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2015 MLB Wild Card Game Pick: Cubs vs. Pirates

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MLB Wild Card Game Pick: Cubs vs. Pirates

The MLB Postseason for the National League gets started on Wednesday night, with the NL Wild Card game between the Chicago Cubs and the Pittsburgh Pirates.

Keep reading because we’ve got an exclusive pick for you, along with all the analysis you need to make an informed bet.

Chicago Cubs vs. Pittsburgh Pirates

  • Time: Wednesday, October 07, 2015 8:08 PM ET
  • Place: PNC Park

Having snatched the NL Central title with a 100-win season, the St. Louis Cardinals left the Pirates and the Cubs battling it out to gain the Wild Card into the division series. 

The Pirates will play host to this win-or-go-home game, matching-up  Gerrit Cole against Jake Arrieta as starting pitchers. 

Gerrit Cole Analysis: Having faced the Cubs many-a-time in his career, Cole has fared well against them. In nine starts against Chicago, he's gone 7-1 with a 2.88 ERA and 1.101 WHIP over 56.1 innings, including a 2-1 record with a 2.13 ERA in four starts against them this season.

Cole cannot be counted out, and he gives the Pirates a shot to beat the Cubs, despite Arrieta’s dominance. He’s ranks fifth in the NL for ERA, and he managed to win against the Cubs in his second-to-last start. Cole only allowed one run in seven innings to the Cubs on Sept. 25, though Chicago scored four runs, three of which were earned off Cole in Pittsburgh ten days before. 

Jake Arrieta Analysis: Last season, the Pirates did not face Arrieta at all as the starting pitcher; this year however, the pitcher has all but manhandled Pittsburgh in the five times he’s started against them. Arrieta has gone 3-1 with a 0.75 ERA, 0.639 WHIP and 33 strikeouts in 36 innings. 

The only player who might have success against Arrieta is possibly Andrew McCutchen, with a .348 career batting average in 23 at-bats. Apart from that, none of the Pirates batters have been able to bat against the star pitcher. 

As far as the teams go, the Pirates finished with the second-best record in MLB, winning 98 games which earned them the home field advantage; which isn’t to say the Cubs should be impressed, having finished with the third-best record in all of baseball. 

Prediction: It’s the third time in a row that Pittsburgh hosts the NL Wild Card game, and undoubtedly the home crowd will do their best to rile up the opposing Cubs. However, being up against Arrieta is practically an impossible scenario and unless something less than a miracle happens, the young phenom will be performing at his usual best. We just don’t see Pittsburgh’s batters being able to do anything against him. Although Cole might be able to hold off Chicago’s offense, it’s likely that they’ll at least be able to catch the early lead, allowing Arrieta to do his job and take the win on Wednesday night. Take the Cubs at -130.

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