Phillies

The Chicago Cubs Started Phillies’ 5-Game Slide: Can Aaron Nola End it?

By Chris Wright

Published: Apr 20th, 2026 · 1:53 PM EDT

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What’s the weather forecast tonight in Chicago? No rain? No snow? No chance of this game not being played?

Great. Without an assist from Mother Nature, that means the Phillies are on their own as they attempt to end their 5-game skid — which started last week against the Cubs.

Unfortunately, the Phillies have been here before. Almost a year ago, in fact, they were mired in another 5-game losing streak. Beginning in 2021, this is the 8th time the Phillies have lost at least 5 in a row. Their longest in that stretch was 6 games.

Aaron Nola was on the bump when this current mess began last week against the Cubs, though it wasn’t his fault. The bullpen gave up 7 runs in a 10-4 loss.

Nola gets the ball again tonight, this time at Wrigley Field, against the same Colin Rea who held the Phillies to 3 runs to pick up that win. First pitch is at 7:40 pm, ET (NBC Sports Philadelphia).

The Phillies have to end this skid at some point. Will it be tonight? Or will they make recent history and add another L to the streak?

Let’s crunch some numbers and try to find a reason to watch and wager, otherwise it might be a night to play blackjack online casino and online slot games.

Phillies’ Longest Losing Streaks 2021-Present

Season	Games	Skid
2024	6	July 28-Aug. 3
2023	6	April 30-May 6
2026	5	April 14-PRESENT
2025	5	April 20-25
2025	5	June 4-8
2022	5	Sept 15-20
2022	5	Sept 24-29
2022	5	May 27-31

Phillies vs Cubs Odds

The graphic above shows the best available odds on April 20th and are subject to change

The Cubs enter tonight’s matchup as slight home favorites on the consensus moneyline at -112. Despite the ML advantage for the home side, the runline remains structured with Philadelphia laying -1.5 runs and Chicago catching +1.5 runs at a steep -190 premium.

These current odds reflect significant line movement since the initial numbers were posted. The moneyline opened with the Phillies favored at -116 and the Cubs positioned as -102 underdogs. However, heavy betting volume completely flipped the script, forcing oddsmakers to adjust Chicago into the favorite role. The runline has seen similar action, shifting the juice on Chicago’s +1.5 from an opening -178 to the current -190. The game’s total also experienced a notable adjustment, dropping from an opening number of 8 down to 7.5 runs due to sharp action and structural factors like wind conditions.

Colin Rea vs Aaron Nola 2026 Stats

Statistic	Rea (CHC)	Nola (PHI)
W-L Record	2-0	1-1
ERA	3.64	4.03
WHIP	0.98	1.30
FIP	3.58	3.53
K/9	7.79	9.67
BB/9	1.56	2.42
Opponent BA	.222	.264
Innings Pitched	17.1	22.1

Aaron Nola vs Cubs

GS	W-L	IP	ERA	WHIP	K	BB	HR	H	AVG	OPS
12	7-2	73.2	4.28	1.14	84	23	12	61	.228	.702

Cubs Hitters vs Aaron Nola

Player	Pos	PA	AB	H	HR	RBI	AVG	OPS
Dansby Swanson	SS	70	64	14	3	5	.219	.708
Michael Conforto	LF	58	53	10	2	3	.189	.617
Ian Happ	LF	22	21	2	0	2	.095	.279
Nico Hoerner	2B	18	17	5	0	2	.294	.745
Seiya Suzuki	RF	12	12	1	0	0	.083	.250
Alex Bregman	3B	11	11	2	0	1	.182	.364
Michael Busch	1B	9	7	2	0	0	.286	.730
Pete Crow-Armstrong	CF	7	6	2	0	1	.333	1.095
Carson Kelly	C	6	6	4	0	1	.667	1.333
Miguel Amaya	C	2	2	1	0	0	.500	1.000
Moisés Ballesteros	C	2	2	1	0	0	.500	1.000

Colin Rea vs Phillies

GS	W-L	IP	ERA	WHIP	K	BB	HR	H	AVG	OPS
6	2-2	43.1	3.32	1.11	38	8	7	40	.240	.710

Phillies Hitters vs Colin Rea

Player	Pos	PA	AB	H	HR	RBI	AVG	OPS
Trea Turner	SS	17	17	4	0	0	.235	.529
J.T. Realmuto	C	16	14	7	1	2	.500	1.348
Bryson Stott	2B	15	14	1	0	0	.071	.276
Kyle Schwarber	LF	15	13	3	1	4	.231	.795
Bryce Harper	1B	14	14	0	0	0	.000	.000
Alec Bohm	3B	11	11	1	0	0	.091	.182
Brandon Marsh	CF	9	9	6	0	0	.667	1.667
Edmundo Sosa	2B	6	6	2	1	3	.333	1.167
Adolis García	RF	3	3	0	0	0	.000	.000
Dylan Moore	2B	3	3	1	0	0	.333	1.000
Justin Crawford	CF	2	2	0	0	0	.000	.000

Phillies vs Cubs Home/Road Stats

Statistic (Split)	Cubs (Home/Overall)	Phillies (Away/Overall)
Runs Per Game	4.83 [13th]	3.17 [26th]
Batting Average	.241 [17th]	.220 [20th]
OPS	.716 [18th]	.641 [22nd]
Average Exit Velocity	88.9 mph [14th]	88.9 mph [12th]
Stolen Bases Per Game	0.67 [14th]	0.50 [20th]
Team ERA	3.59 [10th]	4.84 [24th]

Phillies vs Cubs Betting Picks & Game Prediction

Best Bet: Over 7.5 runs (-114 at DraftKings)

If you are looking for betting value in this matchup, skip the coin-flip moneyline — where the vig-free win probabilities have the Phillies at 49.34% and the Cubs at 50.66% — and look directly at the total. Our official pick for this game is the Over 7.5 runs (-114).

Why? First, recall what happened last week. The winning team in that series easily covered this total in each game. Further, trusting the pitching staff to prevent runs right now is like trusting a Wawa hoagie to stay intact if you hold it with one hand. While Nola and Rea are tasked with keeping the bats quiet, the underlying metrics suggest the scoreboard operator at Wrigley Field is going to be incredibly busy. Chicago is swinging a very competent bat at home, plating a solid 4.83 runs per game. Combine that with a remarkably generous Philadelphia pitching staff that boasts a bloated 4.84 ERA and surrenders 5.38 runs per contest, and you have a clear recipe for offensive fireworks — even on a cold, blustery night in Chicago.

Philadelphia’s offense has been offensively bad on the road — scraping together just 3.17 runs per game — but they still face a Chicago team that has hit the Over in 60.00% of their past 10 matchups. Their lineup alone could threaten this low 7.5-run total, especially once they get into a visiting bullpen sporting a 4.24 ERA. Save yourself the headache of trying to figure out which version of the lineup will actually show up to hit. Bank on the staff continuing to graciously serve up meatballs and confidently take the Over.

(And, if you love misery and insist on putting some cash on the moneyline, take the Cubs (-110 at FanDuel). The Phillies don’t deserve your undying trust. Not yet, anyway.)

Phillies Player Prop Bets – Top Picks & Predictions

Bryce Harper Over 1.5 Total Bases (+128 at DraftKings)

While most of the lineup seems to be participating in a season-long experiment to see how many pitches they can swing at in the dirt, Bryce Harper is actually playing baseball. He is batting a respectable .273 with 21 hits over 77 at-bats, and more important, he isn’t just slapping polite opposite-field singles. Harper boasts a .519 slugging percentage and has already tallied 10 extra-base hits on the year. He gets to tee off against Rea, a pitcher who has been perfectly fine but still kindly surrenders 1.04 home runs per nine innings. Believing Harper will casually stroll his way to two total bases feels like the only reliable thing happening in the dugout, so grab a DraftKings sign-up bonus and get going.

Aaron Nola Over 5.5 Strikeouts (+108 at DraftKings)

Nola Game Log vs Cubs April 14

Game	Result	IP	H	ER	BB	K	HR	ERA
2026-04-14, CHC 10 @ PHI 4	ND	5.0	8	3	2	5	0	5.40

Nola struck out 5 in 5.0 innings last week against the Cubs. Simple math suggests he’ll need to pitch into the sixth inning to have a shot at cashing this bet. Even when he’s leaving his signature curveball hanging over the plate, he manages to rack up the punchouts. Chicago has a few free-swingers in the bottom half of their order, and Nola’s historical strikeout rate hovers nicely over a strikeout per inning. If he can just avoid the big inning long enough to pitch into the sixth, he’ll naturally stumble his way to at least six Ks. It’s an analytical play on sheer volume, even if watching him pitch right now requires a stress ball.