Leading up to game four of this NL Central battle, the Cardinals (46-60, 22-29 home) will send Steven Matz to the mound to take on the Cubs (53-51, 26-25 away) and Kyle Hendricks. Find out who I like to come out on top in this Chicago Cubs vs. St. Louis Cardinals matchup in St. Louis.

CHICAGO CUBS VS ST. LOUIS CARDINALS BETTING PICK

The Pick: Chicago Cubs +1.5 Runs

This game will be played at Busch Stadium at 2:15 ET on Sunday, July 30th.

WHY BET THE CHICAGO CUBS:

  • The Cubs will be taking on a Cardinals club that is just 1-4 vs. the runline over their last five games.
  • As the road underdog, the Cubs’ runline win streak stands at four games.
  • Opponents are hitting just .204 against Kyle Hendricks in his last two starts.

CHICAGO CUBS TRYING TO CLOSE GAP IN NL CENTRAL

On a record of 53-51, the Cubs come into today’s game 3rd in the NL Central. When playing at home, they are 27-26 and 26-25 on the road. Chicago has played in 32 series thus far, and have gone 16-13-3.

Kyle Hendricks has made 12 starts in 2021, compiling a 4-4 record. He has been on a two-game streak of not allowing a home run, and his slugging percentage allowed is .360. The righty has struck out 46 batters and his WHIP stands at 1.04.

Kyle Hendricks earned a quality start and the victory in his most recent outing, as the Cubs defeated the White Sox 7-3. The right-hander allowed three runs and four hits over 6 1/3 innings.

Offensively, Chicago is ranked 8th in the league with an average of 5 runs per game. When looking over their last ten matchups, the Cubs averaged 7 runs per contest, which is 2nd best in that span. In terms of their power numbers, Chicago is 15th in all of baseball, with a total of 119 home runs.

Patrick Wisdom has been a major contributor to the Cubs’ offensive success in 2023, leading the team with 18 home runs and 36 RBIs. His slugging percentage of .488 is also impressive, making him an integral part of the team’s lineup.

WILL THE ST. LOUIS CARDINALS TAKE CARE OF BUSINESS AT HOME?

106 games into their season, the Cardinals are 5th in the NL Central on an overall record of 46-60. Against other teams in the NL Central, St. Louis is 12-20 while their overall series win percent sits at 45%. At home, the Cardinals are 22-29 and 24-31 on the road.

Steven Matz has taken the mound 22 times this season, with an ERA of 4.34 and a record of 1-7. He will look to extend his streak of not allowing a home-run to three games when he faces the Cubs. Opponents have managed a .412 slugging percentage and .265 batting average against him thus far.

Steven Matz delivered a quality start in his most recent outing, tossing six scoreless frames against the Diamondbacks. Unfortunately, the Cardinals were unable to capitalize on his performance and fell 3-1.

Having gone deep 15 times in their last ten games, the Cardinals are 5th in that span. At 4.7 runs per game, St. Louis is 12th in the league. This figure has come on a team batting average of .256 while hitting a total of 146 home runs (5th).

Over the Cardinals’ last five contests, Lars Nootbaar has been their most prolific hitter, batting .350. On the year, he is hitting .273 and has knocked in 34 runs.