The Philadelphia Phillies and the St. Louis Cardinals meet Sunday in MLB action from Busch Stadium. This will be the finale in a three-game series over the weekend. The Phillies took a win in the opener, then on Saturday Philadelphia kept it up with a five-run victory. Check back all season long for free MLB picks at Sports Chat Place.
Philadelphia Phillies
The Phillies jumped out to a 4-0 lead after one inning in the Friday opener of this set, eventually hanging on for a 5-4 win. Nick Castellanos led the charge on a three-run home run. On Saturday in game two Philadelphia scored three times in the fifth inning in a 6-1 win. Kyle Schwarber managed a three-run homer while Alec Bohm, Brandon Marsh and Johan Rojas each had two hits and an RBI.
In the starter role for the Sunday game the Phillies are going with Taijuan Walker. Over 28 starts this season Walker is 15-5 with a 4.30 ERA and 128 Ks in 152.2 innings. Walker is 4-1 with a 5.22 ERA in his last seven starts, striking out 30 in 39.2 innings.
Philadelphia Phillies Team Facts
The Phillies have won each of their last seven games against the Cardinals.
The Phillies have covered the run line in each of their last seven games against the Cardinals following a win.
The Phillies have won the first inning in each of their last three road games against National League opponents.
The Phillies have led after 7 innings in each of their last six games against the Cardinals.
The 'Inning 1 OVER 0.5 runs' market has hit in each of the Phillies' last seven day games against National League opponents.
St. Louis Cardinals
Over on the Cardinals’ side, they fought back fairly well on nine team hits in the Friday defeat but couldn’t close the gap. Massyn Winn, Tommy Edman, Nolan Arenado and Alec Burleson each had an RBI in the loss. On Saturday the Cards managed six team hits and couldn’t do much on the scoreboard. Paul Goldschmidt had the lone RBI and one hit.
It’ll be Dakota Hudson in the starter role for the Cardinals on Sunday. This year over his 15 games (nine starts) Hudson is 6-2 with a 5.10 ERA and 37 Ks in 65.1 innings. Hudson has gone 4-2 with a 5.77 ERA over his last seven starts.
St. Louis Cardinals Team Facts
The Cardinals have won each of their last five day games at Busch Stadium following a loss.
The Cardinals have failed to cover the run line in each of their last seven games against the Phillies following a loss.
The Cardinals have trailed after 3 innings in each of their last three games against National League opponents.
The Cardinals have lost the first inning in each of their last three games against NL East opponents.
The Cardinals have trailed after 7 innings in each of their last eight games as home underdogs.
Matchup/League Facts
The St. Louis Cardinals rank T1st in the league for home runs allowed this season (159).
The St. Louis Cardinals rank 29th in the league for strikeouts this season (1116).
The Philadelphia Phillies are one of only 3 teams in the league to rank top 10 in both steals and batting average this season.
The Philadelphia Phillies are one of only 3 teams in the league to rank top 10 in both steals and home runs this season.
ANDREW’S FREE PICK
I’ll probably stay with the Phillies here. Thing is, neither starting pitcher has been on point lately. Walker has given up nine earned on 11 hits and six walks in 10.1 innings during his last pair. He’s 2-0 in his last three starts though, so Walker has been getting some support. As for Hudson, he’s given up 12 earned runs over his last two starts in 9.1 innings, going 1-1 in that pair. This could turn into a high-scoring affair early if neither starter can find his groove. In game two the Phillies have five or more runs in five of their last six games, so they’ve been scoring great lately. I like Philadelphia to keep the offense turned up here for the sweep.
