Cardinals vs. Cubs Betting Preview and Total Pick – August 1st

St. Louis Cardinals vs. Chicago Cubs Pick

Date: Thursday, August 1st, 8:05 ET

Location: Wrigley Field

TV: MARQ

Money Line: Cardinals -104/Cubs -115 (Bet on baseball for cheaper at BAS! Home of reduced odds!)

Total Line: 8

Betting Preview

Here’s our betting preview for the upcoming MLB clash between the Chicago Cubs and the Cardinals on Thursday, August 1st at Wrigley Field. We provide you with a comprehensive analysis, odds, and predictions to help with your handicapping decision or tail our expert based on the projected lineups and listed starting pitchers.

Betting Odds

At 8:05 PM ET, the Cubs and Cardinals will face off in an NL Central matchup. This one is being played at Wrigley Field in Chicago, and the Cubs are the slight favorite on the money line (-115). The money line odds for a Cardinals win are sitting at -104.

St. Louis will be looking to extend their two-game winning streak with Sonny Gray on the mound, while the Cubs are starting Shota Imanaga. The over/under line is currently at 8 runs, and the forecasted temperature in Chicago calls for cloudy skies and temperatures in the mid-80s.

Cardinals vs. Cubs Projected Lineup

Straight Up/Over-Under/Runline Record

St. Louis Cardinals: 56-52 SU / OU 52-53 / Runline 54-54

Chicago Cubs: 52-58 SU / OU 46-60 / Runline 53-57

The Cardinals’ offense was hot right out of the gates in their most recent game vs. the Rangers, closing out their series with a 10-1 win. After allowing one run to the Rangers in the top of the first, the Cardinals responded with three runs of their own. St. Louis went on to add another seven runs in the 2nd inning!

Michael McGreevy put together a good start for the Cardinals, going seven innings and giving up just one earned run, and picking up the win. St. Louis’s offense was carried by Tommy Pham, who went 3/4 with a double, two RBIs, and a run scored. The Cardinals also had three other players with two hits.

Cardinals Records & Recent Play

St. Louis is on the road today to take on the Cubs, and they are five games behind the Brewers for the NL Central lead. The Cardinals are 56-52 overall and have gone 16-16 against other teams in the division. St. Louis has won two straight games and closed out their series vs. the Rangers with a win.

At home, the Cardinals are 29-25 this season and have gone 27-27 on the road. As the favorite, St. Louis is 29-26 and 27-26 as the underdog. So far, they are 10-7 as the road favorite this season, and their overall series record is 17-14-3.

When betting the run line on the Cardinals, it’s been a coin flip this season, as they are 54-54. They have been a .500 team on the run line both at home and on the road, with a -0.3 run differential overall. They have been a better bet as the underdog, going 35-18 against the run line, compared to 19-36 as the favorite.

St. Louis is on the road today against the Cubs, and the O/U line is set at 8 runs. The Cardinals’ games have averaged 8.7 runs this season, and their O/U record is 52-53. When the O/U line is set at 8 runs, their record is 7-11-1. So far this season, 58.3% of their games have had O/U lines set higher than 8 runs, and their current O/U streak is three games.

Cubs Records & Recent Play

The Cubs’ offense was hot right out of the gates in their most recent game vs. the Reds, closing out their series with a 13-4 win. After scoring two runs in the 2nd inning, the Cubs added another four runs in the 3rd. Chicago was the +133 underdog going into this road game.

Kyle Hendricks put together a good start for the Cubs, going five innings and giving up just three runs on four hits. He only had four strikeouts in the outing and got the win.

Chicago is 52-58 overall, putting them 5th in the NL Central, 10 games behind the Brewers for the division lead. The Cubs’ overall record includes a mark of 14-25 against other teams in the NL Central. At home, the Cubs are 27-25 this year.

As for their matchup today, the Cubs have dropped two straight at home. Their overall home losing streak is at two games, and they are 5-5 over their last 10 games overall. Chicago is 10-6 as the home underdog this season, and their overall record as the underdog is 29-31, which includes having won three straight as the underdog.

Chicago is 19-33 on the run line at home, but 34-24 on the run line on the road. The Cubs are 40-20 on the run line as an underdog, and just 13-37 on the run line as a favorite. Their average run margin in winning games is +3.5, while their average run margin in losing games is -3.2.

The Cubs are back home today to face the Cardinals in a game with a total of 8 runs. The Cubs have had an average of 8.4 runs scored in their games this season, and their O/U record is 46-60. When the O/U line is set at 8 runs, the Cubs are 4-14-1 on the season. The Cubs have played in 57 games with O/U lines set above 8 runs, which is 51.8% of their games. They have played in 34 games with O/U lines set below 8 runs, which is 30.9% of their games.

Pitching Matchup

Sonny Gray gets the start for the Cardinals today as he faces the Cubs on the road. This year, he has made 19 starts and has a record of 10-6 with an ERA of 3.79. Gray’s WHIP for the season is currently 1.10. In his 19 appearances, he has turned in eight quality starts. Looking at his numbers, Gray has a much better ERA at home (2.9) compared to on the road (5.6). His last outing came at home, where he finished with a no-decision, giving up five earned runs in five innings of work. Before that, he had won two straight starts.

Left-hander Shota Imanaga gets the start for the Cubs today as he faces the Cardinals at home. He has made 19 starts this season and has a record of 8-2 with a 2.95 ERA. Imanaga’s WHIP for the season is currently 1.07. In his 19 appearances, he has turned in 12 quality starts. Looking back at his last outing, Imanaga finished with a no-decision after giving up three earned runs in 5 2/3 innings of work. He did not give up a homer in that outing. Before that, he had given up a homer in three straight starts.

Cardinals vs. Cubs Offense Outlook

Paul Goldschmidt has been swinging a hot bat for the Cardinals, hitting .316 with three homers over his last 10 games. For the season, he is batting .264 with 9 home runs. Alec Burleson has been the team’s top power threat, as his 18 homers are 2nd in the league and he is also 14th in the league with 63 RBIs.

As a team, the Cardinals are averaging 4.2 runs per game, which is 21st in the league. Their batting average of .247 is 10th in the MLB, and they are also among the league’s best in terms of avoiding strikeouts. St. Louis comes into the game with the 17th ranked slugging percentage in the league.

Although the Cubs’ offense is just 23rd in the league in runs per game this season, they have a few hitters who have been swinging the bat well of late. Seiya Suzuki has gone 12/39 in his last 10 games, while Patrick Wisdom and Ian Happ have each hit two home runs in their last six and 10 games, respectively. For the season, Happ is 1st on the team with 17 homers, but he is batting just .235.

Chicago’s most productive hitter this season has been Ian Happ, as his 62 RBIs are 1st on the team and 15th in the MLB. Isaac Paredes is 2nd on the Cubs with 55 RBIs, and his 16 homers are 2nd on the team and 15th in the league. For the season, the Cubs are batting just .234, which is 17th in the league.

Free Cardinals vs. Cubs MLB Pick

The Cubs managed to salvage one game in their series vs. the Reds, while the Cardinals took two of three from the Rangers, winning each of the last two games of the series with plenty of room to spare (8-1, 10-1). Both teams are coming off big offensive performances, but with Sonny Gray and Shota Imanaga on the mound, I’m actually looking at the under in this one. I recommend taking the under at 8 runs.

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