The Cardinals got their Los Angeles-area road trip off to a thunderous start by whacking the Angels. They look to end it the same way when they tangle with the Dodgers on Sunday Night baseball.
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ODDS ANALYSIS
It’s going to be a long haul for the Cardinals to catch up with the Cubs in the NL Central, but there is plenty of baseball left to be played and St. Louis is heating up. The Cards opened their six-game road trip through Southern California by sweeping the Angels to improving to 10-3 in their past 13 away from Busch Stadium.
Known as one of the better teams on their own field over the past few years, the Cardinals have a better record on the road at this point in the year than they do at home. And remember, they opened the year by getting swept in a three-game set at Pittsburgh. Since that opening series, the Cards are up 6.64 units on the road with the over going 10-3 in those 13 contests.
PROBABLE PITCHERS
On his seventh try, Mike Leake (1-3, 5.10 ERA) notched his first win as a Cardinal last time out by allowing just one run on six hits with five strikeouts across eight innings to the Angels. It was the first start in which he allowed fewer than three runs. Leake entered with an unsightly 6.03 ERA but lowered that figure nearly a full run.
It was the kind of performance the Cards expected to see a bit more often when they threw $80 million at him this past offseason. Leake is winless in two career decisions at Dodger Stadium but has pitched well, posting a 3.31 ERA across 16.1 innings there.
Alex Wood (1-3, 4.58 ERA) took a no-decision against the Mets in Tuesday’s 3-2 win, striking out nine and allowing one earned run over 6.1 innings. Wood induced 14 swinging strikes and threw first-pitch strikes to 18 of 24 hitters he faced. It was another up in his roller coaster season, which has seen him allow only a single earned run on three occasions, and a combined 17 earned runs in his four other outings.
Wood has notched a least seven strikeouts in three starts since making a small mechanical tweak to his delivery. He’s also enjoyed Dodger Stadium this season, registering a 1.33 ERA at home compared to 8.05 on the road.
LIVE BETTING
With an average margin of victory of five in their 18 wins this season entering play Thursday, the Cards have had limited opportunities for closer Trevor Rosenthal, who saved a franchise record 48 games last season. In fact, here he to stay at his current pace, he’d hardly surpass that in number of appearances in 2016.
Entering Thursday, Rosenthal had appeared in 11 of the Cards’ first 34 games, five fewer than he did over the same span a year ago. The sporadic work means that Rosenthal had yet to pitch on consecutive days, and, in fact, only twice had he pitched with fewer than two days of rest. In contrast, by this point in the 2015 season, Rosenthal had already pitched in three consecutive games on two different occasions. He should be well rested for the series with the Dodgers and the Cards will likely need him.
QUICK PICK
Leake finally pitched a decent game his last time out, which had to thrill the Cardinals’ brass since they can get someone much cheaper to not win a game and carry an ERA over 6.00. The investment might be starting to pay off, but the last game was against the Angels, who aren’t exactly ripping the cover off the baseball. But the Cardinals have been terrorizing opposing pitchers and, while Wood has been much more effective at Dodger Stadium, I just can’t see him slowing down the Cards.
MLB Odds: St. Louis 4, Los Angeles 3
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