Chicago Cubs vs. Pittsburgh Pirates Prediction, Picks and Preview – September 16, 2015

Another promising Wednesday night awaits you in the MLB, as the Chicago Cubs (83-61) and the Pittsburgh Pirates (87-57) lock horns for the third bout of their four-game series at PNC Park. The Cubs will be sending their ace in Jake Arietta on the mound, while the Bucs oppose with veteran hurler A.J Burnett for this crucial National League showdown. Who gets the much-needed win tonight?

Read on below for a comprehensive breakdown of this matchup. And if you’re craving for other sports action, indulge yourself with some of our Week 2 previews of the 2015-16 NFL season:  Houston Texans vs. Carolina Panthers, Atlanta Falcons vs. New York Giants and San Francisco 49ers vs. Pittsburgh Steelers.
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Chicago Cubs vs. Pittsburgh Pirates Preview

Where: PNC Park, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

When:  Wednesday, September 16, 7:05 PM ET

Line: Chicago Cubs (-140) vs. Pittsburgh Pirates (+130); total: 7.0—View all MLB Lines

Betting on the Chicago Cubs

After splitting their double-header yesterday with the Pittsburgh Pirates, the Chicago Cubs continue their four-game series when they put their trust on Jake Arrieta (19-6, 1.99 ERA), who goes on the mound for Game 3 this evening.

[sc:MLB240banner ]Arrieta has been flat out unstoppable throughout his season. He’s won eight straight starts since the beginning of August, during which he’s compiled an ERA of 0.46 and has registered 57 strikeouts in a total of 58 1/3 innings. The 29-year-old will also be aiming for his 17th consecutive quality start and become the first Cubs’ 20-game winner since Jon Lieber in 2001.  Against the Pirates, Arrieta is 5-1 with a 2.05 ERA, a .93 WHIP and .195 opponents’ batting average across seven career starts.

On offense, Arrieta will be looking receive some support from his teammates, who have provided him 4.61 RS/9 thus far this year.

That said, the onus is on the pair of Anthony Rizzo and Kris Bryant to lead charge at the plate. Rizzo has only gone 2-for-18 in his previous five games but an offensive outburst could come any time later as he owns a pretty solid triple-slash line of .290/.386/.505 off the Bucs in his career. Bryant, meanwhile, holds a team-high of 92 RBIS this year and is 2-for-4 lifetime opposite A.J. Burnett.

Chicago is 9-1 in its past 10 outings with Arrieta starting.

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Betting on the Pittsburgh Pirates

The Pittsburgh Pirates are looking to continue making interesting in the frantic race for the postseason. They currently hold a four-game lead of the first wild card spot in the National League and are three games short of the division crown. Now, they’ll be striving to improve their current position when they clash for the third meeting of their four-game set with the Chicago Cubs.

Toeing the rubber for the Bucs is A.J Burnett (8-5, 3.14 ERA), who aims for his ninth win later tonight. Burnett had a mixed kind of performance in his return from the disabled list during his last time out. The 38-year-old veteran allowed three earned runs in the first inning and immediately followed it up with four hitless frames for the eventual 5-4 loss to the Brewers Thursday night.

But Burnett is on track for a strong outing this time around as he’s been pitching phenomenally in two starts versus Chicago this year. In that brief stretch, he has a 1-0 record and only yielded a single run through 13 innings. Also, he is 2-3 with a quality 2.33 ERA and 1.20 WHIP in over 11 turns at PNC Park this season.

Moving onto offense, expect none other than Andrew McCutchen to continue holding a hot bat for the Pirates. McCutchen is in the midst of a six-game hitting streak, wherein he is 8-for-26 with a homer and four RBIs to his name. He’s also provided some headaches to Jake Arrieta, batting 8-for-18 throughout his career opposite the Cubs’ ace.

Pittsburgh is 4-3 in Burnett’s previous seven turns.

Writer’s Prediction:

Arietta pitches a gem to lead Chicago (-140) to a thrilling 4-3 victory.
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