Game Information
St. Louis Cardinals (30-24) at Baltimore Orioles (19-34)
Time: 5:35pm CT Tuesday
How to watch: FanDuel Sports Network
Probable pitchers: Andre Pallante (4-3, 4.18 ERA) vs Tomoyuki Sugano (4-3, 3.07 ERA)
DraftKings Odds
Moneyline: Cardinals -118, Orioles -102
Total: 9 (over -105, under -115)
Cardinals, Orioles Play Game Two
The St. Louis Cardinals look to get back on the winning track when they take on the Baltimore Orioles tonight.
The Redbirds dropped the series opener 5-2 yesterday in a rare flat performance that saw them commit 2 errors and only produce 4 hits. It was just their second loss by more than one run since May 3rd.
Redbirds Need To Get Bats Going Again
The Cardinals’ season-long offensive numbers still look very good, as they rank 8th in MLB in runs per game (4.74) and 10th in OPS (.727). But they have hit a bit of a lull here recently, as they’ve scored 4 runs or less in seven of their last nine games.
The Cards give the ball to Andre Pallante, who has been pretty streaky this season. Pallante had a 2.20 ERA in his first three starts of the season, then a 6.86 ERA in the next stretch of four starts, followed by a 3.15 ERA in his last three outings.
Orioles Turning It Around?
Despite having the worst ERA of any team in baseball other than the Rockies, the Orioles may be in the process of turning their season around. They started this month 4-16, but they’ve now won three games in a row while allowing just 4 total runs in those matchups.
Tonight’s starter Tomoyuki Sugano has been Baltimore’s most reliable member of the rotation so far this year. The right-hander is in his first MLB season after coming over from Japan and has given up 3 runs or less in all but one of his ten starts.
My Lean
After going on a 10-2 hot streak in my picks on Cardinals games, I’ve dropped my last two. I don’t see a play that stands out to me tonight, so I’m going be the equivalent of a basketball coach taking a timeout. I’m going to sit this one out, reset, and I already have a play I’m eyeing up for tomorrow.
I find both of tonight’s starters tough to predict. Pallante was terrific in two recent back-to-back outings against Washington and Kansas City with just 4 runs and 0 walks allowed in 14.1 innings, but then he was back to walking a bunch of hitters in his last start against Detroit. And I think Sugano’s 3.07 ERA is smoke and mirrors with his 4.91 K/9, 4.32 xERA, 4.81 FIP, and 4.42 xFIP. I think it’s a matter of time before the league figures him out and his ERA spikes significantly.
If forced to make a play on this game, I would take the over. It appears the Orioles are starting to find their groove, and the Cardinals have to be eager to wipe yesterday’s taste out of their mouths.
Lean: Over 9 at -105 on DraftKings
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