Pittsburgh Pirates (63-73, fifth in the NL Central) vs. Chicago Cubs (71-66, second in the NL Central)
Chicago; Monday, 7:40 p.m. EDT
PITCHING PROBABLES: Pirates: Jared Jones (5-7, 3.88 ERA, 1.15 WHIP, 102 strikeouts); Cubs: Jameson Taillon (9-8, 3.85 ERA, 1.20 WHIP, 104 strikeouts)
BETMGM SPORTSBOOK: LINE Cubs -145, Pirates +122; over/under is 7 1/2 runs
BOTTOM LINE: The Chicago Cubs play the Pittsburgh Pirates after Dansby Swanson’s four-hit game on Sunday.
Chicago is 71-66 overall and 36-29 at home. The Cubs have a 53-8 record in games when they scored at least five runs.
Pittsburgh has a 63-73 record overall and a 31-37 record in road games. The Pirates have a 39-17 record in games when they scored five or more runs.
Monday’s game is the 11th meeting between these teams this season. The Cubs are up 6-4 in the season series.
TOP PERFORMERS: Ian Happ leads Chicago with 23 home runs while slugging .462. Seiya Suzuki is 17-for-44 with three home runs and eight RBI over the last 10 games.
Bryan Reynolds has 24 doubles, three triples and 21 home runs for the Pirates. Oneil Cruz is 16-for-41 with four doubles over the last 10 games.
LAST 10 GAMES: Cubs: 9-1, .324 batting average, 4.65 ERA, outscored opponents by 52 runs
Pirates: 4-6, .260 batting average, 6.85 ERA, outscored by 21 runs
INJURIES: Cubs: Nick Madrigal: 60-Day IL (finger), Julian Merryweather: 15-Day IL (knee), Ben Brown: 60-Day IL (neck), Luke Little: 60-Day IL (shoulder), Hayden Wesneski: 15-Day IL (forearm), Colten Brewer: 60-Day IL (hand), Yency Almonte: 60-Day IL (shoulder), Adbert Alzolay: 60-Day IL (forearm)
Pirates: Ben Heller: 15-Day IL (shoulder), Joey Bart: 10-Day IL (hamstring), Hunter Stratton: 60-Day IL (patella), Ke’Bryan Hayes: 10-Day IL (herniated disc), Marco Gonzales: 60-Day IL (forearm), Daulton Jefferies: 60-Day IL (elbow), Dauri Moreta: 60-Day IL (elbow), Endy Rodriguez: 60-Day IL (elbow), Johan Oviedo: 60-Day IL (elbow)
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The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar.
