Chicago Cubs Look to Get Over the .500 Mark Tuesday vs. Pittsburgh Pirates

The Chicago Cubs will look to keep the good times rolling on Tuesday night against the Pittsburgh Pirates.

Aug 26, 2024; Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA; Chicago Cubs second baseman Nico Hoerner (LC) and third baseman Isaac Paredes (17) and right fielder Cody Bellinger (24) greet shortstop Dansby Swanson (7) crossing home plate on a grand slam home run against the Pittsburgh Pirates during the sixth inning at PNC Park. / Charles LeClaire-USA TODAY Sports

The Chicago Cubs entered a do-or-die portion of their schedule starting just under two weeks ago. To this point, they have been handling business, winning seven out of their last 10 games.

That has them back at the .500 mark, a place they haven’t been since June 5th after a win over the Chicago White Sox.

On Monday, they crushed their National League Central rivals, the Pittsburgh Pirates, 18-8. It was a historic performance by the Cubs, who accomplished something not done since 1912 in the rout.

Tuesday night presents Chicago with a chance to get over the .500 mark for the first time since May 28th. They will have their work cut out for them, as they will be facing off against one of the Pirates star rookies, Jared Jones.

He is 5-6 on the season with a 3.56 ERA. The impressive rookie is making his return off the injured list, as he has not pitched with the Major League club since July 3rd because of a lat injury.

This will be the third time this season that Jones faces off against the Cubs. He has gone 1-1 in his previous starts with a 3.75 ERA, tossing 12 innings with 11 strikeouts.

Opposing Jones for Chicago will be Justin Steele, who is 4-5 with a 3.07 ERA in 21 starts. This is the third time he will be facing off against Pittsburgh this season. He has found no success in his first two starts, pitching to a 9.31 ERA in 9.2 innings.

The Cubs enter the game as slight favorites, with a line of -119. The Pirates are underdogs at +100, with an over/under of eight runs being set. The probabilities are razor thin, with Chicago holding a 51-49 edge in percentages.

When favored this season, the Cubs have won 50.8 percent of the time. That percentage jumps to 57.1 when favored by at least -119.

This is a huge game for Chicago, as they cannot afford many slip-ups as they attempt to climb back into the playoff picture. Entering play on Tuesday, they have only a 3.2 percent chance of making the playoffs according to ESPN.

The Cubs are currently 10 games behind the Milwaukee Brewers in the NL Central. In the wild card race, they are 5.5 games behind the final spot, which is currently held down by the Atlanta Braves.