Tampa Bay Rays vs St. Louis Cardinals Betting Pick & Prediction 8/8/24
At 7:15 PM ET, the Rays and Cardinals will square off in an interleague matchup. This one is being played at Busch Stadium in St. Louis, and the Cardinals are favored on the money line, with their odds sitting at -127 compared to the Rays at +108. The over/under line is currently at 8 runs.
Shane Baz is starting for the Rays, and he is facing off against Kyle Gibson. Tampa Bay is 57-56 this season, while the Cardinals are 59-56. Gibson and the Cardinals are currently on a two-game winning streak, and they are 2nd in the NL Central. The Rays are 4th in the AL East. BSSUN is carrying this one on TV.
ST. LOUIS CARDINALS VS TAMPA BAY RAYS BETTING PICK
The Pick: St. Louis Cardinals Moneyline -127
This game will be played at Busch Stadium at 7:15 ET on Thursday, August 8th.
HOW TO BET THE RAYS VS CARDINALS:
- We have the Cardinals winning by a score of 5 to 4
- However, if you’re looking for a run line pick, we like the Rays to cover
- As for an over/under pick, we have this game finishing with 9 runs and like the over
It was a low-scoring game in the most recent game of this Cardinals vs Rays series. St. Louis went into the matchup as slight favorites at -119 and squeaked out a 5-2 win. The Cardinals offense only had four more hits than the Rays and struck out six times, but still picked up a three-run win.
Tampa Bay wasted a good outing from Taj Bradley, as he gave up just five hits and three earned runs in 4 2/3 innings of work. Bradley finished the game with three strikeouts but issued three walks.
As for the Cardinals, they got to Erick Fedde for five hits and an earned run in just five innings of work. Fedde did finish the game with six strikeouts but took the loss. Ryan Helsley got the save out of the bullpen.
Rays Records & Stats
Tampa Bay is 57-56 overall, putting them 4th in the AL East, 10 games behind the Orioles for the division lead. The Rays have dropped two straight games, and they are losing the series vs. the Cardinals 0-2. So far, they have gone 16-21 in AL East matchups.
At home, the Rays are 30-29 this season compared to 27-27 on the road. As the underdog, Tampa Bay is 27-29 this year, and they are 30-27 when favored. Looking at their overall series record, the Rays are 20-12-4 and have won two straight series on the road.
The Rays have been a solid bet on the run line this season, as they are 57-56 overall. They have been especially good on the road, going 33-21 against the run line, including a 1-0 run line losing streak. Tampa Bay has been a better bet as the underdog, going 35-21 vs. the run line.
Today’s over/under line of 8 runs for the Tampa Bay Rays’ game against the St. Louis Cardinals is right in line with their season average of 8.3 combined runs per game. The Rays have played 52-56 to the over this season, and when the line is set at 8 runs, they are 13-16-1 to the over. Tampa Bay has seen 42 games with higher over/under lines than 8 runs, which accounts for 37.2% of their games this season.
Shane Baz and the Rays are on the road to take on the Cardinals today. Baz has started 4 games this season and has yet to pick up a win. In his last start, he went 5 1/3 innings and gave up 2 earned runs on 6 hits. He has 5 strikeouts in each of his last two outings.
The Rays offense has been one of the worst in the league this season, averaging just 3.9 runs per game, which is 27th in the MLB. They have been even worse at home, putting up just 3.7 runs per game. As a team, they are batting .234, which is 18th in the league, and their team on-base percentage of .312 is 13th. Tampa Bay’s offense has been near the bottom of the league in home runs and slugging percentage.
Christopher Morel has been the Rays’ top power hitter this season, but he comes into the game with a batting average of just .193 and has gone just 2/21 in his last six games. Morel does lead the team with 53 RBIs and has 20 homers. Yandy Diaz has been swinging a hot bat of late, going 11/38 in his last 10 games. Jose Siri is also on a five-game hitting streak but is batting just .206 for the season.
Cardinals Records & Stats
The Cardinals are 59-56 overall and trail the Brewers by six games in the NL Central. St. Louis has gone 17-19 in divisional matchups this year. The Cardinals have won two straight games, and they are 2-0 in the series vs. the Rays.
At home, the Cardinals are 31-26 this year and 28-30 on the road. As the favorite, St. Louis is 31-28 and 28-28 as the underdog. Their overall series record is 18-16-3, and they have lost two straight series.
When the Cardinals have won, they have done so by an average of 2.7 runs per game, but when they lose, they have lost by an average of 3.6 runs per game. They have a run line record of 57-58, and they have been an underdog in 56 games, going 37-19 in those contests. Their overall run line record is 28-29 at home and 29-29 on the road.
The St. Louis Cardinals have had a high-scoring season, with a combined run average of 8.7 runs per game. Their over/under record is 55-57, and their games have averaged an over/under line of 8 runs. When the line is set at 8 runs, their over/under record is 8-11-1. The over has hit in 58.3% of their games this season, but they are currently on a streak of four straight unders.
Right-hander Kyle Gibson gets the start for the Cardinals today as he faces off against the Rays. This year, he has made 21 starts and has a record of 7-4 with an ERA of 4.04. Opposing batters are hitting .242 off Gibson this year, and he has a total of nine quality starts. In his last outing, Gibson finished with a no-decision, giving up four earned runs in seven innings of work. Looking back over his last four outings, he has finished with a no-decision in three of them. The right-hander has allowed at least one homer in three straight outings.
St. Louis has been one of the worst offensive teams in the league this season, averaging just 4.1 runs per game, which is 23rd in the MLB. They have been slightly better at home, averaging 4.3 runs per game. As a team, the Cardinals are batting .245, which is 9th in the league.
Over the team’s last eight games, Masyn Winn has gone 10/33, which is good for a batting average of .303. During this stretch, he has two homers and four RBIs. Nolan Arenado also has 11 hits in his last eight games, and he is currently on a five-game hitting streak.