Yankees vs Cubs Picks and Prediction – 9/6/2024

The Friday MLB schedule will get underway with a matinee between the New York Yankees and the Chicago Cubs from Wrigley Field. Be ready for the baseball season with all of our MLB predictions. The Yankees (80-60) are 14 games above .500 on the road and trail Baltimore by a half-game for the top spot in the AL East Division. On Wednesday, All-Star OF Juan Soto hit his 38th home run of the season and OF Trent Grisham added a pinch-hit grand slam for New York during a 10-6 road loss against Texas. 

Twenty-six year old righty Luis Gil (12-6 3.39 ERA) will take the mound for the Yankees in this matchup. New York has dropped Gil’s previous two starts and he has surrendered seven runs over his last seven innings. 

The Chicago Cubs have won seven of their last ten games and are 4.5 games back in the race for the final NL Wild Card spot. On Wednesday, Chicago SP Shota Imanaga (12-3) and a pair of relievers combined on a no-hitter during a 12-0 home victory versus Pittsburgh. Dansby Swanson and Pete-Crow Armstrong combined for six RBIs to provide the offense for the Cubs (72-68), who improved to 37-31 at home. 

Chicago manager Craig Counsell will turn to twenty-five year old righty Jordan Wicks (2-2 3.82 ERA) on Friday. Last time out, Wicks fired five shutout frames and did not strike out a batter during a 14-1 road triumph against Washington. 

Chicago SP Justin Steele has landed on the 15-day injured list with left elbow inflammation. Through 140 games, New York ranks 1st in OPS and 2nd in runs scored. For the season, Chicago ranks 14th in OPS and 12th in runs scored. Take the Cubs to win at home. Final Score Prediction, Chicago Cubs win 5-2.