St. Louis Cardinals at Philadelphia Phillies Odds, Picks and Predictions
A pair of teams looking up in their respective divisions open a three-game weekend series on Friday. The St. Louis Cardinals visit the Philadelphia Phillies with the first pitch of the series scheduled for 6:05 p.m. ET at Citizens Bank Park.
The Cardinals (43-35) are one game behind the Milwaukee Brewers in the NL Central and are currently a playoff team should the season end today. The Phillies (40-37) are 7.5 games behind the New York Mets in the NL East and are 1.5 games out of the final wild-card spot.
Veteran righty Miles Mikolas toes the rubber for the Cardinals. He is 5-5 with a 2.57 ERA and 0.96 WHIP (Walks, Hits per Innings Pitched).
The Cardinals are 9-6 when he starts, and the over/under is 8-6. He’s allowed five earned runs over his last four starts.
Southpaw Bailey Falter will deliver the first pitch for the Phillies. He’s 0-2 with a 4.50 ERA and 1.40 WHIP across 20 innings. The Phillies are 2-1 in his starts, as is the over/under.
However, he has not pitched since May 27 and pitched twice in May at all for the big league club. He replaces Zach Eflin, who landed on the injured list.
St. Louis Cardinals at Philadelphia Phillies Match Info
Location: Citizens Bank Park, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Date: Friday, July 1, 2022
Time: 6:05 p.m. ET
TV: Bally Sports Midwest, NBC Sports Philadelphia
St. Louis Cardinals at Philadelphia Phillies Odds
Odds are listed in moneyline, run line and over/under order:
- BetOnline – Cardinals -143, Phillies +132; Cardinals -1.5 (+135), Phillies +1.5 (-135); 9.5
- Bovada – Cardinals -150, Phillies +126; Cardinals -1.5 (+115), Phillies +1.5 (-135); 9.5
- MyBookie – Cardinals -145, Phillies +125; Cardinals -1.5 (+105), Phillies +1.5 (-125); 9.5
- BetUS – Cardinals -140, Phillies +125; Cardinals -1.5 (+115), Phillies +1.5 (-135); 9.5
- BetNow – Cardinals -137, Phillies +127; Cardinals -1.5 (+115), Phillies +1.5 (-135); 9.5
BetNow has the best moneyline odds for the Cardinals at -137, while the best place to bet the Phillies moneyline is BetOnline at +132.
The best run line odds for the Cardinals to win by two or more is at BetOnline +135, and for the Phillies to lose by one or win outright, the top odds are at MyBookie at -125.
The over/under is the same across the board, but odds may vary for the over or under based on the book.
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Betting Trends
- The under is 4-1 in the last five meetings between the two teams
- The Phillies are 5-2 in the last seven games between the two in Philly
- Public bets show 74% of bettors are on the Cardinals’ moneyline
- Public bets show that 60% of bettors are on the under
- The Cardinals are 39-35-4 on over/unders this season and 19-19 on the road
- The Phillies are 41-32-3 on over/unders this season and 19-19 at home
- Dating back to 2021, the teams went 3-3 against each other
- The under was 5-1 in the season series
- This is their first meeting in 2022
St. Louis’ top 10 team
Despite not leading the division or ‘wowing’ fans, the Cardinals are quietly having one of the best seasons in baseball, on paper at least. The Cardinals rank sixth both in runs scored per game (4.85) and runs allowed per game (3.94).
Though there is more concern about whether the pitching will hold up. The staff allows opponents to have a .242 batting average (18th) and a .699 OPS (16th), meaning they are stranding runners. They also are the fourth-worst team in strikeouts, doing so 7.4 times per game.
But the offense has been excellent. They have a .254 batting average (sixth) and .729 OPS (ninth). They put the ball in play with frequency, averaging 7.76 strikeouts per game (fifth).
Paul Goldschmidt is having a season that could end as the Most Valuable Player. He is hitting .342 with 19 home runs, 65 RBIs, 24 doubles, and 56 runs scored, all team highs except for runs. Tommy Edman edges him out with 58. Nolan Arenado has 19 doubles, 14 home runs, and 49 RBIs. Those two bats have been big at driving in runs in the middle of the order.
The likes of Brendan Donovan, Juan Yepez, and Nolan Gorman have been welcome additions. Yepez has ten doubles and nine home runs. Donovan is hitting .307 with 14 doubles. Gorman has a .762 OPS through 118 at bats.
Philly finding enough production?
Losing reigning MVP Bryce Harper to a thumb injury until late August is a killer for the Phillies. He was pushing to win the award in consecutive seasons while hitting .318 with 21 doubles, 15 home runs, 48 RBIs, and 49 runs scored before being hit by a Blake Snell pitch.
Philadelphia’s offense ranks fifth in runs per game at 4.86 per game, though losing its most consistent hitter threatens that. The offense has a .247 batting average, ranking 12th, and .733 OPS, ranking seventh.
Kyle Schwarber has 23 home runs, 50 RBIs, and 54 runs to pace the power. Nicholas Castellanos has 17 doubles, eight home runs, 40 RBIs, and 31 runs scored.
Rhys Hoskins has 15 doubles, 15 home runs, 41 runs scored, and 39 RBIs. Though, unlike the Cardinals, there haven’t been enough players to step up and fill the voids of injured players, including Jean Segura.
Top prospect Bryson Stott is hitting .183. Oscar Mercado is hitting .200. Alec Bohm is hitting a respectable .263, leading active players, with an underwhelming .659 OPS.
That won’t hold up with a middle-of-the-road pitching staff. Outside of starters Aaron Nola and Zach Wheeler, the Phillies have struggled.
They allow 4.34 runs per game, ranking 16th. Opponents have a .239 batting average against (16th) and .691 OPS (11th).
St. Louis Cardinals at Philadelphia Phillies Picks and Predictions
- The Cardinals have pretty decent odds for having the better starter on the bump. Mikolas is crafty, though, and if he makes a mistake, the Bank is a ballpark that can make pitchers pay. The Phillies’ odds are surprisingly not very high, given Falter’s production at the big league level and making his first appearance in over a month.
- There very well could be double-digit runs from both sides, despite Mikolas having a history of pitching deep into games and limiting runs. He’s gone at least six innings in his last four starts, including two of eight or more innings. Only once has the total tallied more than eight runs.
- The Cardinals should win this game, and as long as Mikolas pitches deep, they should generate enough offense to win by two or more. We like Cardinals -1.5 (+135).
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