Nothing quite beats day baseball, and whenever the Chicago Cubs are home for a weekend series they usually play a Friday matinee, often the only one on the MLB schedule. That's the case today at 2:20 ET as the hugely struggling Miami Marlins make their only visit of the season to Wrigley Field to open a four-game set. Chicago is a -161 money line favorite with a total of 9.5. The winds are blowing at 16 mph out toward right field, and thus it's the highest total this season at Wrigley Field. 

There has been some nasty weather in the Windy City early this MLB season, and the teams were scheduled to open the series on Thursday night but it was postponed by rain. Instead of playing a day/night doubleheader today, they will do so Saturday. Both of Thursday's scheduled starting pitchers, Miami lefty AJ Puk and Cubs righty Jameson Taillon, will pitch today. It's Taillon's season debut as he had some injury issues in spring training. 

Before you lock in your Marlins vs. Cubs picks, you NEED to see what SportsLine expert Matt Severance has to say. Severance is a well-connected writer and high-volume handicapper who has worked in the industry since 2005. He is on an 81-37-1 run (69%) to start this MLB season, up nearly 17 units. Over the past three MLB seasons, Matt is up $2,395 for $100 bettors.

Miami (4-15) is tied for the second-worst record in the majors after reaching the playoffs in 2023. The Marlins have been better in a short sample on the road at 2-4 -- although each of the four losses were by multiple runs. The Cubs (11-7) are 5-1 at home but haven't played there since April 7. On Wednesday, they finished a tough nine-game West Coast trip at 5-4 with a victory in Arizona. 

Both teams have a key hitter on the injured list. For Miami, it's infielder Jake Burger with a left intercostal strain. Despite being limited to 16 games, he leads this offensively challenged team with 15 RBI and is tied for first with three homers. Chicago outfielder Seiya Suzuki is out at least a month with an oblique injury. He has been one of the National League's best hitters since about mid-August last season and was batting .305 with three homers and 13 RBI this year. 

We can tell you Severance is leaning Over on the run total, and he also says one side of the money line has ALL the value! You ABSOLUTELY need to see his play before locking in any MLB picks.

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