Published Mar 7, 8:15pm ET by
Paul Lebowitz - Betting Preview Analyst and Sports Writer
Last updated Mar 7, 8:15pm ET
Grok AI
Updated Mar 7, 8:15pm ET
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| Chicago Cubs | -140 |
| San Francisco Giants | +120 |
Spring training stats are generally discarded for a reason: They mean nothing once the regular season starts. However, with the Giants making such a fundamental and outside-the-box change at manager by hiring Tony Vitello, it is clearly important to them that they set a winning tone even if it's only March.
Vitello has no professional experience at all as a player, coach, or manager.
Still, the Giants are 12-2 this spring.
Against the Cubs, they send righty Landen Roupp to the mound.
In 2025, Roupp made 22 starts and posted a 7-7 record with a 3.80 ERA. He struck out 102 and issued 45 walks in 106.2 innings. Thus far this spring, he's made 2 appearances and thrown 3 innings, striking out 4 and not surrendering a hit or a run.
Most of the Giants' players are with the team. Key players at the WBC include Harrison Bader, Logan Webb, Joon Hoo Lee, and Luis Arraez.
Outfielder Victor Bericoto is batting .429 with 2 home runs and 2 doubles. Matt Chapman is hitting .389 with 2 homers. Luis Matos is at .409 with 2 homers. Willy Adames is struggling badly, batting .130.
The Cubs won 92 games in 2025 and lost in the NLDS to the Brewers. To take the next step in 2026, they signed Alex Bregman to take over at 3rd base.
Chicago has plenty of firepower with Bregman, Dansby Swanson, Michael Busch, Ian Happ, and Pete Crow-Armstrong.
For the matchup with the Giants, they send veteran reliever Hunter Harvey to the mound. Obviously, Harvey will not be used as a starter in the regular season, but he's just getting his work in early here. Injuries limited him to 10.2 innings for the Royals in 2025. This spring, he's thrown 2 innings, allowed 3 hits, 1 earned run, striking out 1.
Catcher Carson Kelly is batting .353 so far with 2 homers. Shortstop Dansby Swanson is off to a hot start, batting .385 with 2 homers.
Bregman, Armstrong, and Seiya Suzuki are playing in the WBC.
For the Giants vs Cubs spring training meeting, the Giants are clearly trying to win as many games this spring as possible to get Vitello off on the right foot in his foray into MLB. The Cubs are treating spring training as a way to get ready for the season, as evidenced by using Harvey as a starter when he will not be used that way once the season gets underway.
The Giants have been playing very well and seem to have a lot to prove. They will take this game behind Loupp.
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Pick
Chicago Cubs -140
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