The Boston Red Sox (35-30) host the St. Louis Cardinals (37-29) Saturday for the 2nd of their 3-game interleague set at Fenway Park. First pitch is scheduled for 7:15 p.m. ET. Let’s analyze Tipico Sportsbook‘s lines around the Cardinals vs. Red Sox odds with MLB picks and predictions.
Boston held off St. Louis 6-5 in the series opener Friday with the Cardinals rallying for 4 runs in the top of the 9th inning to make the game interesting.
Red Sox RHP Michael Wacha outdueled his former teammate Cardinals RHP Adam Wainwright with Wacha allowing just 1 earned run to Wainwright’s 4 earned runs and both starters had the same K/BB rate (5/1).
Friday’s Cardinals-Red Sox meeting was their 1st meeting of the season.
Cardinals at Red Sox projected starters
RHP Dakota Hudson vs. RHP Kutter Crawford
Hudson is 4-3 with a 3.29 ERA, 1.25 WHIP, 3.7 BB/9 and 4.9 K/9 in 65 2/3 IP over 12 starts.
- Last start: Loss, 7-6, at home vs. the Cincinnati Reds Sunday with 7 IP, 6 ER, 9 H, 2 BB and 2 K.
- This is Hudson’s 1st career start vs. the Red Sox.
Crawford is 1-1 with a 5.74 ERA (15 2/3 IP, 10 ER), 16 H, 2 HR, 12 BB and 21 K over 1 start and 8 relief appearances.
- Last start: No-decision in Boston’s 2-0 win at the Seattle Mariners Sunday with 5-scoreless IP, 1 H, 4 BB and 7 K.
- This is Crawford’s 1st career start vs. the Cardinals.
Cardinals at Red Sox odds and lines
Odds provided by Tipico Sportsbook; access USA TODAY Sports Scores and Sports Betting Odds hub for a full list. Lines last updated at 12:11 p.m. ET.
- Money line (ML): Cardinals +100 (bet $100 to win $100) | Red Sox -120 (bet $120 to win $100)
- Run line (RL)/Against the spread (ATS): Cardinals +1.5 (-190) | Red Sox -1.5 (+155)
- Over/Under (O/U): 10.5 (O: -107 | U: -115)
Exclusive USA TODAY Network offer: Deposit $10 or more, get $200 in instant bet credits at Tipico Sportsbook! New customer offer in CO and NJ. 21+, see Tipico.com for Terms and Conditions. Place your legal, online sports bets at Tipico. Let’s make this interesting. Bet now!
Cardinals at Red Sox picks and predictions
Prediction
Red Sox 7, Cardinals 4
Money line
BET the RED SOX (-120) because there’s reverse line movement (RLM) headed towards Boston in the betting market and this is a less profitable spot for the Cardinals.
Nearly 90% of the money is on St. Louis but Boston has been moved up from a slight underdog to a slight favorite, per VegasInsider.com. RLM could be the sportsbooks laying a trap because common sense suggests the lines would be adjusted according to the market movement.
The Red Sox are also 5-2 overall with a plus-29.7% return on investment (ROI) as home favorites of -130 or less vs. right-handed starters. Whereas the Cardinals are 5-7 as road underdogs vs. righty starters with a minus-7.4% ROI.
BET RED SOX (-120).
Win your fantasy baseball league with BaseballHQ.com. For decades, BHQ has been helping players just like you win! Use the couple code SBW22 for 20% OFF full-season subscription. New customer offer; expires 6/30/2022. Subscribe today and start winning!
Run line/Against the spread
LEAN RED SOX -1.5 (+155) because of the juicy payout, Boston is 4-3 RL with a plus-45.0% ROI in the situation described above and St. Louis’s bullpen is 22nd in FIP (per FanGraphs).
However, the Cardinals +1.5 (-190) are 12-7 RL as road underdogs and the Red Sox have played in six 1-run games in their last 10 contests.
Over/Under
PASS.
“Lean” Over 10.5 (-107) but the Cardinals-Red Sox total has been steamed way up (according to Pregame.com) so we’d be getting the worst of the number. Also, both lineups are scoring at least 1 run fewer per 9 innings vs. right-handed pitching compared to lefties.
Bet legally online with a trusted partner: Tipico Sportsbook, Sportsbook Wire’s official sportsbook partner in CO, NJ and soon IA. Bet now!
If you’re looking for more sports betting picks and tips, access all of our content at SportsbookWire.com and BetFTW, or try out our USA TODAY Parlay Calculator. Please gamble responsibly.
Follow Geoff Clark on Twitter. Follow SportsbookWire on Twitter and like us on Facebook.
Additional MLB coverage:
BaseballHQ Fantasy Baseball
BaseballPress.com: Your source for every MLB lineup
Gannett may earn revenue from Tipico for audience referrals to betting services. Tipico has no influence over nor are any such revenues in any way dependent on or linked to the newsrooms or news coverage. See Tipico.com for Terms and Conditions. 21+ only. Gambling problem? Call 1-800-GAMBLER (NJ), 1-800-522-4700 (CO), 1-800-BETS-OFF (IA).
[lawrence-newsletter]
[lawrence-auto-related count=3 category=1372]