Monday, March 20, 2017

The Ballpark of the Palm Beaches

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Probable Pitchers: Mike Leake vs. Joseph Musgrove

The St. Louis Cardinals visit The Ballpark of the Palm Beaches on Monday, March 20, 2017 to play the Houston Astros in a Spring Training matchup. The probable starters are Mike Leake for the Cardinals and Joseph Musgrove for the Astros.

The opening line for this matchup has St. Louis at +110 and Houston at -130. The Cardinals had a 83-73-6 over/under record and a 75-87-0 run line mark last season, meaning they covered 46% of the time. The Astros were 72-90-0 against the run line and had a 73-81-8 over/under record. They covered the spread 44% of the time.

The Cardinals are coming off a 86-76 record in 2016, including 48-33 on the road. Starting pitcher Mike Leake had a 9-12 record with an earned run average of 4.69 and a WHIP of 1.32. He had 125 strikeouts over his 176.2 innings pitched and he gave up 203 hits last season. He allowed 10.3 hits per 9 innings and he had a FIP of 3.83. The bullpen last year had an earned run average of 3.62 and they gave up 443 base hits on the year. Teams hit .227 against the bullpen while being struck out 506 times and walking 190 times last season. As a team, St. Louis allowed 8.9 hits per nine innings while striking out 8.02 batters per nine innings. They were 12th in the league in team earned run average at 4.08. The Cardinals pitchers collectively gave up 1,432 base hits and 656 earned runs. They allowed 159 home runs last season and they allowed 1.1 homers per nine innings as a staff. St. Louis as a pitching staff walked 475 batters and struck out 1,290. They walked 3 men per 9 innings while striking out 8 per 9. They had a team WHIP of 1.32 and their FIP as a unit was 3.88.

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As a team St. Louis batted .255, good for 18th in the league while putting together a .257 average away from home. The Cardinals held a .442 team slugging percentage and an on-base percentage of .325 which was good for 11th in baseball. They ranked 13th in baseball with 8.73 hits per game. Matt Carpenter is coming off a 2016 season in which he hit .271 with an on-base percentage of .380. He had 128 hits last season along with 81 runs scored and 68 runs batted in. He struck out 108 times and walked 81 times. Stephen Piscotty hit .273 last year and he had an on-base percentage of .343. He totaled 159 hits while scoring 86 runs and he drove in 85. He walked 51 times and struck out on 133 occasions. The Cardinals had 1,416 hits, including 300 doubles and 225 home runs. They stole 35 bases and were thrown out stealing 26 times. St. Louis walked 526 times last season and they struck out 1,318 times as a unit. They left 1,113 men on base and had a team OPS of .768. They scored 4.81 runs per contest and scored a total of 779 runs last year.

Houston had a 43-38 home record and a 84-78 overall mark in 2016. With an earned run average of 4.06, Joseph Musgrove had a 4-4 record and a 1.21 WHIP last season. He had 55 strikeouts over the 62 innings he pitched during which he gave up 59 hits. He allowed 8.6 hits per nine innings and his FIP stood at 4.18. Last season the bullpen had an earned run average of 3.56 and they gave up 475 base hits on the year. Teams hit .227 against the Astros bullpen while being struck out 617 times and walking 153 times last season. As a team, Houston allowed 8.84 hits per nine innings while striking out 8.56 batters per nine innings. They were 11th in the league in team earned run average at 4.07. The Astros pitchers as a team surrendered 1,441 base knocks and 663 earned runs last season. They gave up 181 home runs last year and they gave up 1.1 home runs per nine innings as a staff. Houston as a staff walked 453 hitters and struck out 1,396. They gave up a walk 2.8 times per 9 innings while they struck out 8.6 per 9. Their team WHIP was 1.29 while their FIP as a staff was 3.85.

As a team, they batted .247, good for 24th in the league while putting together a .238 average at home. The Astros held a .417 team slugging percentage and an on-base percentage of .319 which was good for 19th in baseball. They ranked 23rd in baseball with 8.44 hits per contest. George Springer comes into this matchup after batting .261 with an OBP of .359. He had 168 hits last year along with 116 runs scored and 82 RBI. He struck out 178 times and walked on 88 occasions. Jose Altuve hit .338 in 2016 and he had an OBP of .396. He collected 216 hits while scoring 108 runs and driving in 96. He earned a walk 60 times and punched out 70 times. The Astros as a unit had 1,367 base hits, including 291 doubles and 198 homers. They had 102 stolen bases and were thrown out 44 times. Houston as a team walked 554 times last year and they struck out 1,452 times. They had 1,086 men left on base and had an OPS of .735. They scored 4.47 runs per game and totaled 724 runs last season.

St. Louis Cardinals Betting Trends

The St. Louis Cardinals were 83-73-6 against the over/under last season

The St. Louis Cardinals were 75-87-0 against the run line last season

Houston Astros Betting Trends

The Houston Astros were 73-81-8 against the over/under last season

The Houston Astros were 72-90-0 against the run line last season

Injuries to Watch

St. Louis Cardinals

02/20/17 P Alex Reyes Elbow out for season

Houston Astros

No key injuries to report

Guy's Pick: Take the Cardinals +110

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