Red Sox vs Cubs Prediction, Odds & Best Bet for July 16 (Chicago Leans on Steele's Strikeout Ability)

The Boston Red Sox (49-44) and Chicago Cubs (43-48) will decide the winner of their three-game series when they meet at Wrigley Field on Sunday, July 16.

Red Sox vs Cubs Game Info

• Date: Sunday, July 16, 2023
• Time: 2:20 p.m. ET
• Venue: Wrigley Field -- Chicago, Illinois
• Coverage: Marquee Sports Network, New England Sports Network

Momentum is on the Cubs' side after Saturday's massive 10-4 win over the Red Sox. Center fielder Cody Bellinger dazzled the Chicago faithful, recording a home run with four RBIs in four at-bats while starting pitcher Marcus Stroman allowed just one run with three strikeouts through six innings.

Red Sox vs Cubs Odds & Spread

• All MLB betting lines, odds, and prop bets are from FanDuel Sportsbook.
• Moneyline: BOS: (+122) | CHC: (-144)
• Spread: BOS: +1.5 (-162) | CHC: -1.5 (+134)
• Total: 9.5 -- Over: (+100) | Under: (-122)

The Cubs enter this contest as home favorites on the moneyline and spread per FanDuel Sportsbook's odds. This 2:20 p.m. ET clash also features an over/under of 9.5 runs with the Under being favored at -122 odds. 

Red Sox vs Cubs Betting Trends

• Boston is 6-1 straight up (SU) in its last seven games.
• The Cubs are 8-4 SU in their last 12 games against the AL East.
• The total has hit the Over in four of Boston's last five road games.
• The total has hit the Over in five of the Cubs' last six games.

Red Sox vs Cubs Prediction & Pick

The Cubs are turning to Justin Steele to, hopefully, capitalize on yesterday's momentum. The NL Cy Young contender (+2000, T-No. 6 on FanDuel Sportsbook) has been near-flawless lately, going 3-0 with a 2.05 with 24 strikeouts over 26 1/3 innings in his last five starts.

Meanwhile, it'll be interesting to see which version of Kutter Crawford shows up. The Red Sox starting pitcher has been shaky lately, playing to a 5.17 ERA in his last three appearances. He only last four innings in his latest start on July 6, giving up three runs on seven hits in a 10-6 win over the Texas Rangers.

While the Red Sox have been the better club overall this season, I'm taking the Cubs to win this afternoon. Chicago has been playing well lately, with three combined wins over Boston and the New York Yankees over its last five games. Steele is also one of the best pitchers in the league at the moment and should give the Red Sox trouble early on.

I expect another back-and-forth game resulting with the Cubs standing tall in the end.

Final Score Prediction: Cubs: 5 | Red Sox: 4

Red Sox vs Cubs Best Bet

For the best bet, let's go with Justin Steele striking out 5+ batters with a Cubs victory at +125 odds. Recording five-plus strikeouts isn't a big ask from Steele, having done so in nine of his 16 starts so far in 2023. He's also finished with at least five K's in each of his last three appearances and has racked up 43 strikeouts in as many innings at Wrigley Field this season.

With the Cubs feeling good after their latest win, I won't be shocked if another strong showing from Steele helps them parlay that momentum into another victory.

Bet: Justin Steele 5+ Strikeouts and Cubs Win (+125)

Devon Platana is not a FanDuel employee. In addition to providing DFS gameplay advice, Devon Platana also participates in DFS contests on FanDuel using his personal account, username PepeSilvia0. While the strategies and player selections recommended in his articles are his personal views, he may deploy different strategies and player selections when entering contests with his personal account. The views expressed in their articles are the author's alone and do not necessarily reflect the views of FanDuel.

Game odds refresh periodically and are subject to change.