Toronto Blue Jays at St. Louis Cardinals odds, picks and predictions

Analyzing Thursday’s Toronto Blue Jays at St. Louis Cardinals odds and lines, with MLB expert picks, predictions and best bets.

The Toronto Blue Jays and St. Louis Cardinals meet Thursday to open a 3-game series at Busch Stadium. First pitch in the Opening Day contest is slated for 4:10 p.m. ET. Let’s analyze Tipico Sportsbook’s lines around the Blue Jays vs. Cardinals odds and make our expert MLB picks and predictions for the best bets.

Season series: First meeting of 2023. The teams split 4 games in 2022.

Toronto went 92-70 to finish 7 games behind the New York Yankees for the 2022 AL East flag. The Blue Jays started fast (14-8) and finished strong (22-11), but were a just above-average team in between.

The Cardinals won the NL Central, going 93-69 last season. Fifty-three of those 93 wins came at home. Overall, St. Louis averaged 4.77 runs per game while allowing 3.93.

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Blue Jays at Cardinals projected starters

RHP Alek Manoah vs. RHP Miles Mikolas

Manoah went 16-7 with a 2.24 ERA last season. He posted a 0.99 WHIP, 2.3 BB/9 and 8.2 K/9 in 196 2/3 IP.

  • Had some minor road struggles in his 2021 rookie season but remedied those in 2022 when he clocked a 2.07 ERA, 1.06 WHIP south of the border
  • Owns a sparkling 1.90 ERA over 10 career starts in April and May

In 2022, Mikolas notched a 12-13 record with a 3.29 ERA 1.03 WHIP, 1.7 BB/9 and 6.8 K/9 in 202 1/3 IP.

  • Had a 4.10 ERA on the road in 2022, but was dialed in to the tune of a 2.38 mark at Busch Stadium
  • Allowed 1 ER in 18 combined innings in spring training and in the World Baseball Classic

Blue Jays at Cardinals odds

Provided by Tipico Sportsbook; access USA TODAY Sports Scores and Sports Betting Odds hub for a full list. Lines last updated at 1:29 a.m. ET.

  • Moneyline: Blue Jays -115 (bet $115 to win $100) | Cardinals -105 (bet $100 to win $105)
  • Run line (RL)/Against the spread (ATS): Blue Jays -1.5 (+145) | Cardinals +1.5 (-170)
  • Over/Under (O/U): 7.5 (O: -110 | U: -110)

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Blue Jays at Cardinals picks and predictions

Prediction

Blue Jays 4, Cardinals 3

Moneyline

Peg these as solid numbers for this pitching matchup between these 2 likely playoff contenders. The righty-righty matchup and the way bullpens match up against top right-handed bats plays a bit in Toronto’s favor. Would consider the Jays more if they were priced at -110 or better. Otherwise …

PASS.

Run line/Against the spread

No lean either way. St. Louis figures to be solid at home, but the Blue Jays have been a good road club.

AVOID.

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Over/Under

The Cardinal offense came out of the gate slowly last season (.661 OPS in March/April) and figures to be on its weak platoon side against a righty starter. With this mound matchup (and both starters having pitched well in spring training) and both bullpens being a square 1, figure on a low-scoring affair. TAKE THE UNDER 7.5 (-110).

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Toronto Blue Jays at St. Louis Cardinals odds, picks and predictions

Analyzing Tuesday’s Toronto Blue Jays at St. Louis Cardinals odds and lines, with MLB expert picks and predictions.

The Toronto Blue Jays (22-20) and St. Louis Cardinals (24-18) cap off an abbreviated 2-game set Tuesday at Busch Stadium. First pitch is set for 7:45 p.m. ET. Let’s analyze Tipico Sportsbook‘s lines around the Blue Jays vs. Cardinals odds with MLB picks and predictions.

Season series: St. Louis leads 1-0.

Toronto pitching had been sensational of late. The Jays had posted a tidy 1.65 ERA since May 14 heading into Monday’s opener. They had allowed just 3 runs through 9 innings of a 3-3 tie before St. Louis 1B Paul Goldschmidt hit a 2-out, 2-strike grand slam to lift the Redbirds to a 7-3 triumph.

The Cardinals have won 4 outings in a row. The St. Louis offense has been hot for more than a couple of weeks now with an average of 6.11 runs per game on the strength of a .809 OPS since May 4.

Blue Jays at Cardinals projected starters

RHP Kevin Gausman vs. RHP Jordan Hicks

Gausman (3-3, 2.52 ERA) has made 8 starts in 2022. He has a 1.04 WHIP, 0.5 BB/9 and 10.3 K/9 through 50 IP.

  • Posted a career-best 2.81 ERA across 192 IP in 2021.
  • Current St. Louis batters own an aggregate .591 OPS against him.

