Cardinals vs Mets Odds & Picks: New York The Big Chalk With Scherzer Starting

The St. Louis Cardinals (20-16) and New York Mets (24-14) will meet at Citi Field on Wednesday in the third meeting of a four-game set. The Cardinals are 3-1 in their last four games while the Mets are 2-3 in their last five outings. Can New York continue to build its lead atop the NL East? Find out in our Cardinals vs Mets prediction.

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Cardinals vs Mets Odds & Analysis

Sportsbook Odds

The Mets opened as the big favorite at -201 on the moneyline with the visiting Cardinals going off at +184. The total was set at 7.5 runs with the UNDER going 7-3 in New York’s last 10 games and 6-3 in St. Louis’ last nine contests. St. Louis has won five of the last six meetings at Citi Field, though they may be too much of a long shot to count on in your Cardinals vs Mets prediction.

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Starting Pitchers

Max Scherzer (4-1) will look to pick up his first win since May 1 when he takes the mound for the Mets. The right-hander took a no-decision in his last outing on May 13 when he threw seven innings against the Seattle Mariners, giving up three hits and one earned run. Scherzer owns a 2.66 ERA and a 0.91 WHIP through 44 innings this season.

The Cardinals will counter with Jordan Hicks (1-3), who hasn’t earned a win since his first start of the season. Hicks took the loss in his last outing on May 13 after giving up three hits and three earned runs to the San Francisco Giants through five innings. The 25-year-old has a 4.15 ERA and a 1.15 WHIP in 21.2 innings of work.

O’Neill Helps Cardinals Split Doubleheader

The Cardinals and Mets split a doubleheader on Tuesday, with New York taking the first game 3-1 and St. Louis winning the second 4-3. Paul Goldschmidt hit a solo homer in the Sportsbook matchup to record the Cardinals’ only run of the contest, while some late-game heroics from Tyler O’Neill earned them the win in the second as the outfielder drove in the go-ahead run in the ninth.

St. Louis has had a solid start to the season in the hitting and pitching departments, scoring 4.62 runs per game (9th) and allowing 3.53 runs (7th). Nolan Arenado has had a great start at the plate, boasting a .300 average to go with eight home runs and 29 RBIs, which is just four shy of Jose Ramirez for the top mark in the majors.

Mets Pitching Impresses Early On

The Mets picked up a win in the first half of Tuesday’s doubleheader thanks to a strong effort from the bullpen. Starter Trevor Williams threw four scoreless innings before handing the ball over to the pen, where four relievers allowed just two hits, three walks and one run over the final five innings. Jeff McNeil and Dominic Smith each hit RBI doubles in the third to give the Mets all the offense they would need.

Scherzer has been a godsend for the Mets, bolstering an already strong starting rotation with four wins and five quality starts through seven games. The Mets own the eighth-best team ERA in the majors at 3.40, but that number dropped even further over the past week with the club allowing just 2.67 runs per game over its last six outings.

Cardinals vs Mets Pick & Insights

Cardinals: Keys To Victory

It’s always hard when you’re going up against Scherzer but the Cardinals do have a couple of bats in Arenado and Goldschmidt that can put fear into any pitcher. With Hicks on the mound, St. Louis will likely need to find a way to get to Scherzer to keep this one competitive.

Mets: Keys To Victory

The game plan is simple for the Mets: give the ball to Scherzer and let him work his magic. The offense has dried up a bit for New York over the past week or so as the club is averaging just 3.80 runs per game, but with their ace on the mound, three or four runs could be enough to get the job done.

MLB Computer Pick: Cardinals +1.5

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