Chicago Cubs at St. Louis Cardinals 6/15/2018 Free MLB Picks and Predictions

Friday, June 15, 2018

Busch Stadium

Get todays MLB odds and lines on this game.

Probable Pitchers: Jon Lester vs. Michael Wacha

The Chicago Cubs head to Busch Stadium on Friday, June 15, 2018 to take on the St. Louis Cardinals. The expected starting pitchers are Jon Lester for the Cubs and Michael Wacha for the Cardinals.

The odds for this matchup have Chicago at -103 and St. Louis at -107. The Cubs have a 26-37-2 over/under mark and a 35-30-0 run line record. The Cardinals are 28-38-0 against the run line and have a 24-37-5 over/under record.

Valuable Chicago Cubs Betting Trends

The Chicago Cubs are 26-37-2 against the over/under

The Chicago Cubs are 35-30-0 against the run line

Important St. Louis Cardinals Betting Trends

The St. Louis Cardinals are 24-37-5 against the over/under

The St. Louis Cardinals are 28-38-0 against the run line

Key Chicago Cubs Injuries

05/30/18 P Carl Edwards Jr. Shoulder 10-day DL (05/30)
05/26/18 P Yu Darvish Triceps 10-day DL (05/23)
04/21/18 P Eddie Butler Groin 60-day DL (04/20)
03/26/18 P Drew Smyly Elbow 60-day DL (02/16)

Key St. Louis Cardinals Injuries

06/10/18 P Alex Reyes Side is out for season
06/09/18 P Tyler Lyons Elbow 10-day DL (06/06)
05/27/18 P Greg Holland Hip 10-day DL (05/26)
05/19/18 P Matt Bowman Finger 10-day DL (05/17)
05/18/18 3B Paul DeJong Hand 10-day DL (05/18)
05/16/18 P Luke Gregerson Shoulder 10-day DL (05/16)
05/15/18 P Adam Wainwright Elbow 60-day DL (05/14)
05/07/18 P Dominic Leone Arm 60-day DL (05/06)

Useful Pitching Statistics

The Cubs have a 38-27 overall record this season. Starting pitcher Jon Lester has a 7-2 record with an earned run average of 2.22 and a WHIP of 1.09 this year. He has 66 strikeouts over his 77 innings pitched and he's given up 57 hits. He allows 6.7 hits per 9 innings and he has a FIP of 3.98. The bullpen has an earned run average of 2.67 and they have given up 177 base hits on the year. Teams are hitting .201 against the bullpen and they've struck out 252 hitters and walked 116 batters. As a team, Chicago allows 7 hits per nine innings while striking out 8.6 batters per nine innings. They are 2nd in the league in team earned run average at 3.17. The Cubs pitchers collectively have given up 467 base hits and 210 earned runs. They have allowed 59 home runs this season, ranking them 28th in the league. Chicago as a pitching staff has walked 277 batters and struck out 573. They have walked 4.2 men per 9 innings while striking out 8.6 per 9. They have a team WHIP of 1.25 and their FIP as a unit is 3.96.

Hitting Statistics

As a team Chicago is hitting .258, good for 6th in the league. The Cubs hold a .415 team slugging percentage and an on-base percentage of .339, which is good for 1st in baseball. They rank 3rd in MLB with 9.1 hits per game. Javier Baez is hitting .255 with an on-base percentage of .286. He has 61 hits this season in 239 at bats with 46 runs batted in. He has a slugging percentage of .519 and an OPS+ of 109. Kris Bryant is hitting .281 this year and he has an on-base percentage of .391. He has totaled 65 hits and he has driven in 29 men in 231 at bats. His OPS+ is 131 while his slugging percentage is at .481. The Cubs have 589 hits, including 120 doubles and 67 home runs. Chicago has walked 253 times so far this season and they have struck out 555 times as a unit. They have left 518 men on base and have a team OPS of .754. They score 4.89 runs per contest and have scored a total of 318 runs this year.

Useful Pitching Statistics

St. Louis has a 36-30 overall mark this year. With an earned run average of 2.47, Michael Wacha has a 8-1 record and a 1.11 WHIP this season. He has 67 strikeouts over the 76.2 innings he's pitched. He also has given up 55 hits. He allows 6.5 hits per nine innings and his FIP stands at 3.41. The bullpen has an earned run average of 4.39 and they have given up 223 base hits on the year. Teams are hitting .251 against the Cardinals bullpen. Their relievers have struck out 221 batters and walked 99 opposing hitters. As a team, St. Louis allows 8.1 hits per nine innings while striking out 8.3 batters per nine innings. They are 9th in the league in team earned run average at 3.6. The Cardinals pitchers as a team have surrendered 540 base knocks and 241 earned runs this season. They have given up 57 home runs this year, which ranks 30th in Major League Baseball. St. Louis as a staff has walked 229 hitters and struck out 556 batters. They give up a walk 3.4 times per 9 innings while they strike out 8.3 per 9. Their team WHIP is 1.28 while their FIP as a staff is 3.77.

Hitting Statistics

As a team, they are batting .243, good for 18th in the league. The Cardinals hold a .393 team slugging percentage and an on-base percentage of .314, which is good for 17th in baseball. They rank 19th in MLB with 8.2 hits per contest. Jose Martinez comes into this matchup batting .321 with an OBP of .389. He has 75 hits this year along with 42 RBI in 234 AB's. He maintains a slugging percentage of .517 with an OPS+ of 147. Marcell Ozuna is hitting .286 this season and he has an OBP of .335. He has collected 69 hits in 241 at bats while driving in 37 runs. He has an OPS+ of 106 and a slugging percentage of .419. The Cardinals as a unit have 541 base hits, including 85 doubles and 81 homers. St. Louis has walked 211 times this year and they have struck out on 570 occasions. They have had 441 men left on base and have an OPS of .706. They have scored 4.26 runs per game and totaled 281 runs this season.

Who will win tonight's Cubs/Cardinals MLB game against the spread?

Josh's Pick: Take the Cardinals -107

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