St. Louis Cardinals vs Washington Nationals Prediction, 4/21/2021 MLB Pick, Tips and Odds

Game: St. Louis Cardinals vs Washington Nationals

Date: Wednesday, April 21, 2021

Location: Nationals Park in Washington, D.C.

TV: MASN/MASN2

Odds/Point Spread: St. Louis (+160) Washington (-174)

Max Scherzer and the Washington Nationals (5-9, 5th in NL East) host the St. Louis Cardinals (8-8, 3rd in NL Central) at Nationals Park on Wednesday. The moneyline on this game has the Cardinals coming in at +160 and the Nationals are at -174. The O/U opens at 8.5. The pitchers taking the mound are Carlos Martinez and Max Scherzer.

The Cardinals have hit 16 two-baggers as a team and have hit 25 balls out of the park. St. Louis has a slugging percentage of .408 and have struck out 148 times, while taking a walk on 57 occasions. As a squad, the St. Louis Cardinals are recording 5.2 runs/g, which has them at 5th in MLB. They have amassed 74 RBI's as well as 121 base knocks on the campaign, while their team batting average is sitting at .228. They have earned a total of 83 runs scored while having a team OBP of .312.

Cardinals pitchers have given up 15 home runs and 83 total runs (30th in MLB). Their pitching staff has walked 73 opposing players and their FIP is 4.39 as a unit this season. They have accumulated a K/BB ratio of 1.86 and the pitching staff sits with a WHIP of 1.46. The Cardinals have an earned run average of 4.95 so far this season (27th in the league), and the staff has rung up 136 hitters.

The Cardinals relief pitchers have earned a save rate of 100.0% and has stepped onto the mound in 9 save situations. The bullpen pitchers have inherited 24 base runners on the season and 29.2% of them ended up crossing the plate. Cardinals relief pitchers have stepped onto the hill with runners on base 13 times in addition to having 8 appearances in high leverage situations. The Cardinals have sent 58 relievers to the hill this year. The bullpen have accumulated 6 holds on the year (20th in MLB). They have earned 3 saves on the season.

The St. Louis Cardinals have earned 420 putouts on the year, as well as 124 assists and 11 errors. Their fielding percentage is holding at .980 which puts them in 23rd in MLB, and they have twisted 101 double plays. The Cardinals have converted 68.4% of balls hit into play into outs out of 1,260 innings on the field, which has them ranked 22nd in professional baseball.

Martinez has taken the hill for 899 innings and has earned 880 punch outs so far in his career. His ERA is 3.58 (358 earned runs allowed) and his career WHIP is 1.296. He has conceded 825 base knocks (8.3 hits per nine innings) and has 341 walks. Martinez (58-46 record in his career) is the owner of a FIP of 3.58 while he has faced 3,825 opposing hitters during his time in the major leagues.

Washington has tallied 13 long balls for the season as well as 49 RBIs. They have recorded 21 two-baggers, while getting a free base 37 times as well as putting up 51 runs. The Washington Nationals have accounted for a team OBP of .322 as well as a team batting average of .262 so far this year. The Nationals hold a slugging percentage of .397 and they tally 3.64 runs per contest (25th in MLB). They have been called out on strikes on 112 instances (28th in the league) and have totaled 121 base hits.

The Nationals have a team WHIP of 1.322 and have a FIP of 5.36 as a staff on the year. They currently have a strikeout to walk ratio of 2.26 (122 strikeouts against 54 free passes). They come in at 4th in baseball as a pitching staff in total hits allowed with 102. They have given up 25 homers and they surrender 5.57 runs per 9 innings (30th in MLB). The Washington pitching staff have surrendered 73 runs so far this season while holding an ERA of 5.03 (66 earned runs yielded).

Washington relievers have an inherited score percentage of 40.0% of 15 inherited base runners. Their bullpen pitchers have stepped onto the hill 8 times in high leverage situations in addition to 8 occasions with runners on base. With 6 save situations, the Nationals have accrued 5 holds. They sit at 4th in MLB with a save rate of 100.0%, and they have sent 51 relievers to the hill on the season. 

In their 1,062 innings on the field, the Nationals hold a defensive efficiency of 73.2% (3rd in pro baseball). The Washington Nationals have turned 5 double plays and own a fielding percentage of .985 (12th in MLB). The Nationals have accrued 103 assists, 7 errors and have a tally of 354 putouts for the season.

So far in his MLB career, Scherzer has surrendered 1,963 hits and he has 2,808 K's in 2,376 frames. He has conceded a total of 846 earned runs while earning a WHIP of 1.097 and being the owner of a FIP of 3.1. His K/BB ratio is 4.36 and he has gone up against 9,642 opposing hitters so far in his pro baseball career. Scherzer (175-94 career record) is the owner of a 3.20 earned run average and has given up 7.4 hits per 9 innings.

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

Guy Bruhn's Pick: Take St. Louis (+160)

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