St. Louis’ playoff push will continue tonight against the NL East-leading Atlanta Braves at SunTrust Park in Georgia. The Braves swept a three-game series in Missouri at the end of June and have won four straight games in this matchup. The Cards, however, have won six straight games in Atlanta dating back to April 2016. Atlanta opens as a -130 favorite with St. Louis coming back at +120.
- St. Louis hasn’t lost in Atlanta since 2015.
- The Cardinals are 11-2 SU in Miles Mikolas’ last 13 starts.
- Mike Foltynewicz pitched a complete-game win in his last start.
Cardinals vs Braves Game Center
Marquee Pitching Matchup
Fans of the art of pitching will be happy with the starters tonight. All-star Mike Foltynewicz (11-9, 2.66 ERA, 1.10 WHIP) will tie his career high in starts as he makes his 29th for the second consecutive season.
Last time out the six-foot-four right-hander went the distance in San Francisco, scattering six hits and one earned run. Foltynewicz started in St. Louis on July 1 and was near unhittable through five innings. The only blemish on his record was a fourth-inning single by Marcell Ozuna.
Miles Mikolas (15-4, 2.99 ERA, 1.12) continues his breakout season for the Cardinals as he makes his 30th start. Even though this is by far his most MLB innings pitched, he’s 30 years old and the workload doesn’t appear to be affecting him as St. Louis is 11-2 SU in his last 13 starts.
Something to note with Mikolas, however, is that his ERA in the last 30 days is the highest it’s been all season at 3.68 and opponents are hitting .339 against him during that stretch.
St. Louis ranked 25th in OPS in September
The Cards got back on track and avoided a sweep on Sunday Night Baseball, but they are still near the bottom of the league in OPS in September at .660. As a team, the Cardinals are hitting just .225 and some of the top guys have been really struggling – a big reason they’re 6-9 this month and still treading water in the playoff hunt.
Matt Carpenter, who was garnering MVP talk in August, is batting just .192 in September with no home runs and just four RBIs. Matt Adams, Jose Martinez, Harrison Bader and Kolten Wong are all also hitting under the Mendoza line. That’s a tough way to win ball games.
My Pick For Tonight
The Atlanta Braves have been a tough team to bet on this season for me due to their lack of consistency. But they have been fairly consistent of late, going 6-2 SU in their last eight. I’m OK with Atlanta at -130 tonight with Foltynewicz on the mound and St. Louis struggling.
If you’re looking for a little more action on this game, I’d take UNDER 8.5 on the totals bet. Six of Foltynewicz’s last nine starts have hit the UNDER and with the St. Louis lineup scuffling like it is, and Atlanta batting just .240 over the past seven days, I’m thinking this trend continues tonight.
