San Diego Padres vs St. Louis Cardinals Prediction 9-24-23 MLB Picks

The St. Louis Cardinals and San Diego Padres clash Sunday in game 3 of an MLB series at Petco Park. Let’s preview this game and give out a pick and prediction.

St. Louis Cardinals Betting Preview

The Cardinals look for a win after losing 6 of their last 10 games. The Cardinals have the second-worst record in the NL. The Cardinals pitching staff is 24th in ERA (4.79), 27th in WHIP (1.45) and 23rd in quality starts (46). The Cardinals’ offense is 18th in runs per game (4.45), 14th in batting average (.251) and 10th in homers (205). Paul Goldschmidt leads the Cardinals with 157 hits and 79 RBI, while Nolan Arenado and Willson Contreras have combined for 262 hits and 160 RBI. Drew Rom gets the ball, and he is 1-3 with a 6.92 ERA and 21 strikeouts this season. This will be Rom’s first career game against the Padres.

San Diego Padres Betting Preview

The Padres look for a win after winning 8 of their last 10 games. The Padres are 5 games back in the NL wild card race. The Padres pitching staff is 5th in ERA (3.86), 13th in WHIP (1.28) and 3rd in quality starts (70). The Padres’ offense is 13th in runs per game (4.66), 21st in batting average (.243) and 13th in homers (200). Xander Bogaerts leads the Padres with 159 hits and 53 RBI, while Juan Soto and Fernando Tatis Jr. have combined for 288 hits and 178 RBI. Michael Wacha gets the ball, and he is 12-4 with a 3.44 ERA and 111 strikeouts this season. This will be Wacha’s second career game against the Cardinals.

Randy’s Pick

This is a must win for the Padres if they’re going to stay in the wild card race, and this is a game they should win regardless. The Cardinals have been horrible all year and Drew Rom has a near 7 ERA in 26 innings. Michael Wacha has been great all year with a 3.44 ERA and 1.20 WHIP, and he’s going up against a Cards team he spent 7 years with. There should be some extra motivation for Wacha in this spot. Give me the Padres and the RL for max betting value.