Brewers vs. Cubs Game 1 Showdown: Can Underdog Momentum Defy the Odds on August 18?

Well here we are—Monday, August 18, and the Milwaukee Brewers, cruising with a solid 78-45 record, are heading over to Chicago to square off against the Cubs, who sit at 70-53. This matchup kicks off a day/night doubleheader that could very well define the Cubs’ faint hopes of chasing down the division crown—yeah, it might be a slim glimmer, but hey, the game’s never over till it’s over, right? Freddy Peralta will be toeing the slab for Milwaukee, facing off against Chicago’s Cade Horton in what promises to be a fiery pitching duel.

Yesterday, the Cubs snagged a tight 4-3 victory over the Pirates at Wrigley, taking two of three in their weekend series. Dansby Swanson came through with the clutch RBI, but honestly, the real story was Pete Crow-Armstrong shaking off a brutal slump—five hits in eight at bats after going 3-for-41 recently? Now that’s resurgence. Meanwhile, the Brewers saw their 14-game winning streak come to an end in a nail-biter against the Reds, 3-2 in ten innings. An Austin Hays walk-off single capped the deal after Cincinnati rallied in the ninth. Jose Quintana pitched well for Milwaukee, but the streaks are made to be broken.

There’s plenty to unpack here—the roster shifts, the momentum swings, the pitching matchups—and I’m ready to dig deep and break it down for you. Got all the latest intel on how to stream the game, odds, player stats, plus sharp predictions and betting insights courtesy of our expert models and analysis. Let’s get into it and see who’s got the edge tonight.

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Its Monday, August 18 and the Brewers (78-45) are in Chicago to take on the Cubs (70-53) in the first of a day / night doubleheader. Sitting eight games behind the Brewers, it is a crucial series for the Cubs’ division title hopes…assuming there is still a flicker of hope there.

Freddy Peralta is slated to take the mound for Milwaukee against Cade Horton for Chicago.

The Cubs won yesterday 4-3 at Wrigley against the Pirates to take two of three in the weekend series. Dansby Swanson drove in the winning run to secure Sunday’s win but far more important for Chicago was the weekend for Pete Crow-Armstrong. At one time an MVP candidate, the centerfielder broke out of an extended slump (3-41 previously in August) with five hits in eight official at bats in the three games.

The Brewers saw their 14-game winning streak snapped yesterday by the Reds, 3-2, in ten innings. Cincinnati tied the game at two with a run in the ninth and walked it off at The Great American Ballpark in the tenth on an Austin Hays’ single. Jose Quintana allowed a single run over 6.1 innings in another strong start for Milwaukee.

Lets dive into the matchup and find a sweat or two.

We’ve got all the info and analysis you need to know ahead of the game, including the latest info on the how to catch the first pitch, odds, recent team performance, player stats, and of course, our predictions, picks & best bets for the game from our modeling tools and staff of experts.

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Game details & how to watch Brewers at Cubs

• Date: Monday, August 18, 2025
• Time: 6:20PM EST
• Site: Wrigley Field
• City: Chicago, IL
• Network/Streaming: FDSNWI, MARQ, MLBN

Never miss a second of the action and stay up-to-date with all the latest team stats and player news. Check out our day-by-day MLB schedule page, along with detailed matchup pages that update live in-game with every out.

Odds for the Brewers at the Cubs

The latest odds as of Monday:

• Moneyline: Brewers (+101), Cubs (-121)
• Spread: Cubs -1.5
• Total: 8.0 runs

Probable starting pitchers for Brewers at Cubs

• Pitching matchup for August 18, 2025: Freddy Peralta vs. Cade Horton
  • Brewers: Freddy Peralta, (14-5, 2.90 ERA)
    Last outing: August 12 vs. Pittsburgh – 0.00 ERA, 0 Earned Runs Allowed, 3 Hits Allowed, 1 Walks, and 7 Strikeouts
  • Cubs: Cade Horton, (7-3, 3.07 ERA)
    Last outing: August 13 at Toronto – 1.59 ERA, 1 Earned Runs Allowed, 1 Hits Allowed, 2 Walks, and 8 Strikeouts

Rotoworld still has you covered with all the latest MLB player news for all 30 teams. Check out the feed page right here on NBC Sports for headlines, injuries and transactions where you can filter by league, team, positions and news type!

Top betting trends & insights to know ahead of Brewers at Cubs

• Christian Yelich was 0-8 in the final 2 games against the Reds but is 21-59 (.356) in August
• Freddy Peralta has struck out 7 in each of his last 2 starts and at least 6 in 6 of his last 8 starts
• Kyle Tucker is 2-21 (.095) over his last 6 games
• Cade Horton struck out 8 hitters in his last start after having struck out even six just three times in his 16 starts this season

If you’re looking for more key trends and stats around the spread, moneyline and total for every single game on the schedule today, check out our MLB Top Trends tool on NBC Sports!

Expert picks & predictions for tonight’s game between the Brewers and the Cubs

Rotoworld Best Bet

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Our model calculates projections around each moneyline, spread and over/under bet for every game on the MLB calendar based on data points like past performance, player matchups, ballpark information and weather forecasts.

Once the model is finished running, we put its projection next to the latest betting lines for the game to arrive at a relative confidence level for each wager.

Here are the best bets our model is projecting for Monday’s game between the Brewers and the Cubs:

• Moneyline: NBC Sports Bet is staying away from a play on the Moneyline.
• Spread: NBC Sports Bet is leaning towards a play ATS on the Milwaukee Brewers at +1.5.
• Total: NBC Sports Bet is recommending a play on the over on the Game Total of 8.0.

Want even more MLB best bets and predictions from our expert staff & tools? Check out the Expert MLB Predictions page fromNBC

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