Happy Father’s Day! A great way to wrap up a holiday weekend is to enjoy a Sunday night baseball rivalry clash. Tonight, the Cubs visit the Cardinals in a game that will be nationally televised by ESPN.
Chicago has been seen as “disappointing” in many circles because the Cubs started 2018 slowly and have taken weeks to work their way near the top of the NL Central. When you’re expected to win around 95 games, you’re not supposed to start a season 16-15.
That said, Chicago found a faster gear the second week in May, and was back on pace to make a run at 100 wins entering this St. Louis series — sustained, quality play for more than a month.
And, given the injury woes of the Dodgers, a very strong case can be made that the Cubs are the most dynamic team in the National League right now.
The Cubs:
- lead the NL in run differential, a great indicator stat for future success.
- lead the NL by a mile in Road ERA, which helps evaluate pitching staffs in a neutralized environment.
- rank second in the NL in Road Runs per Game, another great stat for cleaning out ballpark effects from everyone’s ledger.
Even with a slow launch — and even with Yu Darvish making only eight starts before hitting the disabled list — the Cubs will carry a championship pedigree into the second half of the season.
The Cubs are currently +375 (between 7/2 and 4/1) at William Hill to win the NL, co-favorites with the Nationals.
Odds to win National League
Team Opening Odds Current Odds
Dodgers 12/5 4/1
Cubs 3/1 +375
Nationals 4/1 +375
D’backs 7/1 11/1
Cardinals 17/2 12/1
Rockies 12/1 15/1
Mets 12/1 35/1
Giants 12/1 15/1
Brewers 15/1 5/1
Pirates 30/1 35/1
Braves 30/1 15/2
Marlins 30/1 1,000/1
Reds 50/1 1,000/1
Padres 60/1 150/1
Phillies 60/1 12/1
* Opening odds date: 11/2/17
