St. Louis Cardinals vs Cincinnati Reds Prediction, 4/4/2021 MLB Pick, Tips and Odds

Game: St. Louis Cardinals vs Cincinnati Reds

Date: Sunday, April 4, 2021

Location: Great American Ball Park in Cincinnati, OH

TV: Bally Sports Ohio

Odds/Point Spread: St. Louis (-125) Cincinnati (-120)

Jeff Hoffman and the Cincinnati Reds (31-29, 3rd in NL Central last season) play the St. Louis Cardinals (30-28, 2nd in NL Central last year) at Great American Ball Park on Sunday. The Cardinals open this contest at -125 while the Reds are coming in at -120. The over/under is set at 8.5. The pitchers expected to start will be Carlos Martinez and Jeff Hoffman.

The Cardinals tallied 73 doubles as a team last year and knocked 51 balls out of the stadium. St. Louis had a slugging percentage of .371 and struck out 477 times, while drawing a walk on 205 occasions. As a team, the St. Louis Cardinals knocked in 4.1 runs per outing, which was 24th in MLB. They had 231 runs batted in and 410 hits during the previous year, while their average at the plate was at .234. They had a total of 240 runs while holding a team OBP of .323.

The Cardinals had an earned run average of 3.90 last year (9th in the league), and they rung up 464 batters. Their pitching staff walked 204 batters and their FIP was 4.58 as a unit over the course of last year. They had a strikeout to walk ratio of 2.27 and the pitching staff held a collective WHIP of 1.23. Cardinals pitchers allowed 69 home runs in addition to 229 runs (26th in MLB). The Cardinals bullpen compiled a save rate of 72.2% and entered the game in 43 save situations. The relievers inherited 97 base runners in the prior season and 26.8% of them ended up scoring. Cardinals bullpen pitchers entered the game with runners on base in 62 games as well as 44 contests with high leverage. The Cardinals sent forth 177 relievers to the hill for the previous season. The relief pitchers had 22 holds last year (25th in the league). They had 13 saves during the previous year and did not convert 5 of 18 chances to get a save.

Martinez held a FIP of 6.89 and an ERA+ of 43. Carlos Martinez surrendered 32 base hits in 20 innings he pitched over the course of last year. He gave up 22 earned runs last year with a K/BB ratio of 1.7. He allowed 14.4 hits per 9 innings and he had a WHIP of 2.1. His ERA was 9.90 and he struck out 17 batters. Martinez (58-43 win-loss mark in his career) sits with a FIP of 3.56 while he has gone up against 3,757 batters in the majors. He has allowed 808 hits (8.2 hits per nine innings) and has had 337 free passes. His ERA is 3.51 (345 earned runs allowed) and he has a WHIP of 1.294. Martinez has thrown 884 innings and has tallied 870 strikeouts thus far in his career.

The Cincinnati Reds had a team OBP of .312 and a team batting average of .212 over the course of last year. They were called out on strikes on 534 occasions (12th in baseball) and notched a total of 390 base hits. Cincinnati knocked in 90 home runs during the previous year to go along with 237 runs batted in. The Reds held a team slugging % of .403 and they tallied 4.05 runs per contest (28th in the league). They notched 76 two-baggers, while taking a walk 239 times as well as earning 243 runs.

The Reds held a team WHIP of 1.218 and were the owners of a FIP of 3.92 as a unit for the prior year. They earned a strikeout to walk ratio of 2.89 (615 strikeouts against 213 free passes). They ranked 29th in the league as a staff in total hits relinquished with 401. They allowed 67 home runs and they gave up 4.34 runs per 9 innings (9th in the league). The Cincinnati pitching staff allowed 243 runs over the course of last season while holding a team ERA of 3.84 (215 earned runs allowed). Finishing with 17 save chances, the Reds amassed 25 holds in addition to 8 blown saves. Cincinnati had relief pitchers step onto the hill in 43 save situations and they earned 9 saves. Their relievers stepped onto the mound in 53 games with high leverage and 56 games with runners on. Cincinnati relievers held an inherited score percentage of 30.0% of 92 inherited base runners. They were ranked 24th in the league holding a save rate of 52.9%, and they sent 168 bullpen pitchers to the hill last season.

Hoffman gave up 32 base hits while conceding 22 ER's (9.28 ERA). His WHIP was at 1.92 and he was the owner of a FIP of 4.69 throughout last year. He took the ball for 21.1 innings last year while allowing 13.5 H/9 (hits per 9 innings). Hoffman had a K/BB ratio of 2.2 with 20 total strikeouts and he was the owner of an ERA+ of 56. So far in his MLB career, Hoffman has surrendered 267 base hits while earning 197 strikeouts in 230 innings pitched. Hoffman (10-16 career win-loss mark) is the owner of a 6.40 ERA while allowing 10.4 hits per nine innings. He has given up a total of 164 ER's while earning a WHIP of 1.621 and a FIP of 5.6. His K/BB ratio is 1.84 and he has faced 1,050 opposing batters in his MLB career.

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

Guy Bruhn's Pick: Take Cincinnati (-120)

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