Two of the best offenses in the league will slug it out against one another Saturday afternoon when the AL West leading Texas Rangers and St. Louis Cardinals pick their interleague series back up from beautiful Busch Stadium.
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ODDS ANALYSIS
Another day, another dollar for Jeff Bannister’s Rangers who entered this series with the Redbirds having taken three of four from the division rival A’s in Oakland to improve upon the best money mark in the league. Through 67 games played, Texas is far and away the best overall bet in baseball having secured a fantastic return on investment of $2393 for $100 bettors. They’re currently listed as -400 favorites to secure the divisional pennant, and offer up a +900 return should they go on to win the World Series. They’ve won each of their last four road series and sit three games over .500 as visitors for the season ($849).
If the season were to end today, the Cardinals would have to go on the road to likely face Noah Syndergaard and the New York Mets in the play-in game. The odds of taking down Thor on the road are not very good, so mike Matheny’s squad will no doubt be looking to improve upon their playoff placement over the weekend against one of the best the game has to offer. The Redbirds have cost MLB bettors $37 overall mostly due to the fact that the team just hasn’t been able to find ways to win in front of the hometown faithful. St. Louis has only played .454 ball at home and cost its wagering supporters a hefty $787 in those contests.
PROBABLE PITCHERS
Cesar Ramos is not a starting pitcher. He’s only made a couple spot starts this season to fill in for the walking wounded. With Yu Darvish still out for the foreseeable future, the lefty will once again be called upon in this spot to throw at a Cardinals offense that ranks third in the league on offense against southpaws in plating 5.6 runs per game. He just got torched for eight hits and 6 ER while walking five through just 3.2 innings, and will once again have his hands full in this one.
Carlos Martinez has far and away been the Cardinals best starting pitcher to date. He leads the team in ERA (3.46), wins (7) and WHIP (1.13). He’s only conceded 59 hits through 75.1 innings of work, but like the team surrounding him, he’s had his fair share of troubles when pitching at home where he’s 3-4 with a 4.95 ERA and 1.28 WHIP through 40 innings of work. He has however been electric over his last three starts in limiting the Brewers, Giants and Pirates to a combined 15 hits and 4 ER with a K/BB ratio of 20:6. He’s done a great job in preventing opposing teams to steal on him, so Texas will likely have issues trying to swipe the second one against him all season.
LIVE BETTING
Though the DH will be taken out of the equation in this one, we’re still likely to see some runs put on the board in this one. Texas has played to the over at a 36-30-1 clip on the year, while St. Louis has cashed over tickets at a 39-24-2 clip itself.
When on the road, the Rangers have played to the over in 17 of their 33 played games, while the Cardinals check in 18-13-2 to the over when at home. On top of that, eight of Martinez’s 12 overall starts surpassed the closing number.
QUICK PICK
No choice but to side with the home team here regardless of St. Louis having issues logging wins at home all season. That trend will even out in time, and the matchup of Martinez versus Ramos is very one sided. Throw in the Cardinals ability to actually hit left-handed pitching this season, and this looks to be a get well game for the home team against a squad I feel is nowhere near as good as its record indicates.
MLB Odds: Cardinals 9, Rangers 3
Load your betting bankroll from your smartphone with BookMaker’s new cashier feature! Depositing and withdrawing funds from your account has never been easier. BookMaker's live betting platform means you always have access to odds and lines to every sporting event. Click here and start wagering today! First pitch for the game between the Texas Rangers and St. Louis Cardinals is scheduled for Saturday, June 18, 2016, at 4:15 p.m. ET at Busch Stadium. The contest will be televised nationally on FS1.
