Phillies vs Cubs Preview: Red-Hot Suarez Has Visiting Phillies Favored in Tuesday’s Series Opener

Two Teams Trending in Right Direction Get Together for Three Games at Wrigley

A pair of third-place teams will be getting together for three games at Wrigley Field looking to move closer to a playoff position in the National League. The Phillies vs Cubs preview favors a Philadelphia team that has won six straight road games in the series opener.

The Phillies are 15-7 in the month of June with the Cubs 13-8 during the month heading into the second series of the season between the teams.

Chicago is third and Philadelphia fifth during the month of June in team ERA and that has played a key role in

their recent surge by both teams. Keep that in mind when making MLB score predictions. The Phillies will be going with lefty Ranger Suarez, who has a 1.04 in four June starts in the opener.

Philadelphia is looking to become the sixth National League team with at least 20 road wins this season. The Cubs are 20-17 at home.

Philadelphia (+2500) is tied for ninth in the odds to win the World Series. The Cubs are well back at +8000 in the championship odds.

Probable Pitching Matchups

• Tuesday: Ranger Suarez (Phillies); Jameson Taillon (Cubs)
• Wednesday: Aaron Nola (Phillies); Drew Smyly (Cubs)
• Thursday: Taijuan Walker (Phillies); Kyle Hendricks (Cubs)

Dialing Long Distance

Led by the seven home runs hit by Kyle Schwarber, five different Phillies have at least two home runs during the month of June. Schwarber is hitting .218 and J.T. Realmuto is batting .239. However, they have compensated for a lack of consistent production by combining for 12 home runs.

Bryce Harper has gone without a home run in June and that figures to change at some point. Nick Castellanos has been Philadelphia’s best hitter in the month with a .375 average, nine extra-base hits, and three stolen bases. He is just one of the reasons why the Phillies vs Cubs preview favors the visiting Phillies.

The total has gone under in seven of Philadelphia’s last eight games.

Morel Ready for More?

Christopher Morel has gone five games without a home run, his second-longest streak of the season. Is he ready to change that?

Morel has four hits and a walk in the last two games and with 13 home runs in 36 games, he is on a torrid pace when it comes to the long ball.

He had one stretch when he homered in five straight games and had a stretch of four home runs in eight games earlier this month. Even with his presence, the Cubs are listed as the underdog in the series opener, according to the Phillies vs Cubs preview.

Five of the last seven times that the Cubs met a team from the NL East, the game finished over the total.

Who’s Hot

• Ian Happ, Chicago Cubs OF: Happ is hitting .400 with five runs, two home runs, four RBIs, and three walks over his last four games.
• Craig Kimbrel, Philadelphia Phillies P: Kimbrel has given up two hits and no runs with 13 strikeouts in seven innings during his last seven outings.
• Mark Leiter, Chicago Cubs P: Leiter has not allowed a run in his last seven games. He has surrendered two hits and struck out nine batters in over 8.1 innings during that stretch.
• Brandon Marsh, Philadelphia Phillies OF: Marsh is 10-for-17 with three doubles and three runs over the last five games.

Who’s Not

• Tucker Barnhart, Chicago Cubs C: Barnhart is 1-for-9 with five strikeouts in his last four games. His lone hit was a home run.
• Kyle Schwarber, Philadelphia Phillies OF: Schwarber is 0-for-15 with nine strikeouts over his last four games.
• Andrew Vasquez, Philadelphia Phillies P: Vasquez has allowed seven hits and four runs in 5.1 innings in his last four appearances.
• Hayden Wesneski, Chicago Cubs P: Wesneski has given up 10 hits, three home runs, and 10 runs in 11.1 innings during the month of June.

Phillies vs Cubs Injury Update

Pitcher Michael Plassmeyer is questionable for the Phillies while pitcher Seranthony Dominguez is on the 15-day injured list.

For the Cubs, outfielders Cody Bellinger and Brennen Davis are questionable as is pitcher Marcus Stroman.

Phillies vs Cubs Betting Preview

The Cubs have a 1.23-team ERA over the last five games. Will that continue against a Phillies team that is fifth among National League teams with a .264 batting average and a .421 slugging percentage in the month of June.

When the Cubs won 10-1 in the first meeting of the season between the teams, it was their seventh straight win against the Phillies. Philadelphia won the next two games to take the series.

Five of the last seven games between the teams finished under the total.

When looking at baseball betting trends, Philadelphia is 28-18 when listed as the favorite. The Cubs are 13-21 as the underdog. The Cubs have covered 21 of their 37 home games compared to the Phillies going 19-23 against the spread on the road.

The Phillies are priced at -120 to win the series with the Cubs coming in at -110.

For MLB betting news, odds, analysis, and more, visit Point Spreads Sports Magazine.

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