Cardinals vs. Cubs Bookie Buster

St. Louis Cardinals (17-15) vs. Chicago Cubs (23-18), 9/7/20

Time: 4:10 pm ET Monday, Sept. 7

Where: Wrigley Field, Chicago, IL

Listed Pitchers: Johan Oviedo (0-1, 4.30) vs. Kyle Hendricks (4-4, 3.78)

TV: ESPN

Moneyline: Cardinals +160/Cubs -180 (Bookmaker – Fastest Payouts Bar None!)

Over/Under: NA

The Cards and Cubs conclude a five-game NL Central rivalry series Monday afternoon at the Friendly Confines. St. Louis is closing in on the division-leading Cubs in the divisional race, and both teams are chasing down playoff spots. How are we playing this game with our free MLB betting prediction?

MLB Betting Odds

Monday’s MLB betting odds opened Chicago and Hendricks at around -165 over St. Louis and Oviedo. Early betting action then bumped the Cubs upwards of 15 cents, to around -180.

The Cubbies could also be found “getting” around +100, giving the run and a half on the MLB run line.

Cardinals vs. Cubs Set-Up

Chicago took the opener of this series Friday night 4-1, but St. Louis has taken the next three games, sweeping a doubleheader Saturday, then winning Sunday 7-3. The Cardinals trailed the Cubs 3-1 early Sunday, then scored four runs in the third inning, two more in the sixth, and held on from there.

With Sunday’s win, the Cards are 6-2 over their last eight games.

With Sunday’s loss, Chicago is 1-4 over its last five games.

At 23-18 overall, the Cubs lead in the NL Central is now down to 1.5 games over 17-15 St. Louis.

If the playoffs started today, Chicago would be the No. 3 seed in the National League, headed for a first-round series against Philadelphia, while the Cardinals would be the No. 5 seed, headed for a series with San Diego.

The Cardinals now lead the season series with the Cubs five games to four.

Monday’s Starting Arms

Hendricks is 5/8 on quality starts this season but only one for his last three. Last Wednesday, he held Pittsburgh to one run and six hits through six innings of an 8-2 Chicago victory. But over his two starts previous to that, he gave up eight runs and 17 hits, including four home runs, through 11 1/3 innings.

On the season, Chicago is 4-4 with Hendricks, with the overs going 6-2.

Over his last five starts against St. Louis, four last season, and one earlier this season, Hendricks allowed eight runs and 30 hits through 34 2/3 innings, with two walks and 25 strikeouts. The Cubs won three of those five games, with the unders going 4-1.

Rookie righty Oviedo is 0/3 on quality starts this season, although that’s due in part to a short leash. Last Wednesday, he gave up three runs and three hits through 4 2/3 innings of a 4-3 Cardinals loss to Cincinnati. But over his two starts previous to that, he allowed just four runs and six hits through 10 innings.

For the season St. Louis is 0-3 with Oviedo, although that’s not all his fault, with the unders going 3-0.

In his only career start against the Cubs three weeks ago, Oviedo allowed two runs and two hits through five innings of a 4-2 Cardinals defeat.

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Monday’s Batting Splits

St. Louis is batting .246 against right-handed pitching this season, with a .341 team OBP and a .389 team slugging percentage. The Cardinals have also scored at least five runs each of their last three games.

The Cubs are batting .238/.329/.452 vs. right-handed pitching this season. Chicago has also been held to a total of 13 runs over its last six games.

The Bullpens

The Cardinals bullpen owns a 3.73 ERA this season and a 1.23 WHIP, along with a 2.04 K/BB ratio.

The Cubs pen owns a 4.79 ERA and a 1.37 WHIP, along with a 2.23 K/BB ratio.

MLB Betting Trends

• The Cubs are 13-11 at home this season.
• St. Louis is 9-8 on the road this season.
• The Cubs are 18-15 against right-handed starters this season.
• St. Louis is 15-13 vs. RH starters this season.

Totals Report

• Unders are 16-13 in Cardinals games this season.
• Overs are 22-18 in Cubs games this season.
• Unders are 5-3-1 in Cards-Cubs games this season.
• Unders are 13-9 in games played at Wrigley Field this season.

Free MLB Pick

We give Hendricks our handicapping check-mark in the pitching match-up, but St. Louis gets the check-marks in the splits with the sticks and in the bullpen comparison. The Cardinals are also trending in a good direction as of late, while the Cubs are experiencing some turbulence. Plus, the price on this game is way too high. We love the betting value with St. Louis here.