Game Time:  7:40 PM ET, Saturday, May 7th,  2022 

Venue: Wrigley Field, Chicago, Illinois

Where to Watch: 

DraftKings: Moneyline: Dodgers -238, Cubs +195; O/U 7

 BetMGM: Moneyline:  N/A

PointsBet: Moneyline:  Dodgers -244, Cubs +195

(will update tonight as the Friday game is closed) 

Dodgers: 16-7, 1st place NL West

Cubs: 9-15, 4th place NL Central

Saturday Night’s game is going to feature a very tired Dodgers team.  If you have been following this series.  The Dodgers landed in Chicago Thursday to play Friday’s Game 1… only it was rained out.  No worries.  They’ll play a double header on Saturday and roll into game 2 on Saturday night.  No problem.  However… Have you ever had a surprise day off in Chicago?.... I have.  Chicago has some of the best restaurants in all of the middle of the country.  Big food, ethnic, classic American Steakhouse, fancy service, relaxed service, community legends, world renowned… they have it all.  (Skip the pizza, that’s junk)... so naturally after a light workout in the gym you grab a teammate and hit an early dinner spot fully intending to be back in the room for an early night of catching zzz’s.  Then you notice that your steak is bigger than your head… and your baked potato is loaded with things you didn’t even dream of before…. You also notice that Chicago is one of the last cities in America with a real happy hour culture.  A couple of pretty women from the office building across the street are celebrating one of them passing the bar.  You notice that a tall scotch on the rocks goes well with your steak and the brass railing surrounding your booth.  Your ancient Chicago waiter tells you a story about how Roger Ebert “used to come in here and sit right where you are sitting” and something funny he said.. before you know it… You’ve become a part of Chicago… you will be out all night digesting and libating.  Then you follow it with a Saturday Doubleheader, 8 hours at the ballpark… six hours of playing on a damp chilly field!   A SECOND game on Saturday!  We will be betting on that SECOND game on Saturday.  Is there a great betting opportunity?  Let’s review the numbers and the pitching matchup.

The Los Angeles Dodgers have won 6 of their last 10 games.  Nabbing 3 Overs and 7 Unders during that span.  RHP Walker Buehler seems to have found the next level and is winning consistently (season is early yet), LHP Clayton Kershaw is showing speed, movement, and control on his pitches… and for a team with 9 pitchers on the injured list the rotation looks great. (only 8 pitchers really, as Trevor Bauer will never throw a ball in the majors again).  When Treinen, Price, and May rejoin the group this will be the toughest rotation in the Bigs.  The Dodgers beat the San Francisco Giants twice for a 2-0 finish of a quick series.. That must feel great!  They went 2-1 against the Detroit Tigers, 1-2 against the Arizona Diamondbacks, and 1-1 against the San Diego Padres during that span.  

The Chicago Cubs have won only 2 of their last 10 games.  They went 4 Over, 5 Under, and 1 Push during that span.  The pitching in Chicago is like my old 92’ Nissan pickup truck… it’s sitting in a landfill somewhere.  The Cubs went 0-2 against the White Sox, 1-2 against the Milwaukee Brewers, 1-2 against the Atlanta Braves, and 1-1 against the Pittsburgh Pirates.  The shame of the Cubs is that they are hitting the ball well.  They are hitting it really well.  The front office needs to stand up right now and find some pitching before the season is lost.  I know the season is early… but each loss counts and the Cubs are losing BIG… a lot.  RHP Kyle Hendricks is 1-2 over the last 10 days… and he may be the best in the fold. The batting numbers are seriously skewed since on April 23 the Cubs beat the Pittsburgh Pirates 21-0.  A track meet of Cubs players rounding the bases… so when they rank high in OBP and Batting average… remember that maybe it’s because they had an insane fluke early in the season.  They still aren’t really winning games.

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The Dodgers are 1st in runs scored with 4.96, 11th in batting average with .239, 6th in OBP with .322.

The Cubs are 16th in scoring with 4.17 runs per game, 10th in batting average with .322, and 5th in OBP with .322

The Dodgers pitchers are 1st in TEAM ERA with 2.21, 1st in WHIP with .094, and the fielders have only committed 8 errors for 3rd in the MLB.  The Dodgers are the best defensive team in baseball.

The Cubs pitchers are 24th in ERA with 4.17, 23rd in WHIP with 1.30, and the fielders have committed 12 errors with an 11th ranking in MLB.

Our prediction for Saturday May 7th is... Dodgers 9 - Cubs 2

The Dodgers may fall prey to the Chicago night out followed by a double header… followed by a game… but they are still moon and stars better than the Cubs.  They will still muster enough energy to punt the Cubs deep into reality.  

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The Dodgers are 304-98 (+ 67.6 Units) against the moneyline as a favorite of +200 or more since 1997.
The Chicago Cubs are 3-25 (-19.2 Units) against the moneyline as a home underdog of +175 or more since 1997.
The Cubs are 3-0 (+5.1 Units) against the Dodgers at Chicago the last 3 seasons.

All 3 games in Chicago the last 3 season have gone OVER.

Dodgers: The Dodgers have 9 pitchers on the injured list. 3 of those pitchers are very important.  However the rotation is #1 already.

Cubs: 3B David Bote (shoulder) Out ** LF (appendix) Out

Dodgers: LHP Tyler Anderson, 2-0. 2.55 ERA, 15 strikeouts in 17 innings pitched.  0.96 WHIP.  The 32 year old has been solid and consistent since his debut in 2016.  This season he is pitching above his career averages in every category… maybe he found another gear?… or maybe he will regress to the mean… still he is solid.

Cubs: LHP Daniel Norris, 0-1, 6.00 ERA, 8 strikeouts in 6 inning pitched.  The 29 year old is in over his head.  He has a 4.67 ERA for his career and a 6.00 ERA this season and he will face the Dodgers lineup… on their 5th, and 6th at bats for the day!  Get ready to shag homers in the outfield.

Dodgers: RF Mookie Betts, 1B Freddie Freeman, SS Trea Turner, C Will Smith, 2B Max Muncy, DH Justin Turner, CF Cody Bellinger, LF Chris Taylor, RF Gavin Lux

Cubs: 1B Alfonso Rivas, RF Seiya Suzuki, LF Ian Happ, C Wilson Contreras, 1B Frank Schwindel, SS Nico Hoerner, CF Jason Heyward, 3B Patrick Wisdom, 2B Nick Madrigal

Dodgers: Dave Roberts

Cubs: David Ross

Sunny. Finally sunny.  65*.  The raisin that tormented these two teams on Thursday has briefly passed and the sun will allow them to play baseball on a damp field with muddy base paths… Yay!!  The wind will be at 13 mph, the humidity will be at 58%... everyone will be uncomfortable.