StatFox.com - Sports Handicapping Community

The Leader In Sports Handicapping

Slumping Cardinals face Cubs on Monday
By: Staff Writer - StatFox
Published: 6/20/2016  at  1:25:00 PM
  Print This Article    

By Michael Rothman

ST. LOUIS CARDINALS (35-33)

at CHICAGO CUBS (47-20)

First pitch: Monday, 8:05 p.m. ET
Line: St. Louis +145, Chicago -155, Total: 8.5

St. Louis will try to end its losing streak in Chicago tonight against the Cubs.

The Cardinals come to Chicago to start a three-game series on Monday after losing five straight at home. This is an extremely difficult stretch for St. Louis, having to play the two top teams in the league in back to back series. The game tonight starts an eight game road-trip for the Cardinals. The road has been kind to St. Louis this season, going 20-12 away from home. The Cubs, on the other hand, hold the MLB’s best record of 47-20 and hold a commanding 12.5-game lead over the Cardinals in the NL Central. Chicago is coming into the series on a three-game win streak after sweeping the Pirates over the weekend. The Cubs have also won seven of the last ten games. Tonight St. Louis will have LHP Jamie Garcia (4-6, 3.93 ERA, 63 K) on the mound against Chicago’s RHP John Lackey (7-2, 2.66 ERA, 91 K). The Cubs will look to extend their lead in the season series against St. Louis after going 4-2 in their matchups this year.

The Cardinals are going to need a good outing from Garcia in order to break their current losing streak. Garcia hasn’t been pitching well all season, owning a 4-6 record and his struggles have stuck with him recently. Over his last three games, he is 0-2 with a 5.62 ERA and he is lucky he isn’t 0-3 after he gave up five runs in 4.2 innings in the one no decision. In his one game that he threw against the Cubs this season, he went five innings only giving up two runs, but came away with a loss because of a lack of run support from his team. St. Louis has been able to win games with their hitting; as a team the Cardinals rank third in runs scored (360). 3B Matt Carpenter (.301, 10 HR, 42 RBI) has been the Cardinals hottest hitter lately, hitting .422 with one HR and seven RBIs in June and has hit .533 over the last seven days. 1B Brandon Moss (.247, 15 HR, 34 RBI) is also finding his stride this month, hitting .359 with six HRs and ten RBIs. Look for 3B Jhonny Peralta (.273, 1 HR, 7 RBI) to have a big night tonight because he has hit Lackey well in his career (.355, 4 RBI).

The stats easily explain why the Cubs have the best record in MLB. They hit well, ranked second in runs scored (364), and they have dominated batters, having the top ERA as a staff with 2.66. Opposing hitters have been held to a staggering .205 BA against Chicago’s pitching all season. The Cubs starter tonight has been contributing to the staff’s dominance all season. John Lackey has an impressive 7-2 record which includes an even more impressive 4-1 record with a 1.66 ERA at home. Lackey has been on fire recently, going 2-0 with a 0.92 ERA over his last three starts. This year, Lackey has started two games against his former team, the Cardinals, and went 1-1 in those games. The Cubs have been getting hitting up and down the line-up all season. Look for 1B Anthony Rizzo (.272, 17 HR, 53 RBI) to have a big game because of his hot hitting as of late, going .386 with six HRs and 16 RBIs in June. OF Albert Almora Jr. (.346, 0 HR, 5 RBI) has also been hitting well over the last seven days, hitting .375 over the span. 3B Kris Bryant (.273, 17 HR, 47 RBI) should have a good night tonight because he has been hitting St. Louis pitching well all season, going .280 with one homer and six RBI in the six games. Look to see if C Willson Contreras (1.000, 1 HR, 2 RBI) gets an at bat tonight after hitting a HR on the first pitch of his first MLB at bat in yesterday’s game.


FoxSheets.com
The FoxSheets - the most advanced sports handicapping information available on the internet.
Sign up for professional sports betting information including fantastic trends, and Free FoxSheets.
E-mail: