The Detroit Tigers are visiting the St. Louis Cardinals on Tuesday, May 20th at the Busch Stadium in the second game of this series, with the Cardinals having a 1-0 lead. We will look at this from a betting perspective and determine the best bets for this game. Here’s a Tigers vs Cardinals Prediction. We will examine:
The St. Louis Cardinals’ recent form and player performance
The Detroit Tigers’ recent form and player performance
Recent betting trends and streaks involving the Saint Louis Cardinals
Recent betting trends and streaks involving the Detroit Tigers
Recent betting trends in games played between the Detroit Tigers vs Saint Louis Cardinals
A summary that ties it all together and produces a favorable betting outcome for the Detroit Tigers vs Saint Louis Cardinals game
St. Louis Cardinals Preview
The St. Louis Cardinals have a 27-21 record this season and are sitting in second place in the NL Central. The Cardinals have a 16-6 home record and are 25-22 in over/under. They are coming off an 11-4 home victory over the Tigers, and are 8-2 in their last 10 games. Under is 6-3 in their last 9 games, and are playing the Diamondbacks and the Orioles next.
The Cardinals have a .266 batting average this season, a .337 OBP, and a .409 Slugging percentage. Saint Louis’ pitching staff has a 3.68 ERA and 1.22 WHIP. Brendan Donovan leads the Cardinals with 61 hits and a team-high .337 batting average, while Wilson Contreras leads the team in RBI, with 27.
Erick Fedde (R) will take the mound for the Cardinals, and he has a 3-3 record, 3.44 ERA, and 1.30 WHIP. He has been weaker at home with a 4.76 ERA in four home starts, but he is coming off back-to-back shutout starts, with zero earned runs across 14.2 innings pitched versus the Nationals and the Phillies. Erick Fedde has a 0-1 record with an ERA of 3.09 and 10 strikeouts in 2 appearances versus the Tigers in his career.
Detroit Tigers Preview
The Detroit Tigers have a 31-17 record this season and are sitting in first place in the AL Central. The Tigers have a 14-12 road record and are 24-19 in over/under. They are coming off a 4-11 road defeat by the Cardinals, and are now 5-2 in their last 7 games. Over is 6-2-2 in their last 9 games and are playing the Guardians and the Giants next.
The Tigers have a .260 batting average this season, a .332 OBP, and a .422 slugging percentage. Detroit’s pitching staff has a 3.36 ERA and 1.18 WHIP. Riley Greene leads the Tigers with 50 hits, while Spencer Torkelson leads the team in RBI, with 38, adding a team-high 12 home runs. Kerry Carpenter is the team’s best hitter with a .284 batting average.
Tarik Skubal (L) will take the mound for the Tigers, and he has a 4-2 record, 2.67 ERA, and 0.93 WHIP. He has been slightly weaker on the road with a 3.04 ERA across four road starts, and he is coming off his worst start of the season, where he gave up 5 runs in 6.1 innings pitched against the Red Sox. Tarik Skubal is 0-1 with an ERA of 7.71 and 17 strikeouts in 3 appearances against the Cardinals in his career.
Why the St. Louis Cardinals will win
- The Cardinals have won each of their last seven games as underdogs against AL Central opponents.
- The Tigers have lost seven of their last eight road games against teams that held a winning record.
- The Cardinals have covered the run line in each of their last nine games as underdogs.
- The Tigers have failed to cover the run line in each of their last six games as favorites.
- The Tigers have trailed after 3 innings in each of their last four road games against NL Central opponents that held a winning record.
- The Cardinals have led after 5 innings in seven of their last eight games against the Tigers at Busch Stadium.
- The Cardinals have won the first inning in three of their last four home games against AL Central opponents.
Why the Detroit Tigers will win
- The Tigers have won each of their last eight games as road favorites against National League opponents.
- The Cardinals have lost four of their last five night games against AL Central opponents following a home win.
- The Tigers have covered the run line in each of their last eight games as road favorites against National League opponents.
- The Cardinals have failed to cover the run line in each of their last three games against the Tigers following a win.
- The Tigers have won the first inning in three of their last four night games against opponents that held a winning record.
- The Tigers have led after 3 innings in each of their last four games as road favorites.
- The Tigers have led after 5 innings in seven of their last eight games as favorites against NL Central opponents.
Total Runs Facts
- Seven of the Cardinals’ last eight games after playing the previous day have gone UNDER the total runs line.
- Each of the Tigers’ last five night games after playing the previous day have gone OVER the total runs line.
- The ‘Inning 1 UNDER 0.5 runs’ market has hit in each of the Cardinals’ last eight Tuesday games.
- The ‘Inning 1 OVER 0.5 runs’ market has hit in five of the Tigers’ last six night games.
Matchup/League Facts
- The Cardinals rank 2nd in the league for hits this season (437).
- The Cardinals rank 2nd in the league for doubles this season (96).
- The Tigers rank 29th in the league for steals this season (20).
- The Tigers rank 4th in the league for runs scored this season (257).
Tigers vs Cardinals Prediction
The Tigers are 7-4 in their last 11 overall meetings against the Cardinals, and both teams are tied 3-3 in their last 6 meetings in Saint Louis. Over is 5-2 in their last 7 meetings.
In this Tigers vs Cardinals Prediction, the Tigers are coming as -180 home favorites. The Tigers are rightfully favored, as they have a better overall record and are putting their ace on the mound for this game. The Tigers also have a better bullpen and a better batting average.
Skubal has struggled against Saint Louis bats historically, and Fedde is coming off two shutout starts. The Cardinals have been very strong at home and in extremely good form lately, so there is value with the home dog in this game. You can take the Cardinals at +0.5 runs on the first 5 innings for plus money, which offers extreme value. Take the St. Louis Cardinals a +0.5 runs in the F5 innings in this one.