St. Louis Cardinals vs San Diego Padres Prediction, 10/2/2020 MLB Pick, Tips and Odds

Game: St. Louis Cardinals vs San Diego Padres

Date: Friday, October 2, 2020

Location: Petco Park in San Diego, CA

TV: ESPN

Odds/Point Spread: Cardinals (-120) Padres (+100)

Fernando Tatis Jr and the San Diego Padres (37-23, 2nd in NL West) host the St. Louis Cardinals (30-28, 2nd in NL Central) at Petco Park on Friday. The Cardinals open this game at -120 while the Padres are priced at +100. The over/under has been set at 7.5. The pitchers taking the mound are Jack Flaherty and Luis Patino. The Padres were able to tie the series with an 11-9 win on Thursday night. Fernando Tatis Jr. had 2 home runs and 5 RBI to lead San Diego.

Key St. Louis Cardinals Injuries

9/27/2020 Dakota Hudson SP Elbow Expected to be out until at least Feb 1, 2022
9/26/2020 Carlos Martinez SP Oblique Expected to be out until at least Feb 1, 2021
9/25/2020 John Gant RP Groin Expected to be out until at least Oct 5
8/31/2020 Ricardo Sanchez RP Elbow Expected to be out until at least Feb 1, 2021
8/11/2020 Miles Mikolas SP Forearm Expected to be out until at least Feb 1, 2021
6/28/2020 John Brebbia RP Elbow Expected to be out until at least Jul 1, 2021

Key San Diego Padres Injuries

10/2/2020 Jason Castro C Jaw Out for the season
10/1/2020 Tommy Pham LF Hand Out for the season
9/30/2020 Javy Guerra RP Personal Out for the season
9/27/2020 Jose Castillo RP Lat Expected to be out until at least Feb 1, 2021
9/23/2020 Breyvic Valera 2B Undisclosed Out for the season
9/22/2020 Kirby Yates RP Elbow Expected to be out until at least Feb 1, 2021
8/1/2020 Trey Wingenter RP Elbow Expected to be out until at least Feb 1, 2022
7/27/2020 Anderson Espinoza SP Elbow Expected to be out until at least Feb 1, 2021

Useful Pitching Statistics

The Cardinals have a 30-28 overall record this season. Flaherty has taken the ball for 408 innings and has racked up 482 punchouts in his MLB career. His earned run average is 3.37 (153 ER's allowed) and he has a career WHIP of 1.075. He has conceded 299 hits (6.6 hits per 9 innings) and has 140 free passes. Flaherty (23-22 mark in his career) has earned a FIP of 3.78 while he has gone up against 1,651 hitters in the major leagues. The bullpen has an earned run average of 4.00 and they have given up 148 base hits on the year. Teams are hitting .180 against the bullpen and they've struck out 206 hitters and walked 97 batters. As a team, St. Louis allows 7.2 hits per nine innings while striking out 8.8 batters per nine innings. They are 9th in the league in team earned run average at 3.9. The Cardinals pitchers collectively have given up 376 base hits and 205 earned runs. They have allowed 69 home runs this season, ranking them 24th in the league. St. Louis as a pitching staff has walked 204 batters and struck out 464. They have walked 3.9 men per 9 innings while striking out 8.8 per 9. They have a team WHIP of 1.23 and their FIP as a unit is 4.58.

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Hitting Statistics

As a team St. Louis is hitting .234, good for 22nd in the league. The Cardinals hold a .371 team slugging percentage and an on-base percentage of .323, which is good for 14th in baseball. They rank 27th in MLB with 7.1 hits per game. Paul Goldschmidt is hitting .304 with an on-base percentage of .417. He has 58 hits this season in 191 at bats with 21 runs batted in. He has a slugging percentage of .466 and an OPS+ of 142. Yadier Molina is hitting .262 this year and he has an on-base percentage of .303. He has totaled 38 hits and he has driven in 16 men in 145 at bats. His OPS+ is 81 while his slugging percentage is at .359. The Cardinals have 410 hits, including 73 doubles and 51 home runs. St. Louis has walked 205 times so far this season and they have struck out 477 times as a unit. They have left 358 men on base and have a team OPS of .694. They score 4.14 runs per contest and have scored a total of 240 runs this year.

Useful Pitching Statistics

During his MLB career, Patino has given up 18 hits while he has totaled 21 strikeouts in 17 innings pitched. He has allowed a total of 10 earned runs while earning a WHIP of 1.871 and being the owner of a FIP of 5.7. He has a SO/W ratio of 1.50 and he has faced 85 opposing batters in his MLB career. Patino (1-0 career record) has earned a 5.26 ERA while allowing 9.5 hits per nine innings. The bullpen has an earned run average of 4.38 and they have given up 211 base hits on the year. Teams are hitting .211 against the Padres bullpen. Their relievers have struck out 261 batters and walked 92 opposing hitters. As a team, San Diego allows 7.9 hits per nine innings while striking out 9.8 batters per nine innings. They are 8th in the league in team earned run average at 3.86. The Padres pitchers as a team have surrendered 456 base knocks and 223 earned runs this season. They have given up 70 home runs this year, which ranks 21st in Major League Baseball. San Diego as a staff has walked 170 hitters and struck out 565 batters. They give up a walk 2.9 times per 9 innings while they strike out 9.8 per 9. Their team WHIP is 1.20 while their FIP as a staff is 3.88.

Hitting Statistics

As a team, they are batting .257, good for 10th in the league. The Padres hold a .466 team slugging percentage and an on-base percentage of .333, which is good for 8th in baseball. They rank 11th in MLB with 8.4 hits per contest. Fernando Tatis Jr comes into this matchup batting .277 with an OBP of .366. He has 62 hits this year along with 45 RBI in 224 AB's. He maintains a slugging percentage of .571 with an OPS+ of 155. Eric Hosmer is hitting .287 this season and he has an OBP of .333. He has collected 41 hits in 143 at bats while driving in 36 runs. He has an OPS+ of 131 and a slugging percentage of .517. The Padres as a unit have 506 base hits, including 103 doubles and 95 homers. San Diego has walked 204 times this year and they have struck out on 479 occasions. They have had 363 men left on base and have an OPS of .798. They have scored 5.42 runs per game and totaled 325 runs this season.

Who will win tonight's Cardinals/Padres MLB game against the spread?

Tony's Pick: Take the Cardinals (-120)

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