Get ready for a pair of high-octane baseball matchups bound to set your Thursday night ablaze.
In our first game, the Chicago Cubs (80-58) continue their road trip as they open up a four-game set with the Philadelphia Phillies (54-85) at Citizens Bank Park. Then over at Yankee Stadium, the top two clubs in the AL East — the Toronto Blue Jays (79-60) and New York Yankees (77-61) – square off for the first collision of a pivotal four-game series that will be holding some major playoff implications.
Read on below for a close look at these two huge games. While you’re at it, click here to see how the Wild Card race in the American and National League are shaping out to be and also our preview between the St. Louis Cardinals and Cincinnati Reds.
[sc:MLBArticles ]Chicago Cubs vs. Philadelphia Phillies (7:05 PM ET)
Line: Chicago Cubs (-300) vs. Philadelphia Phillies (+250); total: 7.5 – view all MLB lines
[sc:MLB240banner ]Jake Arrieta (18-6, 2.03 ERA) has been ridiculously good throughout this season. He has not surrendered an earned run and has struck out at least seven in each of his previous five turns. That stretch includes his most recent outing versus Arizona Saturday night, wherein the 29-year-old righty tossed eight shutout innings to capture the 2-0 triumph and his MLB-best 18th win.
Arrieta aims to sustain this remarkable run when he toes the rubber this evening against the Phillies—the team who handed him his last loss. Arrieta holds an 11-1 record with a 1.76 ERA, a .89 WHIP and .188 opponents’ batting average across 15 starts on the road.
As for the Phillies, they’ll be banking on Adam Morgan (5-5, 4.42 ERA) to lead them on the mound later. Morgan is coming off an awful performance in his last turn, during which he surrendered six earned runs and eight hits for the eventual 7-5 loss to Boston. At home, he is 3-1 with a 4.03 ERA and 1.32 WHIP through seven starts.
Chicago is 9-1 in its past 10 games with Arrieta starting, while Philadelphia is 6-4 in the same stretch with Morgan starting.
Writer’s Prediction
The Cubs (-300) win, 3-0.
Toronto Blue Jays vs. New York Yankees (7:05 PM ET)
Line: Toronto Blue Jays vs. New York Yankees– view all MLB lines
Another player that has been pitching splendidly this year is David Price (14-5, 2.43 ERA). The Blue Jays’ ace is 5-1 with a 2.15 ERA in seven starts since the team traded for him. During his most recent start, he delivered a solid outing by pitching seven frames of one-run ball and registered eight K’s to pick up the 5-1 victory. Price has actually proven to be even more lethal on the road, as he is 9-2 with a 2.02 ERA and 1.05 WHIP in over 14 turns.
The Yankees, meanwhile, counter with their promising rookie in Luis Severino (3-2, 2.04 ERA), who seeks his first career win opposite the Blue Jays tonight. Severino pitched at Toronto on August 16 and took the 3-1 defeat despite delivering nine strikeouts in six innings of work. He’ll be seeking revenge this time around at Yankee Stadium, where he carries a 2-1 record with a sizzling 1.56 ERA, a 1.10 WHIP and .188 opponents’ batting average across three starts.
Toronto is 6-4 in its previous 10 road games. New York, on the other hand, has lost five of its last eight home games.
Writer’s Prediction
The Yankees capture the thrilling 5-4 win.
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