Wednesday, April 6, 2016

PNC Park

For Updated Odds on This Game Click Here

Probable Pitchers: Mike Leake vs. Juan Nicasio

The St. Louis Cardinals visit PNC Park on Wednesday to play the Pittsburgh Pirates. The probable starters are Mike Leake for the Cardinals and Juan Nicasio for the Pirates. The opening line for this matchup has St. Louis at -115 and Pittsburgh at +105. The over/under was set at 7.5. The Cardinals had a 69-86-11 over/under record last season and a 82-84-0 run line mark, meaning they covered 49% of the time. The Pirates were 73-90-0 against the run line and had a 75-76-12 over/under record. They covered the spread 45% of the time.

The Cardinals head into this matchup coming off a 100 - 62 season, including 45-36 on the road. Starting pitcher Mike Leake had a 11 - 10 record with an earned run average of 3.7 and a WHIP of 1.16. He had 119 strikeouts over his 192 innings pitched and he also gave up 174 hits over that time period. He allowed 8.2 hits per 9 innings and he had a FIP of 4.2. The bullpen had an earned run average of 2.82 and they gave up 442 base hits on the year. Teams hit .238 against the bullpen while being struck out 466 times and walking 183 times last season. As a team, St. Louis allowed 8.34 hits per nine innings while striking out 8.21 batters per nine. They were 1st in the league in team earned run average at 2.96. The Cardinals pitchers collectively gave up 1,359 base hits and 478 earned runs last year. They allowed 123 home runs last season and they allowed 0.8 homers per nine innings as a staff. St. Louis as a pitching staff walked 477 batters and struck out 1,329. They walked 2.9 men per 9 innings while striking out 8.2 per 9. They had a team WHIP of 1.25 and their FIP as a unit was 3.47.

As a team, St. Louis batted .252, good for 13th in the league while putting together a .243 average away from home. The Cardinals held a .395 team slugging percentage and an on-base percentage of .320 which was good for 13th in baseball. They ranked 17th in baseball with 8.52 hits per game. Matt Carpenter hit .272 last season and his on-base percentage was at .365. He had 156 hits last season along with 101 runs scored and 84 runs batted in. He struck out 151 times and walked 81 times. Kolten Wong hit .262 and he had an on-base percentage of .321 last year. He totaled 146 hits while scoring 71 runs and he drove in 61. He walked 36 times and struck out 95 times. The Cardinals had 1,386 hits, including 288 doubles, 39 triples, and 137 home runs. They stole 69 bases while they were thrown out stealing 38 times. St. Louis walked 506 times last season and they struck out 1,267 times as a unit. They left 1,152 men on base and had a team OPS of .716. They scored 3.99 runs per contest and scored a total of 647 runs last season.

Pittsburgh comes into this matchup after having a 53-28 home record and a 98 - 64 overall mark last year. With an earned run average last season of 3.86, Juan Nicasio will come into this game after holding a 1 - 3 record and a 1.56 WHIP. He had 65 strikeouts over the 58.1 innings he pitched during which he gave up 59 hits. He allowed 9.1 hits per nine innings and his FIP stood at 2.83. The bullpen had an earned run average of 2.67 and they gave up 452 base hits last year. Teams hit .231 against the Pirates bullpen while being struck out 462 times and walking 160 times last season. As a team, Pittsburgh allowed 8.4 hits per nine innings while striking out 8.1 batters per nine. They were 2nd in the league in team earned run average at 3.23. The Pirates pitchers as a team surrendered 1,392 base knocks and 532 earned runs last season. They gave up 110 home runs last year and they gave up 0.7 home runs per nine innings as a staff. Pittsburgh as a staff walked 453 hitters and struck out 1,338. They gave up a walk 2.7 times per 9 innings while they struck out 8.1 per 9. Their team WHIP was 1.24 while their FIP as a staff was 3.36.

As a team, they hit .259, good for 9th in the league while putting together a .258 average at home. The Pirates held a .394 team slugging percentage and an on-base percentage of .323 which was good for 9th in baseball. They ranked 8th in baseball with 9 hits per contest. Andrew McCutchen batted .292 last season and he had an OBP of .401. He had 165 hits last year along with 91 runs scored and 96 RBI. He struck out 133 times and walked on 98 occasions. Starling Marte hit .287 and he had an OBP of .337. He collected 166 hits last year while he scored 84 runs and drove in 81. He earned a walk 27 times and punched out 123 times. The Pirates as a unit had 1,462 base hits last year, including 292 doubles, 27 triples, and 140 homers. They had 98 stolen bases while they were thrown out 45 times. Pittsburgh as a team walked 461 times last year and they struck out 1,322 times. They had 1,166 men left on base and had an OPS of .719. They scored 4.3 runs per game and totaled 697 runs last season.

St. Louis Cardinals Betting Trends

The St. Louis Cardinals were 69-86-11 against the over/under last season

The St. Louis Cardinals were 82-84-0 against the run line last season

Pittsburgh Pirates Betting Trends

The Pittsburgh Pirates were 75-76-12 against the over/under last season

The Pittsburgh Pirates were 73-90-0 against the run line last season

Injuries to Watch

St. Louis Cardinals

04/04/16 C Brayan Pena Knee Injury is on the 15 day disabled list (4/1)
04/04/16 SS Jhonny Peralta Thumb Injury is on the 15 day disabled list (3/25)
04/04/16 P Jordan Walden Abdominal Injury is on the 15 day disabled list (3/31)
04/04/16 P Lance Lynn Elbow Injury is on the 60 day disabled list; out for season
04/04/16 P Mitch Harris Elbow Injury is on the 15 day disabled list (3/25)
04/04/16 2B Ruben Tejada Quad Injury is on the 15 day disabled list (4/1)
04/04/16 CF Thomas Pham Oblique Injury is on the 15 day disabled list (4/4)

Pittsburgh Pirates

04/04/16 3B Jung-ho Kang Knee Injury is on the 15 day disabled list (3/25)
04/03/16 P Jared Hughes Oblique Injury is on the 15 day disabled list (3/25)
03/31/16 C Elias Diaz Elbow Injury is on the 15 day disabled list (3/25)

Tony's Pick: Take the Cardinals

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