There is a full slate of 15 games on the MLB betting board for Friday, beginning with an afternoon matchup between the Pittsburgh Pirates and Chicago Cubs.
The Cubs are -145 favorites for today's game, which will be the first of a three-game set at Wrigley Field.
Here are our best free Pirates vs. Cubs picks and predictions for Friday, May 7, with the first pitch scheduled for 2:20 p.m. ET.
Pirates vs Cubs odds
Odds via the Covers Line, an average comprised of odds from multiple sportsbooks.
Compare MLB odds before betting to ensure you get the best number.
MLB Sharp Money and Line Movement Report
By Patrick EversonFanDuel opened Chicago as a -148 favorite Thursday evening, peaked at -154 a couple of times this morning, bottomed out at -142 and is -144 at noon ET. Moneyline ticket count is 4/1 and moneyline cash 2/1 on the Cubs. The total is stable at 7.5, seeing only a price adjustment from Under -115 to Under -118 to Under -112, with 89 percent of tickets and cash on the Over.
Check out the full line movement for this gamePirates vs Cubs betting preview
Starting pitchers
Trevor Cahill (1-3, 7.40 ERA): Cahill is coming off a rough outing against the Cardinals where he surrendered seven hits and five runs before getting the hook midway through the fifth inning.
The veteran has been passed around more than a bottle of Jack Daniels at a bachelor party, playing for eight different clubs since 2015.
Zach Davies (1-2, 8.22 ERA): Davies is off to a brutal start in his first season with the Cubs, pitching to a 2.13 WHIP and walking 18 batters through 23 innings. In his last start, he allowed two runs, one earned, across four innings versus the Reds.
The 28-year-old is coming off a strong season for the Padres and prior to that logged 111 starts over five years with the Brewers so he's very familiar with these NL Central battles.
Weather
Be sure to monitor the gametime conditions with our MLB weather info.
Key injuries
Pirates: Gregory Polanco RF (Out).
Cubs: Ian Happ CF (Questionable), Jonathan Holder RP (Out).
Find our latest MLB injury reports.
Betting trend to know
The Cubs are 71-32 in their last 103 home games versus a team with a losing record. Find more MLB betting trends for Pirates vs. Cubs.
Moneyline pick
The starters for both teams have been nothing short of brutal this season, with Pittsburgh's Trevor Cahill pitching to a 7.40 ERA in five starts and Chicago's Zach Davies posting an 8.22 ERA over six starts.
However, while Cahill's play has been all over the map for the last few years, Davies had been decent before this season, going 17-8 with a 3.30 ERA and 1.22 WHIP through 229 innings over the last two years.
The Cubbies also enter this series on a roll after sweeping the Dodgers in three games and winning five of their last seven games overall.
The Cubs are ninth in the majors with 4.71 runs per game and are 10th in OPS at .721. They've also been raking recently, averaging 6.71 runs per game over their last seven contests.
Meanwhile, the Pirates have lost six of their previous seven contests and have been among the worst hitting teams in the majors. They are 27th in the MLB in scoring with 3.53 runs per game while ranking 28th in OPS at .651.
While these NL Central rivals have split the six games in the head-to-head this season, the Bucs have a recent history of struggling at Wrigley Field going just 17-35 in the last 52 meetings between these teams in Chicago.
With the Cubs playing much better baseball at the moment and having a clear edge at the plate, take the home side.
PREDICTION: ML Chicago (-144)
Over/Under pick
Saying that Pittsburgh hasn't been able to put up runs this season would be an understatement. The Pirates are plating just 1.0 runs per game over their last four contests and while you might want to assign some of that blame to a three-game set at pitcher-friendly Petco Park, averaging 3.0 runs/game over their last 16 contests isn't a whole lot better.
Although Cahill has been lit up for at least five runs in three of his five starts this season, he allowed just a single run in each of his other two outings.
While Davies has struggled with his control and was eviscerated by the Pirates in Pittsburgh earlier this season (giving up seven runs in less than two innings), he also looked sharp against them at home one week earlier, allowing four hits and two runs in 5 2-3 innings of work.
Both bullpens have also been solid, with the Cubs relievers pitching to a 3.79 ERA and Pittsburgh's bullpen posting a 3.56 ERA with a 1.10 WHIP.
Betting trends also lean towards the Under, with the Cubs going 21-6-2 to the Under in their last 29 games as favorites and the Under 8-2-1 in the last 11 meetings between these division foes. With a strong 12 mph wind blowing in from left field take the Under.
PREDICTION: Under 7.5 (+100)
Pirates vs Cubs betting card
- ML Chicago (-144)
- Under 7.5 (+100)
Picks made on 5/07/2021 at 9:40 a.m. ET
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