The first half of the Major League Baseball season concludes on Sunday and the last game on the board in baseball futures has the Los Angeles Dodgers hosting the Chicago Cubs.
This matchup in baseball betting that can be seen on ESPN features Carlos Silva going for the Cubs against the Dodgers Vicente Padilla.
Baseball futures will favor the Dodgers in this game but the pitching edge goes to the Cubs. Silva has been the best starter for the Cubs this season. He is 9-2 with a 2.96 ERA this season. He has thrown seven straight quality starts. He is 1-0 in his last three starts with a 2.75 ERA. In the last ten seasons he is 3-0 against the Dodgers with a 4.08 ERA.
Padilla is 3-2 with a 4.72 ERA this season. Since coming back from injury he has been superb. In his last three starts he has gone 20 2/3 innings and given up only five runs. He is 2-1 in that time with a 2.18 ERA. In the last ten seasons he is 3-4 against the Cubs with a 4.79 ERA.
The Cubs swept the Diamondbacks earlier this week but overall the team has not played well this season. They don’t have much starting pitching and their lineup looks old. Chicago is really not in the picture in the National League Central division race. Chicago usually struggles to score runs as they are 25th in the league.
The Cubs came into this series playing better while the Dodgers lost two of three at home to the Marlins. The Dodgers will want to end the first half on a high note so they should come out with a big effort on Sunday night.
The Dodgers are very much in the National League West race. Los Angeles is winning with an offense that is 6th in the league in runs scored. Their pitching has not been great but if Padilla continues to pitch as he has then things will be looking up. The Dodgers have the potential to have a decent rotation if everyone is healthy. Los Angeles has been better at home than on the road and even with Silva going for the Cubs; the Dodgers are favored in baseball betting on Sunday.