Game Information
St. Louis Cardinals (22-19) at Philadelphia Phillies (24-16)
Time: 5:45pm CT Monday
How to watch: FanDuel Sports Network
Probable pitchers: Matthew Liberatore (3-3, 3.07 ERA) vs Cristopher Sánchez (4-1, 2.89 ERA)
DraftKings Odds
Moneyline: Phillies -175, Cardinals +145
Total: 8 (over -108, under -112)
Streaking Cardinals Head To Philly
The St. Louis Cardinals take their eight-game winning streak to Philadelphia to open a three-game series with the Phillies tonight.
The hot streak has carried the Redbirds to three games over .500 and within one game of the first place Chicago Cubs.
Libby On The Mound
Excellent starting pitching has fueled the winning streak for the Cardinals. Here are the updated starters’ stats over the last 5 games (one full turn through the rotation):
35.2 IP
20 H
4 ER
5 BB
36 K
5-0 record
1.01 ERA
0.70 WHIP
Matthew Liberatore began that fantastic stretch for the Cards’ starting staff, and he’ll be back on the bump tonight. Liberatore shut out the Phillies for 6 innings the last time he faced them on April 13th.
Phillies Strong Per Usual
The Phillies are returning home after a 5-1 road trip to Tampa Bay and Cleveland. The Phils are 11-3 over their last 14 games and have been powered by Kyle Schwarber’s sizzling bat. The former Cub is 13-for-39 (.333 average) with 5 homers and 9 RBI so far during the month of May.
Cristopher Sánchez makes the start for Philadelphia tonight and has been terrific to begin the season. The southpaw allowed just 1 hit in 6 shutout innings in his last start at Tampa Bay, and he pitched 6.1 innings of 1-run ball against the Cardinals back on April 12th.
My Pick
These are two outstanding left-handers on the mound tonight, and their results so far this season have not been fluky. Liberatore’s 3.07 actual ERA comes with a 2.79 xERA, and Sánchez deserves his 2.89 actual ERA with a nearly identical 2.90 xERA.
So I’m going to run back yesterday’s winning pick and take the under in the first five innings, as I think the price is good enough.
I also wouldn’t dissuade anyone from throwing a dart on the Cardinals on the moneyline at a nice plus money price. The Phillies are in a tough situational spot having to travel back home after playing Sunday Night Baseball last night in Cleveland, which could lead to a sleepy start for Philly (which also helps my first five under). I like the Redbirds’ chances of extending their winning streak to nine in a tight, low-scoring game.
Pick: Under 4.5 in the first five innings at -120 on DraftKings (would not lay any more juice than that)
Eric Sontag hosts Domesticated Gamblers every Friday on the Sports Hub STL YouTube channel. Follow him on X @GamblingDads, and click here for his daily picks on all of our St. Louis area sports teams. Picks = betting the game - minus odds betting to win 1 unit, plus odds risking 1 unit. Leans = no strong opinion, not betting the game. Disclaimer