The Chicago Cubs are having a successful season in their first year under manager Joe Maddon, but even though the franchise has been cursed since 1945, they probably can't believe their bad luck of being in the same division as the St. Louis Cardinals.
The Cards are an MLB-best 50-24 (.676 winning percentage) heading into these two teams' matchup on ESPN Sunday Night Baseball at 8:05 p.m. EDT and are the first team since the 2005 White Sox to win 50 games before losing 25. The Cubs, at 39-34, find themselves 10.5 games behind the Cardinals in the National League Central and the NL's second-best team, the Pittsburgh Pirates.
Sunday Night Baseball viewers have seen plenty of these two teams, as they met in the season opener and the Cardinals are 4-0 on Sunday night while the Cubs are 1-1, following up that initial loss with a 2-1 win over the Cincinnati Reds just two weeks ago.
ESPN Chalk's panel of handicappers has also been successful on Sunday nights. Joe Peta is 9-2 overall and up 7.35 units (based on risking the money line to win one unit if picking the favorite or laying one unit on the underdog). Dave Tuley, who has been off the past two weeks, is 5-2 for a profit of 3.05 units. Andrew Lange is 2-2 for a profit of 0.07 units (Erin Rynning filled in for Lange the past five weeks and was 3-2 for a profit of 1.40 units after winning his last three picks).
The panel has nailed the past three weeks, so we'll see if they can keep it going as Peta makes the case for a side while Lange and Tuley agree on the total.