Hicks (1-3, 4.21 ERA) has a 1.21 WHIP, 5.3 BB/9 and 9.1 K/9 through 25 2/3 IP across 6 starts and 2 relief appearances.

  • Threw only 39-of-82 pitches for strikes while issuing 3 BB and hitting 2 batters in his last outing at the New York Mets Wednesday.

Blue Jays at Cardinals 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 9:28 a.m. ET.

  • Money line: Blue Jays -150 (bet $150 to win $100) | Cardinals +122 (bet $100 to win $122)
  • Run line (RL): Blue Jays -1.5 (+120) | Cardinals +1.5 (-145)
  • Over/Under (O/U): 7.5 (O: +105 | U: -130)

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Blue Jays at Cardinals picks and predictions

Prediction

Blue Jays 5, Cardinals 3

Money line

Both teams have win-loss, batting, and pitching indicators that swing different ways, so this isn’t the best series for big investments.

However, Toronto has some recent batting numbers depressed by a low .254 BABIP in May; the Redbirds own a .309 BABIP over the same stretch. The Cardinals are swung around to their lesser platoon splits against right-handed pitching (.697 OPS).

Gausman has pitched through a tough slate so far. Look for a bounce-back after a relatively short start last time out.

BACK THE BLUE JAYS (-150).

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Run line/Against the spread

BLUE JAYS -1.5 (+120) is a fair wager.

Over/Under

Peg a slight lean on the OVER 7.5 (-110). Both bullpens could use an off day.

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Toronto Blue Jays at St. Louis Cardinals odds, picks and predictions

Analyzing Monday’s Toronto Blue Jays at St. Louis Cardinals odds and lines, with MLB expert picks and predictions.

The Toronto Blue Jays (22-19) and St. Louis Cardinals (23-18) open an abbreviated 2-game set Monday at Busch Stadium. First pitch is set for 7:45 p.m. ET. Let’s analyze Tipico Sportsbook‘s lines around the Blue Jays vs. Cardinals odds with MLB picks and predictions.

Season series: first meeting.

The Blue Jays head to St. Louis after going 4-2 over a 6-game homestand against the Seattle Mariners and Cincinnati Reds. Toronto pitching has been sensational of late: the Jays allowed just 11 runs over those half-dozen games and they own a 1.65 ERA since May 14.

The Cardinals swept 3 games against the Pittsburgh Pirates over the weekend. The St. Louis offense has been hot for more than a couple of weeks now with an average of 6.06 runs per game on the strength of a .806 OPS since May 4.

Blue Jays at Cardinals projected starters

RHP Jose Berrios vs. RHP Miles Mikolas

Berrios (3-2, 4.83 ERA) is tabbed for his 9th start of the season. He has a 1.49 WHIP, 2.9 BB/9 and 6.1 K/9 through 41 IP.

  • Coming off 7 scoreless innings Tuesday against the Seattle Mariners; had allowed 11 runs over his previous 2 starts.
  • Owns a 6.43 ERA and 1.57 WHIP across 21 road innings.

Mikolas (3-2, 1.68 ERA) owns a 0.99 WHIP, 1.7 BB/9 and 6.7 K/9 through 48 1/3 IP over 8 starts.

  • Threw a season-high 106 pitches in his last start with 2 ER allowed across 6 IP at the New York Mets Tuesday.
  • Entered this season with a career ERA of 3.85 across 520 2/3 IP.
  • Has not yielded more than 2 ER in any start this season.

Blue Jays at Cardinals 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 12:20 p.m. ET.

  • Money line: Blue Jays -105 (bet $105 to win $100) | Cardinals -115 (bet $115 to win $100)
  • Run line (RL): Blue Jays -1.5 (+165) | Cardinals +1.5 (-205)
  • Over/Under (O/U): 7.5 (O: -105 | U: -120)

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Blue Jays at Cardinals picks and predictions

Prediction

Blue Jays 5, Cardinals 4

Money line

Both teams have won-loss, batting, and pitching indicators that swing different ways, so this isn’t the best series for big investments.

However, a back-to-normal Berrios would be worth some speculation at this price. The Blue Jay hurler compiled a 3.74 ERA and 1.17 WHIP from 2017-21. Bettors will want to see his strikeout numbers return to established levels before really putting some play in him, but Berrios and the visitors are worth the risk for the return in this TORONTO (-105) play.

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Run line/Against the spread

Too much juice to overcome here: AVOID.

Over/Under

The Cards’ recent offense, some fade to Mikolas as a starter and some play to the Toronto offense as having more in the tank. Mix in a fatigued Blue Jay bullpen, and there is some leverage in the OVER 7.5 (-105).

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Additional MLB coverage:
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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).

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