The St. Louis Cardinals and Kansas City Royals clash Friday in game 1 of an MLB series at Kauffman Stadium. Let’s preview this game and give out a pick and prediction.
St. Louis Cardinals Betting Preview
The Cardinals look for a win after splitting their last 10 games. The Cardinals are 11 games back in the NL Central. The Cardinals pitching staff is 22nd in ERA (4.53), 27th in WHIP (1.43) and 22nd in quality starts (35). The Cardinals’ offense is 12th in runs per game (4.64), 7th in batting average (.257) and 6th in homers (161). Nolan Arenado leads the Cardinals with 121 hits and 81 RBI, while Paul Goldschmidt and Brendan Donovan have combined for 214 hits and 93 RBI. Adam Wainwright gets the ball, and he is 3-6 with a 7.81 ERA and 39 strikeouts this season. Wainwright is 7-4 with a 3.70 ERA and 73 strikeouts in his career against the Royals.
St. Louis Cardinals Team Facts
- The Cardinals have lost each of their last four games as favorites following a road win.
- The Cardinals have covered the run line in each of their last six road games against American League opponents after playing the previous day.
- The Cardinals have led after 5 innings in each of their last seven road night games.
- The Cardinals have trailed after 7 innings in five of their last seven games as favorites.
- The ‘Inning 1 UNDER 0.5 runs’ market has hit in each of the Cardinals’ last 10 games against American League opponents.
St. Louis Cardinals Player Prop Facts
- Nolan Arenado has hit a home run in four of the Cardinals’ last five road games against the Royals.
- Paul Goldschmidt has recorded two or more hits in each of the Cardinals’ last six Friday games against AL Central opponents that held a losing record.
- Tyler O’Neill has recorded at least one RBI in each of his last five appearances with the Cardinals as road favorites against AL opponents.
- Nolan Arenado has recorded two or more total bases in each of his 10 previous appearances at Kauffman Stadium.
- Nolan Arenado has scored at least one run in each of his last six appearances in night games.
- Adam Wainwright has recorded four or more strikeouts in 10 of his last 11 appearances with the Cardinals as favorites against AL opponents.
Kansas City Royals Betting Preview
The Royals look to play spoiler despite losing 5 of their last 6 games. The Royals have the second-worst record in MLB at 37-80. The Royals pitching staff is 28th in ERA (5.18), 25th in WHIP (1.40) and 29th in quality starts (25). The Royals’ offense is 29th in runs per game (3.91), 21st in batting average (.239) and 25th in homers (111). Bobby Witt Jr. leads the Royals with 123 hits and 68 RBI, while Salvador Perez and MJ Melendez have combined for 185 hits and 86 RBI. Dylan Coleman gets the ball, and he is 0-0 with a 10.05 ERA and 17 strikeouts this season. Coleman is 0-0 with a 0.00 ERA and 3 strikeouts in his career against the Cardinals.
Kansas City Royals Team Facts
- The Royals have won each of their last five games as home underdogs.
- The Royals have covered the run line in each of their last six games at Kauffman Stadium.
- The Royals have led after 3 innings in four of their last five games as home underdogs.
- The Royals have trailed after 5 innings in each of their last eight Friday games.
- The Royals have led after 7 innings in each of their last five games as home underdogs.
Kansas City Royals Player Prop Facts
- Bobby Witt Jr. has hit a home run in three of the Royals’ last five games as underdogs against NL Central opponents.
- Bobby Witt Jr. has recorded two or more hits in three of his last four appearances against NL opponents.
- Bobby Witt Jr. has recorded at least one RBI in each of his last 10 appearances against NL opponents.
- Bobby Witt Jr. has recorded two or more total bases in each of the Royals’ last five games against NL opponents that held a losing record.
- Bobby Witt Jr. has scored a run in six of the Royals’ last seven games against NL Central opponents.
- Bobby Witt Jr. ranks 4th in the league in Steals (34) this season.
Matchup/League Facts
- The Kansas City Royals ranks 1st in the league for triples this season (31).
- The Kansas City Royals ranks 29th in the league for runs scored this season (454).
- The St. Louis Cardinals ranks 1st in the league for home runs allowed this season (111).
- The St. Louis Cardinals ranks 29th in the league for opponent batting average this season (.271).
Randy’s Pick
I’m not running to the window to back the Cardinals or Adam Wainwright, but they’re the better team here, no matter how you slice it. The Royals are the second-worst team in the league, and they don’t make bettors money. Also, Dylan Coleman has allowed 16 runs in 14.1 innings with 14 walks. That’s awful, folks. The Cardinals should win this game, even if their beloved Wainwright is a shell of himself now, at nearly 42 years old.
