In this article, we will formulate an Athletics vs Cardinals Prediction for this MLB game on Monday, September 1st at the Busch Stadium in the opening game of this series. Let’s take a look at the prediction for this MLB matchup.
Saint Louis Cardinals Preview
The Saint Louis Cardinals have a 68-70 record this season and are sitting on the 4th place of the NL Central. The Cardinals have a 37-32 home record and are 70-60 in over/under. They are coming off a 4-7 road defeat by the Reds, that ended their three-game winning streak. Over is 6-3-1 in their last 10 games and are playing the Giants and the Mariners next.
The Cardinals have a .247 batting average this season, .316 OBP and .384 Slugging percentage. Saint Louis’ pitching staff has a 4.27 ERA and 1.31 WHIP. Alec Burleson leads the Cardinals with 123 hits, and he is the team’s best hitter with a .286 batting average. Wilson Contreras leads the team in RBI, with 74, adding a team-high 20 home runs.
Sonny Gray (R) is the projected starting pitcher for the Cardinals, and he has a 12-7 record, 4.19 ERA and 1.18 WHIP.
Athletics Preview
The Athletics have a 63-75 record this season and are sitting on the last place of the AL West. The Athletics have a 34-35 road record and are 70-62 in over/under. They are coming off a 6-9 home defeat by the Rangers, and have three consecutive losses. Over is 5-2 in their last 7 games and are playing the Red Sox and the Angels next.
The Athletics have a .253 batting average this season, .318 OBP and .431 Slugging percentage. Athletics’ pitching staff has a 4.83 ERA and 1.37 WHIP. Brent Rooker leads the Athletics with 145 hits, while Jacob Wilson is the team’s best hitter with a .313 batting average. Brent Rooker also adds a team-high 79 RBI, while Shea Langeliers adds a team-high 29 home runs.
Luis Morales (R) is the projected starter for the Athletics, and he has a 2-0 record, 1.19 ERA, and 0.97 WHIP.
Why the St. Louis Cardinals will win
- The Cardinals have won each of their last four day games against AL West opponents following a loss.
- The Athletics have lost five of their last six games against NL Central opponents.
- The Cardinals have covered the run line in seven of their last eight games as favorites against American League opponents following a road loss.
- The Athletics have failed to cover the run line in five of their last six games against NL Central opponents.
- The Athletics have lost the first inning in three of their last four day games.
- The Cardinals have led after 3 innings in each of their last six games as favorites against American League opponents.
- The Cardinals have led after 5 innings in each of their last four games as favorites against American League opponents.
Why the Athletics will win
- The Athletics have won each of their last five games as road underdogs following a loss.
- The Cardinals have lost each of their last seven home games against American League opponents.
- The Athletics have covered the run line each of their last seven road games against teams that held a losing record.
- The Cardinals have failed to cover the run line in each of their last six games as home favorites against American League opponents.
- The Cardinals have lost the first inning in four of their last five games as favorites.
- The Athletics have led after 3 innings in five of their last six games against opponents that held a losing record.
- The Cardinals have trailed after 5 innings in each of their last six games as home favorites against American League opponents.
Total Runs Facts
- Eight of the Cardinals’ last nine games as favorites against AL West opponents have gone OVER the total runs line.
- Each of the Athletics’ last four day games after playing the previous day have gone OVER the total runs line.
- The ‘Inning 1 OVER 0.5 runs’ market has hit in each of the Athletics’ last nine games as underdogs against National League opponents.
- The ‘Inning 1 OVER 0.5 runs’ market has hit in eight of the Cardinals’ last nine home games against American League opponents.
Matchup/League Facts
- The Cardinals rank 30th in the league for triples this season (6).
- The Cardinals rank 29th in the league for strikeouts this season (1022).
- The Athletics rank 2nd in the league for doubles this season (250).
- The Athletics rank 29th in the league for home runs allowed this season (195).
Athletics vs Cardinals Prediction
The Cardinals are 4-2 in their last 6 head-to-head meetings against the Athletics, but the Athletics have won their four meetings before that, and both teams are tied 2-2 wins in their last 4 meetings in Saint Louis. Under is 4-1 in their last 5 meetings.
In this Athletics vs Cardinals Prediction, the Cardinals are coming as -140 home favorites. Morales has been almost unhittable for the A’s, as he has only two earned runs in 20.2 innings pitched in his four starts this season. On the flip side, Gray has been excellent this season and even better at home, with a 3.57 home ERA. I don’t trust either offense to do damage against those two pitchers, and on top of that, the Cardinals have the 6th-best bullpen ERA in the league. I expect runs to come at a premium in this matchup, so take the under 8 runs.