After taking the opener of this series Friday night the Cubs shoot to clinch the series when the teams meet again out at Chavez Ravine Saturday night. Young Michael Grove gets the call for Los Angeles here against newcomer Jameson Taillon for Chicago. How are we playing this game with our free baseball betting pick?

MLB Betting Odds

Saturday’s baseball betting market opened Los Angeles and Grove at around -150 over Chicago and Taillon, with an over/under of nine runs. Early betting action then bumped the Dodgers 15 cents to -165.

Cubs-Dodgers MLB Betting Preview

Chicago grabbed the opener of this series Friday night 8-2. The Cubs broke a 1-1 tie with a run in the top of the fourth inning, then later pulled away with three runs in the eighth and two more in the ninth for the victory. Chicago won Friday as a +140 underdog on the dime line and those two ninth-inning runs pushed the game over a total of 8.5. With Friday’s win the Cubs are 6-2 over their last eight games. With Friday’s loss Los Angeles is 2-5 over its last seven games. Last year the Dodgers swept the season series from Chicago seven games to none.

Saturday's Pitching Match-Up

Grove, with eight career ML starts under his belt, is 0/2 on quality starts this season. First, he gave up three runs on two hits and two walks through four innings of a 13-4 Los Angeles victory over Colorado. But last Sunday he got rocked for nine runs in less than four frames of an 11-6 Dodgers defeat against Arizona. Last year Grove hit 0/6 on quality starts, never pitching more than five innings, although LA played 5-1 with him. This will be Grove’s first career start against the Cubs. Taillon is also 0/2 on quality starts this year. First, he allowed three runs and seven hits through four innings of a 9-5 Chicago loss to Milwaukee. Then last Sunday he gave up five runs - four earned - through five innings of an 8-2 Cubs loss to Texas. Last year, pitching for the Yankees, Taillon his 12/28 on quality starts, as New York played a wonderful 24-8 with him. This will be Taillon’s first start against the Dodgers since 2018, which is already a long time ago.

Splits With the Sticks

Yes, it’s still early, but ... Chicago is batting .284 against right-handed pitching this season, with a .342 team OBP and a .442 team slugging percentage. Los Angeles is slashing .253/.346/.506 against right-handed pitching.

The Bullpens

The Dodgers bullpen, one of the best in Baseball last season, owns a 5.48 ERA this season, along with a 1.44 WHIP and a 4.30 K/BB ratio. The Chicago pen owns a 4.27 ERA, a 1.12 WHIP and a 3.38 K/BB ratio. MLB Betting Trends The Cubs are 6-4 against right-handed starters this season. The Dodgers are 6-4 against right-handed starters. All seven of LA’s wins this season have come by at least two runs.

Totals Report

The overs are 7-5 in Cubs games this season. The overs are 8-5 in Dodgers games. The unders played 37-36 at Dodger Stadium last season.