All the betting trends seemed to be on the side of the Cleveland Indians after they won Game 1 of the World Series in a 6-0 rout Tuesday.
But the Chicago Cubs returned the favor in Game 2 with a 5-1 victory. They find themselves as large -200 favorites Friday (wager $200 to win $100) at sportsbooks monitored by Odds Shark in Game 3 at Wrigley Field, in part because they have the best home pitcher in baseball taking the mound for them.
Chicago’s Kyle Hendricks (game log) not only had the lowest ERA in MLB overall this year at 2.13, but he was also unreal at home with a 9-2 mark and 1.32 ERA in 15 games. Last season, he was 2-3 with a 3.38 ERA in 15 games at Wrigley Field, showing what a big difference a year can make.
In fact, the emergence of Hendricks, improvement of Jon Lester and addition of John Lackey alongside Game 2 winner Jake Arrieta made the team’s four-man starting rotation the best in the big leagues.
Cleveland is not so lucky, as it depends more on an outstanding bullpen and ace Corey Kluber, who shut down the Cubs in Game 1 and is scheduled to start again on short rest Saturday in Game 4 at Wrigley.
In Game 3, the Indians will be sending Josh Tomlin (game log) to the hill following two solid postseason outings against the Boston Red Sox and Toronto Blue Jays. Tomlin went 2-0 in those games with a 2.53 ERA, allowing three runs and seven hits in 10.2 innings with three walks and 10 strikeouts.
During the regular season, Tomlin was 8-4 in 15 road starts with a 4.31 ERA, and opposing batters hit .257 against him.
Tomlin will not have to worry about facing Chicago’s Kyle Schwarber, who was not medically cleared to play in the outfield after going 3-for-7 with a double and two RBI as the designated hitter in the first two games at Cleveland.
The Indians have won six of their last seven games at National League ballparks in interleague play after dropping eight of 11. The over has gone 9-5-1 in their past 15 interleague road games, and the under has cashed in the first two games of the World Series.
Chicago heads into Game 3 as the -225 favorite on the updated World Series odds.
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