The struggling San Diego Padres (76-72) face the St. Louis Cardinals (78-69) Sunday as they try to avoid being swept in the finale of their three-game series. First pitch is set for 2:15 p.m. ET at Busch Stadium. Let’s analyze the lines around the Padres vs. Cardinals odds with MLB picks and predictions.
Padres RHP Jake Arrieta (5-13, 7.05 ERA) makes his 24th start of the season and his fourth with the Padres. He has a 1.74 WHIP, 3.9 BB/9 and 7.6 K/9 through 98 1/3 IP.
- Has lost nine straight decisions and has not earned a win since May 25 when he was with the Chicago Cubs. His teams have lost his last 11 starts.
- Despite playing most of the season for the Cubs, who are in the Cardinals’ division, Arrieta will face St. Louis for the first time this year.
Cardinals LHP J.A. Happ (9-8, 6.00 ERA) makes his 28th start of the year and his ninth with the Cardinals. He has a 1.49 WHIP, 2.8 BB/9 and 7.0 K/9 through 138 IP.
- Earned the win with 5 1/3 scoreless innings pitched in a 2-0 victory over the Cincinnati Reds in his last start.
- Has allowed 2 or fewer earned runs in six of his eight starts since joining the Cardinals following a trade with the Minnesota Twins.
Padres at Cardinals odds, lines, picks and prediction
MLB odds courtesy of Tipico Sportsbook; access USA TODAY Sports for a full list. Odds last updated at 10:35 a.m. ET.
- Money line: Padres -105 (bet $105 to win $100) | Cardinals -115 (bet $115 to win $100)
- Against the spread/ATS: Padres -1.5 (+145) | Cardinals +1.5 (-180)
- Over/Under: 9.5 (O: -102 | U: -122)
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Prediction
Cardinals 7, Padres 4
Money line (ML)
The Padres have now lost seven of their last nine games and have fallen to 2.5 games out of the final NL Wild Card position. The Cardinals took the opener 8-2 and won again Saturday 3-2 and now have won seven straight games and nine of their last 10.
The Padres are 32-41 on the road and the Cardinals are 41-33 at home.
Add in the conflict that appeared to be happening in the Padres’ dugout between stars Manny Machado and Fernando Tatis Jr. and you have what makes for a continuing downward spiral.
While the Padres could turn things around, they aren’t a good bet to do it until we see it.
Take the CARDINALS (-115).
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Run line/Against the spread (ATS)
The Padres covered the spread Saturday night but are 7-8 ATS in their last 15 games. They are 36-37 ATS on the road this season.
The Cardinals run line loss Saturday snapped a streak of six straight ATS victories. They are 8-2 ATS in their last 10 games.
The Cardinals are the money-line favorite but ATS underdogs with the inverted spread. However, in this case, betting the spread on the underdog does not give you as much value as the money line.
If you want some breathing room on a bet on the Cardinals, take the CARDINALS +1.5 (-180).
Over/Under (O/U)
The opener in the series went Over and the Saturday’s game went Under the projected total.
Two of five games between the two teams this season have had totals of 10 or more runs.
Four of the previous five games for the Padres had 10 or more runs prior to Saturday. Four of the previous six for the Cardinals had 10 or more runs.
Take OVER 9.5 (-102).
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