It’s a loaded Monday night in Major League Baseball with 13 games on the schedule, so here’s the best Miami Marlins vs. St. Louis Cardinals betting pick, as these two National League foes open a three-game set at Busch Stadium in St. Louis.
Miami and St. Louis will also wrap up their six-game regular-season series, as the Cardinals swept the Marlins in Miami back in April (4-1, 4-2, and 7-0). The Cards are -160 moneyline favorites to win Monday’s opener, while the Marlins are +150 road dogs with a total of 8.0 runs on William Hill Sportsbook.
The Marlins have won two straight series at home
The Miami Marlins were trying to sweep a three-game home series against Atlanta on Sunday afternoon. They were trailing 5-2 in the top of the sixth, but the Marlins have already secured the series victory, beating the Braves 4-3 and 4-2 in the first two games.
Excluding Sunday’s game, the Marlins have won five of their last seven tilts overall to improve to 29-35 on the season. Miami is scoring only 3.95 runs per game (24th in the majors) on a .236/.306/.377 slash line while yielding 3.83 runs in a return (6th).
Braxton Garrett will get the starting call Monday, and the 23-year-old lefty is 0-1 in one start and one relief appearance this season. He’s pitched seven frames through his two outings, yielding five earned runs on eight hits and four walks while punching out five.
The Cardinals hope to break out of their funk
The St. Louis Cardinals are going through a rough patch, as they’ve dropped ten of their previous 12 games excluding Sunday night’s clash against the Cubs in Chicago. They were trying to avoid the sweep at Wrigley Field, holding a 32-32 record and trailing five games behind the Cubs and Brewers.
The Cards are sporting a .666 OPS in June (23rd in the majors), and their pitching staff has recorded a horrible 7.08 ERA over the last two weeks (30th).
Adam Wainwright will take the hill Monday, and the 39-year-old righty is 4-5 with a 4.03 ERA and 1.14 WHIP in 12 starts this season. Last time out, he’s tossed seven frames of a two-run ball in an 8-2 victory to Cleveland. Wainwright is 6-2 with a 3.09 ERA in 11 career starts and a couple of relief appearances against Miami.
Trends:
Miami:
- 5-10 in the last 15 games overall
- 1-8 in the last nine contests on the road
St. Louis:
- 9-3 in the last 12 games against Miami
MLB Picks
Miami Marlins vs. St. Louis Cardinals Side:
I’m looking for the Cardinals’ offense to get things going in a favorable matchup with Braxton Garrett, as the talented lefty hasn’t impressed so far this season. The Cards have recorded a terrific .255/.337/.450 slash line against the southpaws this term and are 8-4 against the left-handed starting pitchers in 2021.
On the other side, Adam Wainwright has had some ups and down thus far, but the current Marlins are batting only .186 and slugging .261 against him. Also, I’m expecting the cards bullpen to improve after some awful displays over the last two weeks.
Miami Marlins vs. St. Louis Cardinals Total:
I would stick with the Cardinals to win, though this one seems like a low-scoring affair. Busch Stadium is a pitcher-friendly park, but the Cardinals’ recent pitching woes make me uncomfortable with the totals. Furthermore, the Marlins’ relievers are quite unpredictable despite a solid 3.84 ERA.
The Marlins have averaged only 2.80 runs per game over their last ten meetings with the Cardinals while yielding 3.90 runs in a return. The under is 6-3-1 in that span, and it is 4-1 in their last five encounters at Busch Stadium.