Cubs, Diamondbacks Evenly Matched Heading Into Series Finale
Who: Arizona Diamondbacks v. Chicago Cubs
When: Thursday August 3rd, 2017 2:20PM EST
Where: Wrigley Field—Chicago, Illinois
The Diamondbacks may be sitting comfortably atop the NL Wild Card standings, but some recent injuries and other issues have had the side reeling. In a matter of a few days, the Diamondbacks lost a pair of shortstops to injuries and trade and what was once a solid infield was beginning to look anything but that. Luckily, a rookie in the form of Jack Reinheimer stepped up in more ways than one. Now, whether Reinheimer makes the start in Thursday’s series closer remains to be seen, but most signs are pointing to yes.
To make a long story short the Diamondbacks need to tighten up the ship a bit if they want to finish the season in the same positon they are in now. A divisional title seems all but lost seeing as the Dodgers lay claim to a 14-game lead, but the D-Backs should be able to secure a Wildcard berth if they can correct some minor issues.
For the Cubs, things are going very well right now. They have now opened up a 2.5 game lead atop the NL Central thanks, in part, to the Brewers playing overly poorly through the initial stages of the second half of the season. Over their last 12 games, the Cubs have amassed 9 victories. While most of these victories were nail-biters, that should give the Cubs’ fanbase the reassurance they need that their team can compete, and win, in close games.
By all accounts, it is the pitching staff of the Cubs that has really stepped up in recent weeks. Looking up and down the last 12 games for the Cubs, you will be hard-pressed to find many games where opposing teams were able to score more than 2 runs. In fact, of those 12 games, the Cubs held opponents to 2 or fewer runs on 6 occasions. Those are truly impressive numbers. After getting blanked on Wednesday, it will be interesting to see if the Cubs can bounce back and work on extending their divisional lead.
Game Overview and Analysis
For the Diamondbacks (+110), it will be Zack Greinke (13-4 2.84 ERA) who will be making the start. The D-Backs have some talent in their starting rotation, however few pitchers on their team and in the league have outperformed Greinke. In his last 6 starts, Greinke has accrued 5 victories and 1 no-decision. He is regularly keeping his earned runs below 3 and can last 7 or more innings without too much trouble. On top of all of that, he is strikeout machine, recording more than 5 strikeouts per game over his last 6.
Unfortunately for Arizona, it is not necessarily the pitching that has been the biggest problem. In games where they have lost, the story is the same; the bats are quiet. If the Diamondbacks want to win the game as well as the series, they will need their offense to support Greinke to some extent. Without this, the Cubs will undoubtedly be favored to take the victory and advance further in their divisional race.
For the Cubs (-130), we will see left-hander Jose Quintana (6-9 4.16 ERA) take the mound. While Greinke is king of the hill as far as the Diamondbacks’ rotation is concerned, Quintana is fighting to keep his head above water. Since being acquired by the Cubs from the White Sox a little less than a month ago, Quintana has turned things around to some extent. In three starts for the Cubs, he has earned a 2-1 record. What stands out about his sole loss is that he only gave up 2 runs, and the Cubs only managed a single run of their own. With that little offensive support, it will be tough for even the best pitchers to earn a victory. This is a problem that may end up being the difference between the Cubs repeating as World Series champs for the first time ever and making an early exit out of the playoffs, or perhaps never even make the playoffs at all.
Betting Prediction
On Bovada, if you are going to make a moneyline bet I think you should go with the Diamondbacks (+110). My reasoning for this is multifaceted. For one, the Diamondbacks are up there with the best offenses in MLB. They are regularly able to hammer opposing pitchers for a load of runs. Though they have had their fair share of losses recently, their wins are usually of the emphatic variety. Added to this is the fact that the Cubs, quite simply, cannot hit the ball. If Zack Greinke comes out and has the night we are all expecting him to have, the Cubs’ problems from the batter’s box will be even more exposed.
At the time of this post’s writing, both MyBookie and Bovada had solely moneyline odds on this game. Propositions will be updated as they are made public.