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The Cincinnati Reds and St. Louis Cardinals square off on Saturday with first pitch set for 2:15 p.m. ET. The game takes place at Busch Stadium in St. Louis, Missouri and will only be available on local TV or through an MLB.tv subscription. Nick Lodolo (2-2, 4.44 ERA) will start for the Reds while the Cardinals will counter with Miles Mikolas (6-7, 2.62 ERA).
After a miserable start to the 2022 season, Cincinnati (34-56) has improved to become a respectable team. The Reds are coming off a series with the New York Yankees in which they snagged two wins in three games against the best team in baseball, with their one loss coming by way of a one-run deficit in 10 innings. To start off their series with the Cardinals the Reds walked eight batters through the first seven innings, which proved to be the nail in the coffin as they opened the series with a 7-3 loss.
St. Louis (49-44) sits in second place in the NL Central as they continue their chase with the Milwaukee Brewers for the division crown. One of the struggles that has hampered their goal has been the team’s inability to string together multiple wins. Prior to their win over the Reds on Friday, the Cardinals were just 4-8 over their previous 12 games. Friday’s win snapped a two-game losing streak, and the Cardinals will look to end the first half of the season on a strong note in their three-game homestand against the Reds.
Reds vs. Cardinals
Pitchers: Nick Lodolo vs. Miles Mikolas
First pitch: 2:15 p.m. ET
Reds local broadcast: Bally Sports Ohio
Cardinals local broadcast: Bally Sports Midwest
Live stream: MLB.tv (subscription)
Odds, picks & predictions
Run Line: Cardinals -1.5 (+110)
Run total: 8.5
Moneyline odds: Reds +145, Cardinals -170
Moneyline pick: Cardinals -170
St. Louis may have been slowed in their first matchup with Lodolo, but now that this is their second shot at the rookie I like them having a strategy in place at the plate. Cincinnati also has the sixth-highest strikeout ratio in baseball. The Reds are simply outmatched in this one and I like the Cardinals to get back-to-back wins on Saturday.
Player prop pick: Paul Goldschmidt over 1.5 total bases (-110)
The Cardinals are hitting .259 against left-handed pitchers as a team and have hit 16 homers in the process. St. Louis should bode well against Lodolo with power right-handed bats like Goldschmidt. I’m banking on him having an efficient day at the plate and taking the over on total bases.
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