MLB Best Bets for Sunday, April 5: Can the Cubbies Come Through?

Danny Burke

Written by: Danny Burke

Last Update: Sun Apr 05, 2026, 10:58 am ET

Read Time: 4 minutes

With a loaded MLB slate on Friday, where should you take your action? Our analyst shares his MLB best bets and picks for today's card.

mlb

Happy Easter, everyone! Hope your Sunday is off to a great start.

We've got some action on the diamond to (hopefully) make it even better. We're coming off another 2-0 day Saturday, so let's go for the weekend sweep.

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MLB Best Bets for Sunday, April 5

Cubs vs Guardians 

After Saturday's game was postponed due to rain, the Chicago Cubs and Cleveland Guardians will play a doubleheader on Sunday.

Game 1 features a pitching matchup between Edward Cabrera and Slade Cecconi.

Cabrera was excellent in his Cubs debut, tossing six scoreless innings while allowing just one hit and striking out five.

With Justin Steele not expected back until June, Cade Horton exiting his last start with a forearm injury, and Matthew Boyd due for regression, this is a real opportunity for Cabrera to emerge as the Cubs' ace.

He can take another step in that direction with a strong outing against Cleveland, who ranks 22nd in wRC+ (83) and OPS (.617) against right-handed pitching.

The Cubs sit just one spot ahead in those categories, but they hold the edge on the mound.

Cecconi struggled in his season debut in Seattle, going 4.1 innings while allowing six hits, six earned runs and three walks. He finished with a 12.46 ERA and a 6.60 xFIP.

Let's hope the Cubs can inflict that same kind of damage on Cecconi this afternoon and help us cash our moneyline ticket.

Best Bet: Cubs Moneyline (-130)

Padres vs Red Sox

Ranger Suarez

We've got a rubber match at Fenway Park, as Ranger Suarez and the Red Sox look to secure their first series win of the season against Walker Buehler and the Padres.

Boston took the opener 5-2 before falling 3-2 in Game 2.

Suarez was underwhelming in his Red Sox debut, lasting just 4.1 innings while allowing seven hits and four earned runs, including two homers, in an 8-1 loss.

That said, there's little reason to panic. Suarez was a major offseason addition, and this sets up as a strong bounce-back spot at home. San Diego ranks 25th in wRC+ (68) and 26th in OPS (.560) against left-handed pitching so far.

This is a prime opportunity for Suarez to deliver in front of the Fenway faithful.

On the other side, Buehler didn't fare much better in his debut, going four innings and allowing three runs on five hits. His xFIP (4.99) was even higher than Suarez's.

Buehler has been a shaky pitcher over the past two seasons, posting ERAs of 4.93 or worse, and I expect that form to show up again this afternoon.

Boston's bats have been slow to emerge, but hopefully they'll step up when needed, much like we saw in Friday's contest.

Best Bet: Red Sox Run Line -1.5 (+136)

Best Bets:

MLB Record: 13-6-1 (+7.42 units)

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Danny Burke
Danny Burke

Danny Burke is a betting analyst with a decade of sports media experience. He got his start at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, sharing picks on the local ESPN affiliate. After college, he hosted shows for VSiN in Las Vegas before returning to Chicago to launch 'Rush Hour', the first daily sports betting show from an Illinois casino. He also co-hosted 'Props and Locks' on Fox32’s Bears pregame show and ran 'Bet On, Chicago' on WLS-AM 890.

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