The San Diego Padres and St. Louis Cardinals clash Monday in game 1 of an MLB series at Busch Stadium. Let’s preview this game and give out a pick and prediction.
San Diego Padres Betting Preview
The Padres need a win after losing 6 of their last 8 games. The Padres are now 8 games back in the wild card race. The Padres pitching staff is 5th in ERA (3.87), 14th in WHIP (1.28) and 5th in quality starts (59). The Padres’ offense is 16th in runs per game (4.50), 24th in batting average (.237) and 11th in homers (167). Xander Bogaerts leads the Padres with 124 hits and 45 RBI, while Fernando Tatis Jr. and Juan Soto have combined for 238 hits and 144 RBI. Blake Snell gets the ball, and he is 10-9 with a 2.73 ERA and 184 strikeouts this season. Snell is 1-0 with a 1.80 ERA and 26 strikeouts in his career against the Cardinals.
San Diego Padres Team Facts
- The Padres have lost seven of their last eight games as favorites against NL Central opponents following a road loss.
- The Padres have covered the run line in each of their last nine night games against the Cardinals at Busch Stadium following a loss.
- The Padres have led after 3 innings in each of their last four games against the Cardinals.
- The Padres have trailed after 7 innings in six of their last seven games as road favorites against NL Central opponents.
- The ‘Inning 1 OVER 0.5 runs’ market has hit in each of the Padres’ last six games as road favorites.
St. Louis Cardinals Betting Preview
The Cardinals look to play spoiler after losing 5 of their last 6 games. The Cardinals have the second-worst record in the NL at 56-75. The Cardinals pitching staff is 25th in ERA (4.76), 28th in WHIP (1.45) and 23rd in quality starts (39). The Cardinals’ offense is 15th in runs per game (4.50), 11th in batting average (.254) and 8th in homers (176). Paul Goldschmidt leads the Cardinals with 137 hits and 68 RBI, while Nolan Arenado and Willson Contreras have combined for 229 hits and 138 RBI. Adam Wainwright gets the ball, and he is 3-9 with a 8.61 ERA and 44 strikeouts this season. Wainwright is 7-6 with a 2.73 ERA and 97 strikeouts in his career against the Padres.
St. Louis Cardinals Team Facts
- The Cardinals have lost each of their last seven night games against National League opponents.
- The Cardinals have failed to cover the run line in each of their last seven night games against National League opponents.
- The Cardinals have trailed after 5 innings in each of their last eight night games.
- The Cardinals have trailed after 3 innings in each of their last three games.
- The Cardinals have trailed after 7 innings in each of their last eight night games.
Matchup/League Facts
- The St. Louis Cardinals ranks 29th in the league for opponent batting average this season (.275).
- The St. Louis Cardinals ranks 2nd in the league for home runs allowed this season (135).
- The San Diego Padres ranks 1st in the league for walks this season (529).
- The San Diego Padres ranks 4th in the league for hits allowed this season (1036).
Randy’s Pick
The Padres can’t be trusted with big juice, as I’ve said many times in the past, as they’re an unserious team that loses constantly when the sense of urgency should be high. With that said, the Cardinals aren’t playing well, and Adam Wainwright is a shell of himself with a 8.61 ERA and 1.99 WHIP. Blake Snell is first in the league in ERA, fourth in strikeouts and has a top-40 WHIP. If the Padres’ cant win this game, just throw them in the garbage. Give me the Padres and the RL for max betting value.
