The Houston Astros (43-37) and St. Louis Cardinals (33-46) play the final game of a 3-game series Thursday. First pitch at Busch Stadium is slated for 7:15 p.m. ET (MLB Network). Let’s analyze FanDuel Sportsbook’s lines around the Astros vs. Cardinals odds and make our expert MLB picks and predictions for the best bets.
Season series: Tied 1-1
Houston broke through for 10 runs on the strength of 7 extra-base hits in Wednesday’s 10-7 triumph. Over their previous 10 road games, Houston had averaged just 3.70 runs per game on a .634 OPS.
St. Louis endured a rough 2-11 stretch to start the month, but since June 17 the Redbirds’ bats have come alive and the club is 67-3 with an .812 OPS.
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Astros at Cardinals projected starters
RHP JP France vs. RHP Adam Wainwright
France (2-3, 3.54 ERA) is tabbed for his 10th start of the season. He has a 1.26 WHIP, 3.0 BB/9 and 7.1 K/9 in 53 1/3 innings.
- Rookie has had the good fortune of a .260 batting average on balls in play and an 83% left-on-base rate through his 1st 9 MLB starts
- Owns a 2.40 ERA in 30 IP on the road
Wainwright (3-2, 6.56 ERA) is tabbed for his 10th start. He has a 1.82 WHIP, 2.7 BB/9 and 4.6 K/9 in 46 2/3 innings.
- Has yielded at least 3R in 6 straight starts; 7 ER in his last one
- Has been barreled up on 11% of his contact
Astros at Cardinals odds
Provided by FanDuel Sportsbook; access USA TODAY Sports Scores and Sports Betting Odds hub for a full list. Lines last updated at 11:25 a.m. ET.
- Moneyline: Astros -124 (bet $124 to win $100) | Cardinals +106 (bet $100 to win $106)
- Run line (RL)/Against the spread (ATS): Astros -1.5 (+130) | Cardinals +1.5 (-156)
- Over/Under (O/U): 10 (O: -110 | U: -110)
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Astros at Cardinals picks and predictions
Prediction
Cardinals 6, Astros 5
Moneyline
Houston figures to be a couple of games too far over its skis in won-loss record. St. Louis swings the other way against expected won-loss record. But the pitching prognosis just favors a high score here.
PASS.
Run line/Against the spread
Again, no lean, and this play adds more juice. PASS.
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Over/Under
A fade-the-starters Over 8.5 was a solid play on Wednesday (and cruised to a win in the 17-run football score). The Over is 3-1 in Houston’s last 4 games.
The Redbirds are quite good against righty pitching; Houston is about average, but that’s with a subpar .287 batting average on balls in play.
On a near 100-degree day in St. Louis, back the bats. TAKE THE OVER 10 (-110).
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