The Chicago Cubs (27-24) travel to face off against the St. Louis Cardinals (23-26) on Saturday, May 25th. This game will be played at Busch Stadium in St. Louis and televised on FOX. The Cardinals are coming off a win in their previous game, while the Cubs are looking to get back on track from a loss to the Braves. First pitch is set for 7:15 ET.
Cubs vs Cardinals
The Cubs will be looking to get back on track after closing out their series vs. the Braves with a 3-0 loss. Chicago was actually the slight favorite at home going into the game but fell behind early, as the Braves scored three times in the 2nd.
Chicago started Ben Brown, and he took the loss, going only four innings. He didn’t give up a run, but the Cubs offense was still struggling. Seiya Suzuki had two hits and scored the only run. The Cubs also wasted a big game from Seiya Suzuki, who went json 4 with two doubles.
Chicago is 27-24 overall and 2.5 games behind the Brewers in the NL Central. The Cubs lost the final two games of their series vs. the Braves and are just 5-5 in divisional games this year. So far, they are 12-9 as the favorite and an even 15-15 as the underdog.
At home, the Cubs have gone 15-11 compared to 12-13 on the road. Chicago has dropped two straight games, and they are just 3-7 over their last ten. So far, they have been good in close games, putting together a 16-8 record in one-run games.
When the Cubs win, they win big, with an average run margin of 3.1 runs. But when they lose, they lose big, with an average run margin of -3.6 runs. Their run line record is 26-25, and they are 15-10 on the road against the run line. They have been favored in 21 games and have gone 6-15 against the run line in those contests. As an underdog, they are 20-10 against the run line.
Chicago Cubs games have gone over the total in 21 of 49 games this season, and their games have averaged 8.6 runs per game. Today’s O/U line is 8.5 runs, and the O/U record is 6-4 in games with that line. The Cubs have played 13 games with O/U lines higher than 8.5 runs, which is 25.5% of their games, and 28 games with O/U lines lower than 8.5 runs, which is 54.9% of their games.
Jameson Taillon Gets The Start For The Cubs
Through six starts, Jameson Taillon has a record of 3-2 and an ERA of 2.20. He has made two quality starts this year and is coming off a rough outing in which he gave up three earned runs in 4 2/3 innings of work. In that start, he gave up one homer. Before that outing, he had won two straight starts. Taillon’s ERA at home is 2.29 compared to 2.86 on the road. So far, he has allowed five homers and is averaging 6.06 strikeouts per nine innings.
Cubs Offense Breakdown
Chicago’s offense has been one of the worst in the league this season, as they are just 18th in the league in runs scored and are batting a collective .225. The Cubs do have a good team on-base percentage, and they have been good at drawing walks. One thing to keep an eye on is that they are 4th in the league in home runs but have just the 15th best slugging percentage in the league.
Christopher Morel and Cody Bellinger have been the Cubs’ top power hitters this season, with Morel leading the team with nine homers and Bellinger right behind him at seven. However, Morel is batting just .205, and Bellinger is hitting only .241. Nico Hoerner has been a solid all-around hitter for the Cubs, batting .257 with two homers.
The Cardinals’s offense was hot right out of the gates in their most recent game vs. the Orioles, closing out their series with a 5-4 win. After allowing three runs to the Orioles in the top of the first, the Cardinals responded with a run of their own. St. Louis went on to add another run in the 5th inning and closed things out with a 3-run 6th. Heading into the game, the Cardinals were the slight underdog at +109.
Kyle Gibson put together a good start for the Cardinals, going four innings and not giving up a run. He also issued just one walk and struck out three Orioles batters. However, the Cardinals needed to use four relievers to close things out, and John King took the loss out of the bullpen.
St. Louis is hosting the Cubs today with an overall record of 23-26, and they are 5.5 games behind the Brewers for the NL Central lead. So far, they have really struggled against other NL Central teams, going just 1-6 this season. The Cardinals have won three straight games, and they closed out their series vs. the Orioles with a win.
At home, the Cardinals are 11-12 this year and 12-14 on the road. St. Louis has won two straight games as the underdog, and they are 11-13 as the underdog overall. The Cardinals have been good as the home underdog, going 4-3 this year. So far, they have an even series record of 8-8 and have won three straight series.
The Cardinals have been a solid run line bet at home this season, going 13-10. They have covered the run line in three straight games at home and are 15-9 ATS as an underdog this season. Their average run margin in winning games is +2.6, while it drops to -3.9 in losses.
Today’s over/under line for the St. Louis Cardinals’ game against the Chicago Cubs is set at 8.5 runs. The Cardinals have an over/under record of 23-24 on the season, and their games have averaged 8.6 runs per game. When the over/under line is set at 8.5 runs, the Cardinals have gone over the total in 13 of 19 games (68.4%). Overall, 16.3% of their games have had higher over/under lines than 8.5 runs.
Miles Mikolas Gets The Start For The Cardinals
St. Louis is sending right-hander Miles Mikolas to the mound today vs. the Cubs. He has made 10 starts this season and has a record of 3-5 with a 5.77 ERA. Looking at his overall numbers, Mikolas has a WHIP of 1.40 and opponents are batting .294 this season. In his 10 appearances, Mikolas has turned in four quality starts. The right-hander most recently faced the Red Sox, where he gave up one earned run in five innings of work. He finished with a no-decision in that outing. Before that, he had lost three straight starts.
Cardinals Offense Breakdown
St. Louis comes into today’s game with the 26th ranked scoring offense in the league, averaging just 3.9 runs per game. They have been slightly better at home, averaging 4 runs per contest. As a team, the Cardinals are batting .231, which is 16th in the league, and they are also near the bottom of the league in home runs. However, they do have the 8th fewest strikeouts in the league.
Nolan Arenado is hitting .269 for the season and has gone deep three times, which is 15th in the league. Brendan Donovan and Nolan Gorman are the team’s top power threats, with four and eight homers, respectively. Donovan is also the team’s current leader in RBIs. Gorman has three homers in his last six games, while Alec Burleson has gone 14/33 over his last eight games.
Cubs vs Cardinals Prediction
We are predicting the Cubs to pick up a 5-4 road win over the Cardinals. With the Cubs being the underdogs at -104, there is a good amount of value in picking them up on the money line.
Looking at the starting pitchers, we have Jameson Taillon finishing with 4 strikeouts, which is actually better than Miles Mikolas, who we have finishing with five. Offensively, we have the Cubs finishing with nine hits, compared to the Cardinals, who we have finishing with nine.
Looking at some potential payouts, if you’re looking to make a parlay, you could look to add some potential home run hitters, as we have the Cubs finishing with the ninth most home runs on the day, and the Cardinals finishing with the 18th most.
All odds are courtesy of Action247 Sportsbook. Good luck!!
* All odds are provided by Action247 Sportsbook and all odds subject to change.**All views expressed are my own. My picks are my own and are not a guarantee, bet at your own risk.Action247 does not warrant the accuracy of completeness of the information, text, graphics, links or other items contained within these post.
Last updated:May 25, 2024 Cardinals, Cubs