. He struggled early and landed on the injured list but has been quite good since returning.

Steele (1-3) earned the win against the Angels last Friday, allowing one run on two hits and two walks with seven strikeouts over nine innings. Steele needed just 95 pitches to toss his first career complete game.

He became the first Cubs pitcher to throw a nine-inning complete game in 95 pitches or fewer since Kyle Hendricks’ 81-pitch gem against the Cardinals on May 3, 2019.

Steele became the first Cubs lefty to have a nine-inning complete game with no more than 95 pitches since Jamie Moyer on June 3, 1988, against the Mets.

Finally, Steele hander became the first Cubs southpaw to spin a complete game since Cole Hamels did so on Aug. 23, 2018, against the Reds.

Steele earned his first win in 13 starts this season and 18 outings overall by retiring 13 straight batters after giving up an RBI single by Taylor Ward in the fifth inning.

The 29-year-old has logged six straight quality starts and owns a 2.95 ERA, 1.00 WHIP and 77:18 K:BB over 79.1 innings this season.

Steele will make his third career start against the Orioles and first at Camden Yards.

His last against the Orioles was at Wrigley Field on June 17, 2023, where he picked up the win.

Steele threw 5.0 innings and allowed five hits and two runs with one home run, one walk and four strikeouts. His only other start against the Orioles came on July 13, 2022.

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MyBookie MLB Betting Odds & Wager Lines to Win

Baltimore Orioles Moneyline -122

Orioles rookie Jordan Westburg has been added to the American League All-Star roster.

He joins teammates Adley Rutschman and Gunnar Henderson on the Junior Circuit’s roster as an injury replacement for Red Sox slugger Rafael Devers, who dropped out of the Midsummer Classic due to a lingering left shoulder ailment.

It’s a well-deserved honor for the 25-year-old, who as of Wednesday is slashing .281/.328/.512 with 15 homers and 50 RBI.

MLB Home Run Leaders

The Birds lead MLB with nine leadoff homers this year; Gunnar Henderson has eight of those, the most in MLB and tied for the second-most in a single season in Orioles history with Cedric Mullins (2021), trailing only Brady Anderson (12, 1996).

Albert Suarez on the Hill

It’s the 34-year-old journeyman righty Albert Suarez on the mound Thursday. Suarez (5-2) earned the win last Friday against Oakland, allowing two runs on four hits and one walk over six innings.

He struck out six. He required only 86 pitches to collect his second consecutive quality start.

The lone blemishes on his outing came via solo homers yielded to Miguel Andujar and Shea Langeliers.

Suarez now sports a 2.48 ERA, 1.21 WHIP and 51:23 K:BB across 65.1 innings this season.

He typically depends heavily on his four-seam fastball, his best swing-and-miss pitch.

But he mixed in his curveball a bit more against Oakland, throwing it 16 times and using it to generate three of his eight whiffs.

Prior to June 28, Suarez owned only two MLB outings of six or more innings, both coming as a rookie for the Giants in 2016.

He has since gone at least six in two straight quality starts after tossing six scoreless frames vs. the Rangers on June 28. He’s a well-traveled guy who spent years in Japan (’19-21) and Korea (’22-23).

Suarez is 0-1 with a 2.25 ERA in two appearances spanning eight career innings vs. the Cubs.

Craig Kimbrel

Closer Kimbrel ranks second in the AL and tied for third in MLB with 23 saves as of Wednesday.

He has matched his total from 2023 with the Phillies and is one behind 2021 combined between the Cubs (23) and White Sox (1).

The last time he recorded more than 24 saves in a season was in 2018 with the Red Sox (42).

Since May 10, he’s 2-1 with 15 saves in 16 chances with a 0.43 ERA (1 ER/21.0 IP) while holding opponents to a .088/.184/.103 (6-for-68) slash line.

Betting Cubs at Orioles MLB Odds

When: Thursday, 6:35 PM ET
Where: Camden Yards
Pitchers (away/home): Justin Steele/Albert Suarez
TV: MLB Extra Innings
Stream/gameday audio: https://www.mlb.com/live-stream-games/