Jaime Garcia (8-8, 4.04 ERA) and Anthony DeSclafani (6-0, 2.94 ERA) are on the hill in the last of a three-game series between the St. Louis Cardinals (59-54) and the Cincinnati Reds (46-66) at Busch Stadium. The Reds won the last game 7-4, and the series is currently tied 1-1. Action begins at 7:15 p.m. ET on Wednesday, Aug. 10 and can be seen on FSMW and FSOH.
Garcia pitched 8.0 innings in his most recent start, surrendering zero runs, striking out 11 and walking one in a 1-0 win over the Braves. Brandon Moss (.259, 45 Rs, 18 HRs, 46 RBIs) went 1 for 3 yesterday with one run and one RBI. DeSclafani went 6.0 innings, surrendering two runs, striking out six and walking three in a 3-2 defeat to the Pirates in his last outing. Jay Bruce (.259, 63 Rs, 27 HRs, 84 RBIs, 4 SBs) went 1 for 3 yesterday.
St. Louis is a -165 favorite against Cincinnati and the Over/Under (O/U) for this game is sitting at eight runs. The Cardinals have an overall money line of -342 and a record as the favorite of 42-35. St. Louis has had an impressive season against division opponents, earning 19-13 and 25-19 records as the favorite and SU, respectively. The Cardinals have no trouble scoring as they rank third in the NL in offense with 5.0 runs per game. The Cardinals are one of the best in the MLB in terms of extra base hits with 394. St. Louis is one of the best in the NL in terms of walks, earning an average of 3.4 per game. St. Louis’s pitching staff has been doing poorly against opposing offenses during the last 10 games, allowing an average of 6.3 runs per game, well above its season average of 4.3. The Cardinals are the fifth-best team in the NL at limiting walks to their opponents, allowing only 2.8 walks per game so far this season.
Over in the other dugout, Cincinnati is coming in with an overall money line of -947 and a disappointing record of 29-60 as the underdog. They have played poorly as the underdog with a 14-25 record against fellow NL Central members, and a 5-5 record SU. The Reds are an excellent base stealing team with 102 stolen bases, ranking second in the MLB. The Reds allow 5.5 runs per game, but have improved upon those numbers in the past 10 games, allowing 3.0 runs per game during that span.
The Cardinals lead the season series, 6-5. The Cardinals have a 44-35 record against right-handed starting pitchers on the year, which is what they’ll be facing when DeSclafani takes the mound. Garcia (LHP) will be on the hill against the Reds, who have inferior records against left-handed starting pitchers on the road and overall of 3-9 and 8-16, respectively.
Predictions: SU Winner – STL, O/U – Over
Notes
St. Louis recorded at least two errors for the 17th time this season.
The Cardinals managed to give up five walks in their last game. They’ll have to pick it up against the Reds who are coming in with a 10-10 record against opponents who give up that many walks or more.
When they are outhit, the Reds are 8-51. The Cardinals have a 13-47 record when opponents outhit them.
Cincinnati ranks in the bottom half of the league at 19th when it comes to home runs, hitting 122 this season. St. Louis ranks in the top five with 151.
Ranking 12th, Cincinnati is in the top half of the league in hits, notching 8.19 per game. St. Louis ranks in the top 10 at sixth with 8.78.
Ranking 26th, Cincinnati is near the bottom of the league for its on-base plus slugging percentage (.709). St. Louis ranks in the top five at fourth with an OPS of .773.
When the Reds allow at least one home run, they are 32-54. When the Cardinals allow one or more homers, they have a 30-35 record.
