In the Gateway to the West, the St. Louis Cardinals and Cincinnati Reds will kick off a lengthy, five-game bill on Thursday evening.
These clubs have played a total of 14 times this year, with the Redbirds coming away with nine wins. It was Cincy that won the season series a summer ago, winning 10 of the teams’ 19 clashes.
MLB Performace Recap
St. Louis will stay at home at Busch Stadium after coming off a series split with Milwaukee. They avoided a sweep in the two-game set with a 4-1 win on Wednesday.
The victory marked a momentous occasion, with starting pitcher Adam Wainwright and backstop Yadier Molina making their 325th start together, the most of any hurler-catcher tandem in MLB lore.
The Brewers grabbed the lead in the visitors’ half of the second inning, but the Cardinals promptly answered back their next time up.
Third baseman Nolan Arenado smacked a game-tying home run before Molina singled to left later in the frame, scoring second baseman Brendan Donovan, who wound up being the game’s winning run.
Fantastic first baseman Paul Goldschmidt was the only member of the order to register two hits, but the team totaled ten knocks on the day. Designated hitter Albert Pujols, who’s chasing history of his own, had an RBI double.
A Rough Doubleheader
Cincinnati, meanwhile, was swept in a four-game set at home against Pittsburgh. Following up a rough doubleheader Tuesday, the Reds were on the wrong side of a 10-4 decision Wednesday.
They opened the contest’s scoring when designated hitter Spencer Steer pushed right fielder Aristides Aquino across with a single in the bottom of the second. They’d trail the rest of the day after the Pirates plated three in the visitors’ third.
Third baseman Kyle Farmer and catcher Austin Romine had multi-hit performances in the losing effort.Let’s further break this matchup down using some Reds vs Cardinals stats.
St. Louis Cardinals vs. Cincinnati Reds
St. Louis Cardinals Stats
The Cardinals (84-59) just have to avoid a collapse to come away with the crown in the National League Central. They currently lead Milwaukee, who’s in second place in the division, by eight games.
St. Louis has won six of its last ten outings and has more home wins (48) than any team in the Senior Circuit other than the Los Angeles Dodgers (49).
As long as they keep at it, they should come out on top in the grouping the MLB standings.
Cardinals at the Stats
One thing is for sure with Cardinals stats, and it’s that St. Louis has one of the most productive hitters in the sport.
Goldschmidt has been a massive component in the Cards’ offense, as he paces the team in every major statistical category in the batter’s box.
Third-best Mark
He’s hitting .324, which is the third-best mark in all of baseball and has 35 homers, 109 RBI, and a 1.015 OPS. It’s safe to say he’s been an irreplaceable part of the lineup.
Arenado has been a big help, too. He’s hitting .298 with 29 dingers and 96 runs driven in. Six other St. Louis players
- Pujols
- Nolan Gorman
- Tommy Edman
- Tyler O’Neill
- Juan Yepez
- Lars Nootbaar
Have clubbed double-digit long balls.
Cincinnati Reds Stats
The Reds (56-86) are playing for next year — err, maybe the year after that. They have the third-worst record in the NL, in front of only Pittsburgh and Washington.
Against teams who are .500 or better, Cincy has gone 22-50 this season. This goes without saying, but if you want to compete for hardware, that sort of inconsistency just isn’t going to cut it.
Reds Best Contributor
Shortstop Kyle Farmar has been the team’s best contributor as it pertains to batting average, having pinned up a .267 mark to this point.
He and first baseman and franchise stalwart Joey Votto, who’s out for the rest of the campaign, have a team-best 11 homers. Second baseman Jonathan India and left fielder Jake Fraley are the only others with at least 10.
Keep in mind, first baseman Brandon Drury and left fielder Tommy Pham were shipped off to San Diego and Boston, respectively. They were another pair of decent power hitters.
Reds at the Stand
Farmer also has 66 RBIs, a .328 on-base percentage, and 121 total base hits. The Reds game today will allow for some guys to make a small-sample impression and case for why they should remain with the team next spring.
Cardinals vs. Reds Matchup Betting Trends
- St. Louis is 69-69-5 on the over/under this season
- The Reds are 27-43 on the road in 2022
- The Cardinals average 7.54 strikeouts per game, the fifth-most in MLB
Cardinals vs. Reds Matchup Betting Prediction
We’ve taken a closer look at the Reds vs Cardinals stats, so now let’s consider the odds for this divisional clash. In showing what the bookmakers think, the home team will be the favorite in this one.
According to the spread, the Cardinals should get out a good start in this set. They’ve -1.5 on the run line at -126.
Cincy is +105 to cover the spread. On the moneyline, St. Louis is -290, and the Reds are a +235 underdog. The total is marked down at 8.5 runs, with the over being -104 and the under -118 at the time of this writing.
Your free MLB picks today will stay in line with what the sportsbooks are thinking. The Cardinals have proven to be one of the best teams in the major leagues this go-round, while Cincy has basically played to the low expectations that were fostered during an offseason overhaul.
Who Is Taking the Mound for the Reds?
The Reds scheduled starter for this tilt, 34-year-old righty Chase Anderson has only played in the four games this year, going 0-3 and putting up a dismal 9.00 ERA. None of his appearances thus far have gone further than four frames.
Who Is Taking the Mound for the Cardinals?
On the other side, Miles Mikolas will take the mound. He’s 11-11 so far, with an acceptable 3.42 ERA and a 1.04 WHIP.
He’ll be looking to rebound from a losing decision in his last outing against the Pirates. He gave up eight hits and four home runs in five frames.
Still, it’s better to trust him, along with the Redbirds’ powerful order, than to take a chance on Cincy. According to the Reds vs Cardinals stats, count on St. Louis to easily cover the spread and set the tone for what should be a long few days for the visiting squad.
MLB Pick: Cardinals -1.5 (-135)
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