St. Louis Cardinals vs Cincinnati Reds Prediction, 8/17/2026 MLB Picks, Best Bets & Odds

Game: St. Louis Cardinals vs Cincinnati Reds

Date: Monday, August 17, 2026

Location: Great American Ball Park in Cincinnati, OH

TV: Reds.TV

Odds/Point Spread: St. Louis (+132) Cincinnati (-160)

The Cincinnati Reds (59-63) will compete against the St. Louis Cardinals (62-61) at Great American Ball Park on Monday. The odds on this game have the Cardinals at +132 while the Reds are coming in at -160. The total has been set at 8. The starting pitchers will be Quinn Mathews and Chase Petty.

As a team, the St. Louis Cardinals are compiling 4.4 runs per game, which puts them at 19th in baseball. They are sitting with 537 runs scored and have an on-base percentage of .315. The Cardinals have compiled 171 doubles as a team and have knocked 127 baseballs out of the park. They have compiled 524 RBI's in addition to 984 hits on the campaign, and their average at the plate is at .239. St. Louis has a slugging percentage of .380 and have been rung up 943 times, while taking a walk on 398 occasions.

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Their strikeout to walk ratio sits at 2.24 and their pitching staff has a collective WHIP of 1.34. Cardinals pitchers have conceded 120 long balls and 537 runs in total (13th in MLB). St. Louis has given up 1,050 base hits (8.6 per 9 innings) as well as 493 earned runs. The Cardinals hold a team ERA of 4.04 for the season (12th in baseball), and their staff has struck out 935 hitters. They have walked 417 opposing hitters and their FIP is 4.10 as a team so far this year.

The Cardinals relief pitchers have recorded a save rate of 61.4% and have entered the game in 140 save situations. They have tallied 35 saves this season and have blown 22 of 57 save opportunities. The bullpen pitchers have inherited 191 base runners for the year and 36.6% of them ended up scoring. Cardinals bullpen pitchers have come into the game with runners on base 129 times and also have had 153 appearances in high leverage situations. The Cardinals have sent 410 relief pitchers to the hill on the year. The relievers have tallied 79 holds on the season (6th in baseball).

The Cardinals have turned 69.5% of balls hit into play into outs out of their 9,876 innings on the field, which has them sitting at 19th in professional baseball. The St. Louis Cardinals have accounted for 3,292 putouts on the year, as well as 1,161 assists and 54 errors. Their fielding percentage sits at .988 which is 5th in pro baseball, and they have turned 124 double plays.

Matthews (0-1 career record) has a FIP of 3.55 while he has faced 24 opposing batters during his time in the majors. He has allowed 6 base knocks (10.8 hits per nine innings) and has had 3 walks. His ERA is 3.60 (2 earned runs allowed) and his WHIP is 1.800. Matthews has thrown 5 frames and has totaled 3 punch outs so far in his pro baseball career.

The Reds have a slugging percentage of .394 and they are earning 4.11 runs per game (23rd in baseball). They have tallied 177 doubles, while walking 438 times and scoring 501 runs. Cincinnati has recorded 160 home runs for the year to go along with 478 runs batted in. They have been called out on strikes on 1,158 instances (3rd in MLB) and are sitting with 921 base hits. The Cincinnati Reds have accumulated a team on-base percentage of .307 in addition to a team batting average of .227 on the campaign.

The Reds have a WHIP of 1.402 in addition to having a FIP of 4.65 as a team over the course of the season. They are sitting at 18th in baseball as a pitching staff in total hits given up with 1,018. The Cincinnati pitching staff have given up 581 runs on the season while having an ERA of 4.50 (542 earned runs given up). Their strikeout to walk ratio is 8.20 (984 strikeouts vs 502 walks). They have given up 153 long balls and they allow 4.82 runs per 9 innings (21st in MLB).

Cincinnati relievers have an inherited score percentage of 28.4% out of their 190 inherited base runners. Their bullpen pitchers have taken the field 154 times in high leverage situations and also on 133 occasions with runners on base. With 123 save situations, the Reds have earned 69 holds and 19 blown saves. They are currently ranked 16th in the league holding a save percentage of 62.7%, and they have sent 433 relief pitchers onto the field for the season.

In their 9,756 innings played, the Reds have earned a efficiency on defense of 70.3% (12th in professional baseball). The Cincinnati Reds have turned 84 double plays and have notched a fielding percentage of .985 (18th in pro baseball). The Reds have 985 assists, 64 errors and have a tally of 3,252 putouts so far this year.

So far in his career, Petty has conceded 45 hits and he has 22 strikeouts in 37 innings pitched. He has surrendered 30 ER's while earning a WHIP of 1.667 and being the owner of a FIP of 7.1. He has a K/BB ratio of 1.29 and he has faced 179 hitters in his MLB career. Petty (1-5 career record) holds a 7.26 earned run average and has surrendered 10.9 hits per 9 innings.

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

Tony Sink's Pick: Take St. Louis (+132)

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