National League Central rivals Chicago Cubs and St. Louis Cardinals face off today at Wrigley Field in the second match of a four-game series; Chicago VS Louis between two division rivals.
The Cardinals won five successive games following their 6-4 victory against the Miami Marlins on Wednesday, completing a three-game series of Miami.
Chicago on the other hand won the Washington Nationals 8-3 on Wednesday for their second consecutive victory.
St. Louis will play, with six pitchers, including Tommy Edman absent. While Chicago will also play without six pitchers, plus position players Nick Madigral and Dansby Swanson.
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Predictions And Betting Preview For Chicago Cubs VS St. Louis Cardinals MLB Regular Season
- Venue: Wrigley Field, Chicago Illinois
- When: Friday, July 21st, 2023
- Time: 19:20 GMT
- Teams to play: Chicago VS Louis.
- MLB Expert Picks: MONEYLINE 1.886
Odds by 1XBet and BetMGM.
Betting On The Chicago Cubs
- 1XBet Spread: +1.5
- 1XBet Moneyline: Moneyline 1.886
- 1XBet Over/Under: Over 8.5
- BetMGM Spread: -1.5
- BetMGM Moneyline: 1.83
- BetMGM Over/Under: Under 8.5
Chicago Cubs are in 16th position in team batting average at .251, dropped to 18th place in slugging percentage with .403, and improved to eighth in on-base percentage with .329. They’ve scored 458 runs which is 10th best in baseball.
Patrick Wisdom leads the Cubs in home runs with 17 and Christopher Morel is second with 15 home runs. Nico Hoerner leads in RBI with 54 and Ian Happ is second with 42. Chicago hit 140 doubles, 16 triples, and 106 home runs in 95 games.
On the mound, the Cubs have a team ERA of 4.13 which is 15th and are also 15th in WHIP at 1.27. Their starting rotation has 42 Quality Starts which is 7th best in baseball, while they are 16th in batting average permitted at .244. Marcus Stroman leads the team in victories with 10 and strikeouts with 101. Justin Steele, who is 9-3 with an ERA of 2.96 and 87 strikeouts, will pitch for Chicago today.
Betting On The St. Louis Cardinals
- 1XBet Spread: -1.5
- 1XBet Moneyline: 2.061
- 1XBet Over/Under: Under 8.5
- BetMGM Spread: +1.5
- BetMGM Moneyline: 2.00
- BetMGM Over/Under: Over 8.5
St. Louis Cardinals are gradually advancing in the standings of the National League Central, thanks to a tight production at the plate. They are 7th in base percentage at .331 and slugging percentage at .431. The team is also 10th in team batting average at .257 and 11th in runs scored with 454.
Nolan Arenado leads in home runs with 21 and RBI with 72, Nolan Gorman is second in home runs with 19 and 2nd in RBI with 61. The Cardinals have hit 161 doubles, 8 triples, and 131 home runs in 96 games.
The Cardinals have struggled on the mound, being 24th in team ERA at 4.52 and Quality Starts with 28. They are 27th in WHIP at 1.145 and 28th in batting average allowed with .273. Jack Flaherty will start on the mound today. Flaherty leads in wins with seven, he is 7-5 with an ERA of 4.29 and 96 strikeouts. Jordan Montogomery on the other hand leads strikeouts with 101.
MatchPlug Prediction
The Cardinals have won all of their last five overall and when playing against the Cubs. They won seven out of their last nine games. St. Louis also does well at Wrigley Field, having won 13 of their last 18 games there.
Flaherty, who will start for them, has three consecutive solid outings permitting three earned runs in one and no earned runs in any of the last two. Over that period of three starts, the Cardinals have won all three, as Jack allowed only one home run over 18⅔ innings in that span.
The Cubs starter, Justin Steele is off his worst outing of the year last Sunday, allowing 10 hits and six runs including serving up a pair of home runs in six innings with Chicago losing to the Boston Red Sox 11-5.
Prediction: St. Louis Cardinals Moneyline.
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