Tyler Lyons (0-0, 4.82 ERA) and the St. Louis Cardinals (24-11) meet David Price (3-1, 3.30 ERA) and the Detroit Tigers (22-14) in the second of a three-game interleague series at Busch Stadium. The Tigers won the last game 10-4 and Detroit leads the series 1-0. The game gets underway at 2:15 p.m. ET on Saturday, May. 16 and will air on FSN-DET and FSN-MW.
In his most recent outing, Lyons pitched 5.0 innings, giving up two runs (one unearned), striking out five and walking one in a 4-3 loss to the Pirates. Matt Carpenter (.328, 27 Rs, 6 HRs, 23 RBIs) played well again yesterday, going 2 for 4 with one run. The Tigers were unsuccessful the last time Price pitched. He did not do well, pitching, going 6.1 innings, allowing four runs (one unearned) and striking out one in a 6-5 loss to the Royals. Miguel Cabrera (.338, 22 Rs, 9 HRs, 28 RBIs, 1 SB) has been doing well offensively for the Tigers, going 3 for 5 yesterday with two runs, one home run, and two RBIs.
St. Louis, a +112 underdog, will look to capitalize at home against Detroit. The teams combine to set the Over/Under (O/U) at eight runs. When playing as the underdog, the Cardinals have a 5-5 record and overall money line at +1,130. They have a 1-1 record when they were the underdog and 2-2 SU against the AL. American League games have been tough for the Cardinals. St. Louis has only averaged 3.5 runs per game compared to its 4.5 season average. Don’t expect the St. Louis hitters to swing wildly. They average only 7.5 strikeouts per game. St. Louis’s pitching staff can be considered for best in its league, with an AL-low 2.69 team ERA.
Across the field, the Tigers have a nice record of 15-9 when they are favored and are +628 overall with the money line. Against NL opponents, they are 3-1 SU. Detroit is one of the top road hitting teams in the AL with an average of 9.3 hits per contest. Detroit is a terror on the base paths, ranking fourth in the MLB with 30 stolen bases. Playing competition from the NL really brings the best out of the Detroit pitchers. They allow 2.2 runs per game against teams in the NL, which is lower than their season average of 4.0.
The only other game between the two teams went Detroit’s way. The Cardinals will take on a left-hander (Price) in this game and have a 4-4 record against left-handed starting pitchers this season. The left-handed Lyons will take the mound against the Tigers. Against lefty starters this season, they’ve racked up an impressive 6-3 record.
Predictions: SU Winner – DET, O/U – Over
Notes
The Cardinals are 4-1 in games that go into extra innings. Meanwhile, the Tigers are 1-1 in such matchups.
The Tigers managed to give up four walks in their last game. They’ll have to pick it up against the Cardinals who are heading in with a 9-7 record against opponents who give up that many walks or more.
When they outhit their opponents, the Cardinals are 15-6. The Tigers have a 19-2 record when outhitting opponents.
Ranking 12th, St. Louis is in the top half of the league in runs, scoring 156 this season. Detroit ranks in the top 10 at eighth with 165.
Ranking 14th, St. Louis is in the top half of the league in walks, notching 111 this season. Detroit ranks in the top five at fourth with 126.
When the Cardinals hit at least one home run, they are 14-5. When the Tigers hit at least one homer, they have a 15-5 record.
