A Duel of Sorts – San Diego Padres vs. Chicago Cubs

San Diego Padres vs. Chicago Cubs 8:05 ET

The 2009 MLB betting season has gotten off to rough starts for both the San Diego Padres (13-19 -$405) and Chicago Cubs (17-14 +$5). Most MLB bettors didn’t expect SD to be one of the better baseball wagers this season, but the same can’t be said about Chicago. Yes, it currently sit three-games over .500 and just 2.5-games out of 1st place in the NL Central, but the Cubs have suffered some mighty blows to their line-up throughout the first six weeks of the season.

Off-season acquisition Milton Bradley has been largely ineffective due to a groin injury suffered the first week of sports betting play, Aramis Ramirez is now on the DL with a dislocated shoulder, and staff ace Carlos Zambrano has been riding the DL pine for over a week. This has forced Manager Lou Piniella to completely retool his starting line-up every game and the Cubs have proven to be hit or miss because of it. After being a dominant home team in the 2008 MLB betting season, the Cubs sit just 8-6 and have lost their betting backers $40 overall. The Padres picked up some solid wins as large underdogs throughout the first three weeks of the season, but come into tonight’s game slumping; they’re a bankroll depleting 5-13 on the road (-$465).

The Cubs sit as -145 home chalks with the game ‘total’ set at 8.5 under -120 per the current BetOnline Sportsbook MLB betting odds. The Cubs won five of their seven meetings with the Padres last season; which includes a 3-1 SU mark at Wrigley Field.

Jake Peavy was a player targeted by Chicago Brass this past off-season as it made some trades to help position themselves to land the righty, but the deal never panned out. Maybe they were better off as Peavy has been ordinary to say the least. He enters his eighth start of the season 2-4 with a 4.27 ERA and 1.21 WHIP through 46+ total innings of work surrendering 39 hits and 22 earned runs with a K/BB ratio of 52/17. The Padres are 0-3 in his L/3 starts, but his numbers have been solid his last two outings. He shut the Diamondbacks and Dodgers down limiting them to just six hits and two earned runs while walking just four and K’ing 20. He’s 2-1 with a 2.91 ERA and 1.35 WHIP through six career starts against the Cubs.

Rich Harden has been one of the Cubs bright spots to start the 2009 MLB betting season. He comes into his seventh start of the year 3-1 with a 4.83 ERA and 1.45 WHIP. That said; he’s been wild in spots and has been hit on occasion. He wiggled out of a number of jams in his last outing against the weak hitting Houston Astros, and went the deepest into a game he’s gone all season (7 innings). Both of his Wrigley Field starts have been uneventful for the power righty, but both of those starts were during the day where his ERA balloons up to 5.79. This will be his first career start against the Padres.

With Zambrano on the shelf and the Cubs #5 starter finally registering a win in his last start, Chicago 2,3, & 4 starters have to step up to the plate while “Big Z” recovers on the DL. Peavy comes into this start in his best form of the season, and Harden can be close to impossible for teams to hit if they’ve never seen him before. Game 1 of this series is set up to be a pitcher’s duel, so take a stab at the under this evening.

Rose’s Recommendation: 2* San Diego/Chicago Under 8’ -120

(Rating Scale: 1* – 5*)