Chicago Cubs vs St. Louis Cardinals Prediction, 5/23/2021 MLB Pick, Tips and Odds

Game: Chicago Cubs vs St. Louis Cardinals

Date: Sunday, May 23, 2021

Location: Busch Stadium in St. Louis, MO

TV: Bally Sports Midwest

Adam Wainwright and the St. Louis Cardinals (25-18, 1st in NL Central) play the Chicago Cubs (22-21, 2nd in NL Central) at Busch Stadium on Sunday.

As a team, the Chicago Cubs are knocking in 4.6 runs per game, which puts them at 9th in baseball. They have 198 runs scored and hold an on-base percentage of .322. The Cubs have hit 62 two-baggers as a unit and have hit 53 baseballs out of the park. They have 191 RBI's and 337 hits for the year, while their batting average is .239. Chicago has a slugging rate of .409 and have struck out 420 times, while drawing a walk on 151 occasions.

The Cubs hold a team ERA of 4.20 over the course of the season (17th in baseball), and they have struck out 395 hitters. Their pitching staff has walked 166 opposing batters and their FIP is 4.52 as a team on the year. Their K/BB ratio is 2.38 and their pitching staff sits with a WHIP of 1.36. Cubs pitchers have conceded 55 home runs and 191 runs in total (17th in the league).

Cubs pitchers have come into the game with runners on 52 times as well as having 57 appearances in high leverage situations. The bullpen are sitting with 32 holds for the season (2nd in MLB). The Cubs bullpen have earned a save percentage of 68.8% and has come into the game in 49 save situations. They have compiled 11 saves on the year and have not converted 5 of their 16 chances to get a save. The relievers have inherited 78 base runners on the campaign with 28.2% of them crossed the plate. The Cubs have sent 169 relief pitchers to the mound this season.

The Chicago Cubs have 1,144 putouts at this point in the season, as well as 433 assists and 20 errors. Their fielding rate is currently at .987 which is 4th in professional baseball, and have a total of 272 double plays. The Cubs have transformed 69.2% of balls in play into outs out of their 3,432 innings on the diamond, which has them sitting at 19th in baseball.

Davies has thrown 724 frames and has accounted for 520 punch outs during his career. Davies (52-38 career mark) holds a FIP of 4.24 and he has gone up against 3,057 batters during his time in the majors. His ERA is 3.89 (313 ER's allowed) and his career WHIP is 1.302. He has given up 722 hits (9.0 hits per 9 innings) and has had 221 free passes.

St. Louis has tallied 54 home runs for the year as well as 180 runs batted in. They have recorded 59 doubles, while taking a walk 135 times and racking up 193 runs. The St. Louis Cardinals have a team OBP of .310 and a batting average of .235 on the year. The Cardinals hold a team slugging percentage of .400 and they score 4.49 runs per outing (12th in baseball). They have been called out on strikes on 357 instances (23rd in the league) and have accounted for 331 hits.

The Cardinals have a team WHIP of 1.319 and are the owners of a FIP of 4.04 as a squad this year. They have earned a strikeout to walk ratio of 1.81 (345 strikeouts against 191 bases on balls). They come in at 9th in baseball as a pitching staff in total hits conceded with 305. They have given up 29 home runs and they concede 4.14 runs per 9 innings (12th in MLB). The St. Louis pitching staff have conceded 173 runs for the year while having an ERA of 3.85 (161 earned runs yielded).

St. Louis has had relievers take the mound in 17 save chances and they have tallied 15 saves. They are ranked 2nd in the league holding a save percentage of 88.2%, and they have dispatched 143 bullpen pitchers onto the field over the course of the season. Their relievers have come in 32 times in high leverage situations in addition to 43 occasions with runners on. St. Louis relievers have an inherited score percentage of 43.9% out of their 82 inherited base runners. With 41 save situations, the Cardinals have accumulated 23 holds in addition to 2 blown saves.

Out of their 3,384 innings on the diamond, the Cardinals have a efficiency on defense of 71.8% (6th in pro baseball). The St. Louis Cardinals have turned 32 double plays and own a fielding percentage of .985 (8th in baseball). The Cardinals have racked up 355 assists, 22 errors and have earned 1,128 putouts over the course of the season.

So far in his MLB career, Wainwright has allowed 2,114 base knocks while totaling 1,874 strikeouts in 2,216 innings. Wainwright (169-102 win-loss mark in his career) has earned a 3.41 ERA and has surrendered 8.6 hits per nine innings. He has given up a total of 839 ER's while holding a WHIP of 1.227 and a FIP of 3.4. He has a strikeout to walk ratio of 3.09 and he has gone up against 9,203 batters in his career.

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

Guy Bruhn's Pick: Take St. Louis

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