The St. Louis Cardinals are prepared to battle against the Cincinnati Reds at Busch Stadium. The matchup will begin at 2:15 p.m. ET and Fox Sports Ohio will broadcast the game.
Cincinnati Reds at St. Louis Cardinals Odds
Cincinnati (+135) is hosting this game as the underdog to St. Louis (-145) and Vegas has set the Over/Under for this game at 8.5 runs (+100 for the over and -120 for the under). Gamblers can also bet on the games runline with the odds coming in at Reds +1.5 runs (-160) and Cardinals +-1.5 runs (+140).
The Reds have gone just 3-17 SU this year and are 7-12 against the spread (ATS). They’ve lost 12.5 units for moneyline bettors in the seasons early going and 8.8 units ATS. Cincinnati has covered the spread only twice over its last seven games and the total has gone under in six of those seven. The Cardinals, on the other hand, are 12-8 SU and 11-8 ATS. They’ve gained 1.6 units for bettors taking the moneyline and 1.1 units ATS. St. Louis has covered the spread five times in its last seven games and the total has gone under in four of those seven.
St. Louis games have had an over/under record of 9-10 so far in 2018. The Reds have an over/under record of 7-12.
The right-handed Luis Castillo is projected to start for the visiting Reds. Castillo is 1-2 with a 6.75 ERA and 21 strikeouts. He has yet to face the Cardinals this year and only made one start against them in 2017 (0-1, 4.26 ERA and four strikeouts over 6.1 innings).
The Cardinals will put the ball in the right hand of Miles Mikolas (2-0, 4.26 ERA, 1.11 WHIP), who has 14 strikeouts and two walks this season. Mikolas is 1-0 with four strikeouts and a 1.29 ERA against Cincinnati this year.
St. Louis pitchers have allowed 3.6 runs per game overall this season as a unit. Its starting pitching staff has an ERA of 3.24, a WHIP of 1.28 and a strikeouts-per-nine of 8.4. The bullpen has a 3.70 ERA, 1.52 WHIP and 8.9 K/9. In 14 divisional games, Cardinals starters have an ERA of 2.75 and the bullpens ERA is 3.80.
The St. Louis offense has produced 4.6 runs per outing, including 5.3 per game against divisional foes and 4.2 per game over its last five. The team has hit .209/.324/.348 over its last five games and is 4-1 SU during that span.
The Cardinals hitters have been led by first baseman Jose Martinez and right fielder Tommy Pham. Martinez is hitting .338/.422/.535 with three home runs, 16 RBIs and seven runs scored, while Pham is batting .318 with 21 hits, five RBIs, 18 runs and five stolen bases.
Martinez saw a slight drop-off in production when facing righties in 2017, slashing .282/.346/.427 over 237 plate appearances (compared to his total season line of .309/.379/.518).
For the visitors, Cincinnati’s pitchers have allowed 5.4 runs per game and its starting pitchers own a 5.73 ERA, 1.47 WHIP and 7.12 K/9. The bullpen has logged an ERA of 4.76, along with a K/9 of 8.36.
Reds hitters have slashed .224/.307/.316 on their way to 3.0 runs scored per game this season, including 2.7 runs per game against divisional foes and 3.0 per game over the teams last five contests (1-4 SU).
Outfielder Jesse Winker and catcher Tucker Barnhart have led Cincinnati’s hitters. Winker is hitting .286/.444/.306 with 14 hits, four RBIs and four runs scored, while Barnhart (.255/.359/.436) is up to 14 hits, two homers, four RBIs and five runs scored.
Winker performed well against righty pitching on the road last season, maintaining a slash line of .358/.414/.679 across 58 such plate appearances (his overall season line was .298/.375/.529).
The Reds have lost 11.7 units and are 5-11 ATS when facing a righty starter this season. The over has cashed in five of those games, compared to 11 that’ve gone under in such games. On the other hand, the Cardinals have lost 0.3 units and are 7-6 ATS when facing a right-handed starting pitcher. The over has hit in seven of those games, compared to six which went under the total.
Cincinnati Reds vs. St. Louis Cardinals MLB Tip
Predictions: SU Winner – Cardinals, ATS Winner – Reds, O/U – OVER
Betting Notes
- The Reds have hit four home runs in their last 10 games. The Cardinals have hit 15 over their last 10.
- St. Louis has recorded 21.8 Runs + Hits + Errors per game over its last 10 contests and 17.4 over its last five.
- The Reds have lost 12 of their last 13 games SU while the Cardinals have won seven of their last eight SU.
