Orlando Ramirez-USA TODAY Sports/Sipa USA

San Diego Padres vs St. Louis Cardinals: A big series for the Cards

The San Diego Padres and the St. Louis Cardinals are opening their series today at Busch Stadium.

The Padres have a promising season

The San Diego Padres are third in the NL West with a 74-58 record including 37-26 on the road and are 4.5 games behind the leading Los Angeles Dodgers. San Diego has lost 3 of their last 5 games and are coming off a 3-2 win over the New York Mets. The Padres have a 3.97 ERA, a .239 batting average, a .304 on-base percentage, and 1.23 walks plus hits per inning pitched. Jurickson Profar leads the team with 135 hits, 75 runs and 21 home runs.

Is it too late for the Cardinals?

The St. Louis Cardinals are second in the NL Central with a 65-65 record and 34-30 at home. They won 4 of their last 5 games and are coming off a 3-2 win over the Minnesota Twins. The Cardinals have a 4.13 ERA, a .247 batting average, a .309 on-base percentage, and 1.27 walks plus hits per inning pitched. Brendan Donovan leads the team with 124 hits, Paul Goldschmidt is on top with 59 runs and Alec Burleson has 21 home runs.

Betting Trends

The Cardinals have entered the game as favorites 64 times this season and won 32 of those games. St. Louis and its opponents have gone over the total this season in 60 of 129 opportunities. The Cardinals are 65-63 against the spread this season. The Padres have been victorious in 26 of the 48 contests they have been chosen as underdogs in this season. San Diego’s games have gone over the total in 71 of its 132 opportunities. The Padres have posted a record of 66-65 against the spread this season.

Prediction and Conclusion

The Cardinals are second in their division, ten games behind the Milwaukee Brewers, and have only a 3.5% chance to reach the playoffs, while the Padres are third in theirs but are 95.4% in. Given that, this series is way more important for the Cardinals, who hope to turn things around. They will start with Kyle Gibson on the mound, who is 7-5 for the season with a 4.22 ERA, 126 K, 136.1 IP, and 1.36 WHIP. The Padres will have Randy Vasquez to start the game, who is 3-6 for the season with a 4.63 ERA, 53 K, 81.2 IP, and 1.51 WHIP. Given the starting pitchers and the situation both teams are currently in, we go with the Cardinals to win the series opener.