Washington Nationals vs St. Louis Cardinals Betting Pick & Prediction 7/28/24

The forecast for Sunday’s Nationals vs. Cardinals game calls for broken clouds and temperatures in the upper 70s. This NL matchup is set for 2:15 PM ET from Busch Stadium in St. Louis, and the Cardinals are favored on the money line (-153). The Nationals have a money line odds of +129, and they are 4th in the NL East with a record of 49-56.

Washington is currently on a two-game winning streak. The over/under line for Sunday’s game is at 8.5 runs, and the under is paying out at +100 compared to -120 for the over.

ST. LOUIS CARDINALS VS WASHINGTON NATIONALS BETTING PICK

The Pick: St. Louis Cardinals Moneyline -153

This game will be played at Busch Stadium at 2:15 ET on Sunday, July 28th.

HOW TO BET THE NATIONALS VS CARDINALS:

• We have the Cardinals winning by a score of 6 to 5
• However, if you’re looking for a run line pick, we like the Nationals to cover
• As for an over/under pick, we have this game finishing with 11 runs and like the over

It was all Washington in the last game of this series, as the Nationals took down the Cardinals by a score of 14-3. The Nationals offense only had one more hit than the Cardinals and struck out five more times, but still picked up a convincing win. Heading into the game, they were at +131 on the money line.

This game featured a starting pitching matchup between Jake Irvin for the Nationals and Kyle Gibson for the Cardinals. Irvin only went 5 1/3 innings but gave up just two hits and two earned runs. On the other side, Gibson was tagged for two homers and six runs in five innings of work.

Washington’s two homers came from Keibert Ruiz and James Wood. Ruiz, Juan Yepez, and Luis Garcia Jr. each had three RBIs for the Nationals’ offense.

Nationals Records & Stats

Washington is 49-56 overall and trails the Phillies by 16.5 games in the NL East. The Nationals have won two straight games, and they are 6-4 over their last 10. In the NL East, they are 16-15 against other teams in the division.

So far, the Nationals have gone 23-27 at home compared to 26-29 on the road. As the underdog, Washington is 39-47 this season, and they have won two straight as the underdog. As the favorite, the Nationals are 10-9 this year. Washington’s overall series record is 13-18-2, and they will be looking to close out their series with a win today on the road.

Washington is 59-46 against the run line this season, including a 32-23 mark on the road. The Nationals have covered the run line in two straight games and are 50-36 as the underdog. Their average run margin in winning games is +3.4, while it’s -3.6 in losing games.

Washington is on the road in St. Louis today, and the over/under line is set at 8.5 runs. The Nationals have played 101 games this season, and their games have averaged 8.8 runs per game. Their over/under record is 51-50, and their games have had an average over/under line of 9 runs. When the line has been set at 8.5 runs, their record is 16-16. So far this season, 37 of their games have had over/under lines set higher than 8.5 runs, which accounts for 35.2% of their games. Their current over streak is at 2 games.

Washington is sending left-hander DJ Herz to the mound today vs. the Cardinals. He has made eight starts this season and has a record of 1-4 with a 4.95 ERA. Herz’s WHIP for the season is 1.40. In his last outing, he took the loss, going five innings and giving up two earned runs on four hits vs. the Padres. Herz has given up at least one homer in four of his last five outings. So far, he has turned in one quality start, and his ERA at home is 4.44 compared to 9.08 on the road.

So far this season, the Nationals offense is averaging 4.3 runs per game, which is 18th in the league. They have been a little better on the road, averaging 4.4 runs per contest. As a team, they are batting .239, which is 12th in the league, and are 6th in the league in fewest strikeouts per game. However, they are dead last in the league in home runs and have just the 24th best slugging percentage in the league.

CJ Abrams and Luis Garcia Jr. have been the Nationals’ top power threats this season, as they have 15 and 11 homers, respectively. Abrams and Garcia Jr. also come into the game as the team’s top two hitters in terms of RBIs. Over his last eight games, Juan Yepez is hitting .375 with two homers and 10 RBIs. Keibert Ruiz has also gone deep twice in his last seven games, but is just 5/26 in that stretch.

Cardinals Records & Stats

St. Louis is six games behind the Brewers in the NL Central, and they are 53-51 overall. The Cardinals have dropped three straight games, and they are losing the series vs. the Nationals 0-2. So far, they are just 16-16 in divisional games.

At home, the Cardinals are 26-24 this year and 27-27 on the road. As the favorite, St. Louis has gone 28-26 and 25-25 as the underdog. This season, the Cardinals have an overall series record of 17-13-3.

When the Cardinals win, they win big, with an average run margin of 2.6 runs. But when they lose, they lose by an average of 3.6 runs. St. Louis has a run line record of 52-52, and they are 25-25 at home and 27-27 on the road. They are 19-35 against the run line as the favorite, but 33-17 as the underdog. They have failed to cover the run line in three straight games, and they are 3-3 against the run line in their last six games.

St. Louis is playing at home against the Nationals with an over/under line of 8.5 runs. The Cardinals have a combined run average of 8.7 runs per game this season, and their over/under record is 49-52. When the over/under line is set at 8.5 runs, their record is 23-13. The over has hit in two straight games for St. Louis.

Right-hander Miles Mikolas gets the start for the Cardinals today as he faces the Nationals at home. So far this season, he has made 21 starts and is coming off a game in which he gave up just two earned runs and got the win. Looking back over his last four starts, Mikolas has given up two earned runs in three of them. His ERA for the season is 5.02, along with a record of 8-8. Opponents are batting .272 off Mikolas this season. In his 21 starts, he has turned in 12 quality starts. Per nine innings, Mikolas is averaging 6.08 strikeouts and just 1.45 walks.

So far this season, the Cardinals offense has been pretty average, as they are 23rd in scoring at 4.1 runs per game. Their team batting average of .245 is 9th in the league, and they are also one of the better teams in terms of avoiding strikeouts. However, they have been near the bottom of the league in terms of home runs and isolated power.

St. Louis has a few guys who have hit a lot of home runs this season, with Alec Burleson and Nolan Gorman both in the top 15 in the league in homers. Burleson’s 60 RBIs are the best mark in the league right now, and Gorman is 13th in the league in homers. However, Gorman is batting just .204 for the season and Arenado has hit just .179 over his last eight games.