Wrigley Field hosts an MLB battle between the Chicago Cubs and the visiting Washington Nationals on Thursday.

It's a pitching duel between Ryan Dempster for the Cubs (0-0 on the year) and Stephen Strasburg for Washington (0-0 so far).



View Washington vs Chi Cubs Odds and Stats.

Betting Line:
Sportsbooks had set the Cubs as +150 underdogs on the Sportsbook moneyline for this contest. The over under opened at 999 for bettors hoping to turn a profit on totals.

Power Rankings:
The Odds Shark MLB Power Rankings have the Cubs at No. 9 in the National League and the Nationals at No. 15 in the National League heading into this contest.



How They Match Up:
At the plate, Chicago owns the No. 3 ranking for hits in the National League at 0 per game. By contrast, the Nationals are rated No. 3 in the same category at 0 per game.

Chicago owns the National League's No. 1 defense, allowing 0 men per game to cross the plate. That contrasts with Washington's National League No. 1-rated defense.

The Nationals were a 3-1 Sportsbook in their most recent outing on the road against the Marlins. That made Sportsbooks of bettors who got Washington at -135 on the moneyline, while the total score (4) was good news for UNDER bettors. The Nationals hope for a dominant pitching performance similar to their last game when Stephen Strasburg struck out 10 batters in 3-1 victory on Wednesday at Sun Life Stadium.

Chicago lost its last outing, a 9-2 result against the Padres on September 28. Bettors who backed the Padres at -116 on the moneyline won on the day, and the total score (11) sent OVER bettors to the payout window. Chicago looks to rebound from a loss to the Padres, who beat them 9-2 on Wednesday behind a start from Wade LeBlanc at PETCO Park.


Washington Nationals Trends:
When playing on Thursday are 5-5
Before playing Chi Cubs are 5-5
After playing Florida are 5-5
After a win are 7-3

Chicago Cubs Trends:
When playing on Thursday are 5-5
Before playing Washington are 4-6
After playing San Diego are 5-5
After a loss are 6-4

A few Nationals at Cubs trends to consider:
The total has gone UNDER in 5 of Washington's last 5 games when playing on the road against Chi Cubs
Washington is 10-1 SU in its last 11 games on the road
Washington is 9-2 SU in its last 11 games
The total has gone UNDER in 4 of Washington's last 5 games
The total has gone UNDER in 5 of Chi Cubs' last 5 games at home
The total has gone UNDER in 5 of Chi Cubs' last 5 games when playing at home against Washington
The total has gone UNDER in 9 of Chi Cubs' last 11 games
Chi Cubs are 5-2 SU in their last 7 games at home


Next up:
Washington at Chi Cubs, Saturday, April 7