It’s a series full of interesting storylines that we’ll let other people cover — let’s get right to the facts. The Indians enter the World Series as underdogs for a third straight series and they opened Game 1 at home as a slim underdog as well. Given Corey Kluber’s recent run at home that’s seen the Indians win 12 of his last 13 starts at Progressive Field, the Indians are offering excellent value.
- Mike Napoli is 6-for-10 in his career vs Jon Lester with two home runs.
- The Cubs are 8-1 in their last nine games vs American League teams.
- The total has gone OVER in seven of the Cubs' last eight games on the road.
Quite simply, Kluber has been awesome during the postseason so far, registering a 0.98 ERA in three starts. Two of those starts were at home where he allowed 0 runs in 13.1 innings pitched. That’s impressive work, especially when you consider the three starts have come against the powerhouse Blue Jays and Red Sox.
The Cubs will counter with Jon Lester, who’s somehow put up better numbers than Kluber in the playoffs so far. In three starts, he’s posted a 0.86 ERA with the Cubs picking up the win in each game.
The Game 1 starters have combined to allow just four runs in 39.1 innings in the playoffs, so it’s no shock to see the game open with a low total of 6.5. The Indians went UNDER that mark in every game in the five-game ALCS, while only four of the Cubs’ 10 playoff games have seen fewer than 6.5 runs.
Historically, the Game 1 Sportsbook gets a major edge in the series. Nine of the last 10 World Series Sportsbooks have won Game 1 and no team has lost the World Series after winning Game 1 since 2009. Going back even further, 17 of the last 19 World Series Sportsbooks won the Sportsbook game.
Sportsbook Odds & Computer Pick
Sportsbooks such as Sportsbook had set the Cleveland Indians as -105 on the moneyline for this contest. The over under was hovering near 7 for betting fans hoping to turn a profit on totals at Sportsbook.
Odds Shark prediction models pick the Cubs to win this game 3.6-1.9. View the computer score prediction and who will win the pick on the moneyline for all upcoming MLB matchups here.
Chicago Cubs vs Cleveland Indians Matchup
Team Betting Records & Power Rankings
Cleveland (101-68) will face the 110-61 Cubs in this tilt. Stay Informed: follow us on Twitter for odds specials, betting line moves and Cleveland vs Chicago injuries news.
The MLB Power Rankings show a disparity between these teams, with the Cleveland Indians rated this week at No. 13 and the Chicago Cubs sitting at No. 1.
Statistical Matchup
Scoring stats point to some edges in this matchup. The game features the Cleveland Indians No. 5-ranked scoring average of 4.76 runs per game, against a Chicago Cubs offense rated No. 3 and scoring 4.98 runs per game. The Indians have averaged 8.79 hits per game to date this season, more than the Cubs hitters have managed (8.62 per nine innings).
Comparing defensive stats, Chicago owns the No. 3-rated road mark, allowing 3.86 runs per game on the highway. Cleveland, on the other hand, rates No. 3 in scoring at home.
Recent Outings Betting Recap
Cleveland threw a shutout at Toronto in their last outing, using a shutdown performance by Ryan Merritt to defeat Toronto 3-0 on Wednesday.
- Chi Cubs is 5-1 ATS in its last 6 games
- Chi Cubs is 8-3 SU in its last 11 games
- Chi Cubs is 4-2 SU in its last 6 games on the road
- The total has gone OVER in 7 of Chi Cubs's last 8 games on the road
- Cleveland is 7-1 ATS in its last 8 games
- Cleveland is 10-1 SU in its last 11 games
- The total has gone UNDER in 5 of Cleveland's last 5 games
- Cleveland is 4-1 ATS in its last 5 games at home
Next Betting Matchups
Chicago at Cleveland, Wednesday, October 26th
