Houston Astros vs St. Louis Cardinals Prediction, 4/16/2025 MLB Picks, Best Bets & Odds

Game: Houston Astros vs St. Louis Cardinals

Date: Wednesday, April 16, 2025

Location: Busch Stadium in St. Louis, MO

TV: FanDuel Sports Network Midwest

Odds/Point Spread: Houston (+162) St. Louis (-196)

Busch Stadium is where the St. Louis Cardinals (8-8) will play the Houston Astros (7-9) on Wednesday. The moneyline on this game has the Astros at +162 and the Cardinals are coming in at -196. The total is 8.5. The pitchers taking the mound are Ronel Blanco and Steven Matz.

As a team, the Houston Astros are compiling 3.9 runs per contest, which puts them at 19th in baseball. They have tallied 63 runs and hold an OBP of .306. The Astros have compiled 13 two-baggers as a team and have knocked 13 balls out of the park. They have compiled 56 RBI's and 115 base knocks so far this season, while their team batting average sits at .219. Houston has a slugging rate of .321 and have struck out 136 times, while being walked on 62 occasions.

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The Astros have compiled a team ERA of 3.92 this year (16th in MLB), and the staff has struck out 174 hitters. Astros pitchers have given up 16 home runs and 66 total runs (12th in the league). They have walked 53 opposing players and their FIP comes in at 3.31 as a unit so far this season. Houston has allowed 108 base knocks (6.7 per 9 innings) in addition to 63 earned runs. They have a K/BB ratio of 3.28 and the pitching staff holds a collective WHIP of 1.12.

The Astros relief pitchers have a save percentage of 57.1% and stepped onto the hill in 17 save situations. The bullpen pitchers have inherited 19 runners on the season with 42.1% of those players crossed the plate. Astros pitchers have entered the contest with runners on base 13 times as well as having 15 appearances in high leverage situations. The Astros have dispatched 52 relief pitchers to the mound so far this year. The bullpen have tallied 10 holds on the campaign (15th in MLB). They have tallied 4 saves this season and have blown 3 out of their 7 chances to save the game.

The Astros have turned 71.8% of balls hit into play into outs in their 1,302 innings on the diamond, ranking them 10th in pro baseball. The Detroit Tigers have a tally of 434 putouts thus far, in addition to 118 assists and 9 errors. Their fielding percentage sits at .984 which puts them in 21st in the majors, and have a total of 7 double plays.

Blanco has taken the mound for 236 innings and has tallied 241 punch outs in his career. His ERA is 3.50 (92 earned runs allowed) and he has a WHIP of 1.227. He has given up 183 hits (7.0 hits per nine innings) and has 107 walks. Blanco (16-8 career record) has a FIP of 3.45 while he has gone up against 987 opposing batters during his time in the major leagues.

The Cardinals have a team slugging percentage of .447 and they have an average of 5.62 runs per contest (3rd in the league). They have 34 doubles, while walking 57 times as well as putting up 90 runs. St. Louis has 19 home runs so far this year to go along with 86 RBIs. They have been called out on strikes on 133 instances (20th in the league) and are sitting with 166 base hits. The St. Louis Cardinals have earned an OBP of .353 as well as a team batting average of .287 on the year.

The Cardinals hold a team WHIP of 1.189 and have a FIP of 3.50 as a team on the campaign. They currently have a strikeout to walk ratio of 7.40 (121 strikeouts vs 52 walks). They are sitting at 16th in MLB as a staff in total hits allowed with 123. They have given up 11 home runs and they allow 4.95 runs per 9 innings (22nd in the league). The St. Louis pitching staff have yielded 81 runs over the course of the season and come in with a team ERA of 4.40 (72 earned runs relinquished).

St. Louis has had relievers step onto the hill in 7 save chances and they have walked away with 4 saves. They are ranked 18th in baseball holding a save rate of 57.1%, and they have dispatched 56 bullpen pitchers onto the field on the season. Their bullpen pitchers have stepped onto the hill 25 times in high leverage situations in addition to 20 occasions with base runners. St. Louis bullpen pitchers hold an inherited score percentage of 50.0% out of 18 inherited runners. Sitting with 16 save situations, the Cardinals have recorded 9 holds and 3 blown saves.

In 1,329 innings on the diamond, the Cardinals are sitting with a defensive efficiency of 72.5% (7th in baseball). The St. Louis Cardinals have gotten 11 double plays and have a fielding percentage of .990 (5th in the majors). The Cardinals have recorded 165 assists, 6 errors and have a tally of 443 putouts over the course of the season.

During his pro baseball career, Matz has surrendered 961 base knocks while earning 887 strikeouts in 938 innings pitched. Matz (55-60 career win-loss mark) is the owner of a 4.27 ERA and has conceded 9.2 hits per nine innings. He has surrendered a total of 445 earned runs while holding a WHIP of 1.325 and a FIP of 4.2. His K/BB ratio is 3.15 and he has gone up against 4,023 hitters during his career.

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

Josh Schonwald's Pick: Take Houston (+162)

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