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Atlanta Braves at Chicago Cubs Betting Preview

Sunday Night Baseball features a rubber match of N.L. teams as the Atlanta Braves (6-9) take on the Chicago Cubs (6-8). Chicago will host this one at Wrigley Field, with first pitch scheduled for 7:08 pm ET.

While the Braves took the first matchup 5-2 on Friday, the Cubs bounced back in a big way Saturday, winning 13-4.

In the win, the Cubs smacked six home runs, including two by Wilson Contreras and two by Kris Bryant. Trevor Williams picked up the win after pitching five innings, allowing four hits, three walks, one run, and striking out four.

In the loss, Ronald Acuna Jr. and Marcell Ozuna went a combined three for seven with two runs and two runs batted in. Still, it was not enough to overcome a rough start by Huascar Ynoa, who went just four innings, allowing six runs.

Pitching Matchup

In the finale, the Braves will go with righty Bryce Wilson. This will actually be Wilson’s 2021 debut. Last season, the 23-year-old went 1-0 in six games (two starts) with a 4.02 ERA, 1.72 WHIP, and struck out 15 in 15.2 innings.

The Cubs will send Kyle Hendricks (0-1, 3.00 ERA) to the mound, assuming that he continues to feel better. Earlier in the week, he felt ill, and while he tested negative for the coronavirus, the Cubs still withheld him from his start out of an abundance of caution.

By The Numbers

The 13-run outburst was a welcomed sight for Cubs’ fans. Prior to this outing, they had ranked dead last in runs per game at just 2.62. The Braves rank 11th, averaging 4.57 runs.

On the defensive side, the Cubs hold the advantage. They rank 14th in runs allowed per game at 4.38. The Braves rank 18th allowing 4.71 runs per game.

Braves Need To Play Better In Loaded N.L. East

In a loaded N.L. East where any of the top four teams could win the division (and even the Marlins are competitive), the Braves know they can’t afford to fall too far behind. Despite a 6-9 record, the Braves still have the second-best odds to win the East at +160.

If Ronald Acuna Jr. wasn’t in the conversation for best player in MLB, he certainly should be now. Through 60 at-bats, he is hitting .433/.493/.917 with seven home runs, 16 runs batted in, 20 runs scored, and three stolen bases.

As good as Acuna has been, the Braves would like star first baseman Freddie Freeman going a bit more. He is hitting just .212/.369/.462, although he does have four home runs and nine runs batted in.

Will The Real Cubs Please Stand Up?

With the likes of Kris Bryant, Anthony Rizzo, Javier Baez, and Wilson Contreras on their team, it was hard to believe that the Cubs were the worst offensive team in the majors. While the 13 runs they scored Saturday won’t be the norm, the Cubs are hoping to get back on track offensively.

Leading the way thus far for the Cubs is third baseman Kris Bryant and catcher Wilson Contreras. For Bryant, he is hitting .261/.352/.674 with five home runs, ten runs batted in, and ten runs scored.

Not to be outdone, Contreras is hitting .282/.420/.667 with five home runs, eight runs batted in, and nine runs scored.

Chicago would still like to get Javier Baez and Anthony Rizzo going, though. Baez has four home runs but is hitting just .192. Rizzo is hitting .229 with just a single home run and two runs batted in.

Taking Chicago To Win

This one is a tough one. When you have Ronald Acuna Jr., Freddie Freeman, and Marcell Ozuna in the lineup, you can never count the Braves out.

Still, Saturday may have been just the spark that the Cubs needed to get going this season, and Kyle Hendricks is the perfect starter to back up the power surge with a solid pitching effort. Take the Cubs to win in this one.

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