Mets Hope to End Recent Struggles Against Cubs

The New York Mets are 3-8 in their last 11 road games against the Chicago Cubs. The Mets will try to turn things around with a win Tuesday night in their series opener against the Cubs at Wrigley Field.

Sportsbook Odds Analysis

The Mets opened as -130 favorites on Tuesday night and have stayed right in that range, going off at -120 the morning of the game. Chicago is a +115 underdog to pull off an upset at home. The Cubs are 2-3 on the moneyline in five games as a betting underdog this season.

Starting Pitchers Analysis

New York looked to bolster its pitching staff this offseason with the addition of Taijuan Walker, who finished last season with a 2.70 ERA and a 1.16 WHIP across 11 starts with the Seattle Mariners and Toronto Blue Jays. Walker is off to a solid start in New York with a 2.61 ERA and a 1.16 WHIP through his first two starts, which both led to Mets victories.

Jake Arrieta returned to the Chicago Cubs this offseason after three disappointing seasons with the Philadelphia Phillies. Arrieta looks comfortable as a Cub again with a 2-1 record, a 3.18 ERA and a 1.29 WHIP through his first three starts of 2021. The veteran righty owns a 2.74 ERA and a 1.04 WHIP across 131 career starts with the Cubs.

New York News & Notes

Marcus Stroman continued his hot start to the season with a brilliant eight-inning performance on Sunday to lead the Mets to a 2-1 win over the Colorado Rockies. The Mets improved to 7-4 with the win and to 5-1 over their last six games. Pitching has played a big role in New York’s success this season as the Mets rank fifth in the major leagues with an impressive 2.93 team ERA.

Offensively, the Mets are off to a terrible start to the 2021 campaign, averaging only 3.36 runs per game. Brandon Nimmo has been white-hot at the plate with a .447 batting average, but overall the Mets rank dead last in home runs with only six in 11 games and are 29th in runs per game, ahead of only the San Francisco Giants.

Chicago News & Notes

The Cubs fell to 6-9 on the season and to 3-8 over their last 11 games with their 13-4 loss to the Atlanta Braves on Sunday night. Chicago gave up six runs in both the top of the first inning and the top of the sixth inning.

As a small silver lining, the Cubs did manage to score four runs of their own and bat .285 as a team. The offense is off to a dismal start this season with a .192 batting average. Chicago’s 22 home runs rank fifth in the majors and have kept the team’s slow start from being even more disastrous, but at some point, the Cubs will need to start stringing some hits together if they hope to get into the win column more frequently.

Betting Pick: New York -125