David Holmberg (1-0, 3.00 ERA) and Carlos Martinez (11-4, 2.61 ERA) take the hill in the second of a three-game series between the Cincinnati Reds (48-56) and the St. Louis Cardinals (67-39) at the Great American Ball Park. The Reds won the last game 3-2 and Cincinnati leads the series 1-0. Action begins at 7:10 p.m. ET on Wednesday, Aug. 5 and can be seen on FSOH and FSMW.
Holmberg pitched 6.0 innings in his last outing, surrendering two runs, striking out four and walking three in a 15-5 win over the Pirates. Joey Votto (.309, 58 Rs, 19 HRs, 51 RBIs, 6 SBs) went 1 for 3 yesterday. Martinez went 5.0 innings, surrendering five runs and striking out six in a 9-8 defeat to the Rockies in his most recent start. Randal Grichuk (.291, 38 Rs, 12 HRs, 38 RBIs, 4 SBs) has been successful at the plate for the Cardinals, going 2 for 4 yesterday with one run.
St. Louis takes on Cincinnati as a -150 favorite. The Over/Under (O/U) for the matchup is sitting at seven runs. The Reds have recorded an overall money line of -810 and have shown a weak performance as an underdog this season with a record of 21-36. Within its division, Cincinnati has a 7-6 as the underdog and a 22-24 SU. Cincinnati leads the MLB in steals, swiping 101 bases.
Over in the other dugout, St. Louis is coming in with an overall money line of +2,005 and an impressive record of 55-23 as the favorite. They have been playing solid baseball as favorite with a 20-8 record against fellow NL Central members, and a 26-16 record SU. St. Louis is excellent at drawing walks with 3.0 per game, ranking fifth in the NL. St. Louis’s pitching staff has set the standard for its league, with an NL-low 2.69 ERA. When it comes to preventing batters from getting on base, the Cardinals are one of the best in the league with a WHIP of 1.21 for the season.
The Cardinals lead the season series, 6-4. The Reds have a 36-43 record against right-handed starting pitchers on the year, which is what they’ll be facing when Martinez takes the mound. Holmberg (LHP) will be on the hill against the Cardinals, who have a 14-14 record against left-handed starting pitchers.
Predictions: SU Winner – StL, O/U – Over
Notes
The total has gone UNDER in 6 of Cincinnati’s last 8 games.
Cincinnati is 5-2 SU in its last 7 games.
The total has gone UNDER in 5 of Cincinnati’s last 5 games when playing St. Louis.
Cincinnati is 3-6 SU in its last 9 games when playing St. Louis.
The total has gone UNDER in 4 of Cincinnati’s last 6 games when playing at home against St. Louis.
Cincinnati is 5-2 SU in its last 7 games when playing at home against St. Louis.
The Cardinals sit at 26-16 against their divisional rivals, while the Reds are 22-24.
When leading after 7 innings, St. Louis is 22-12, while Cincinnati is 17-23.
The Cardinals are coming into this game after allowing two walks during their last outing. The Reds have an 18-25 record when opponents give up that many walks or fewer.
When they outhit their opponents, the Reds are 37-15. The Cardinals have a 43-13 record when outhitting opponents.
Cincinnati and St. Louis both rank in the bottom half of the league in runs. Cincinnati sits at 20th with 416 runs this season and St. Louis ranks 19th with 420.
Cincinnati and St. Louis both rank in the top 10 of the league in walks. Cincinnati sits at ninth with 317 this season and St. Louis ranks sixth with 323.
When the Reds hit at least one home run, they are 40-28. When the Cardinals hit at least one homer, they have a 42-18 record.
