Cardinals vs. Padres Odds & Pick 5/16/21

St. Louis Cardinals (23-17) vs. San Diego Padres (23-17)

When: 7 p.m., Sunday, May 16

Where: Petco Park, San Diego

Moneyline: STL +115/SD -125 (Dimeline Baseball Betting >>> Why pay more for odds? Make the switch to one of these dandies today!)

Runline: Cardinals +1.5/Padres -1.5

Total: 7

Starting Pitchers: Kwang Hyun Kim (1-0, 2.74 ERA, 1.26 WHIP) vs. Ryan Weathers (2-1, 0.81 ERA, 0.72 WHIP)

Getting Out With Something

One of the big keys to the Cardinals’ success in 2021 has been their ability to avoid being swept. Through the 2021 season, the Cardinals have managed to take at least one win off every opponent they’ve played, which has allowed them to charge to the top of the NL Central. They’ve only lost five series in 2021, and each time, they won either the first or second game, ensuring the sweep was off the table.

And that’s where San Diego comes in: the Padres have picked up right where they left off a season ago against St. Louis. The Padres won two out of three when the teams met in the wild card series and have since extended their winning streak against the Cardinals to four games. San Diego dominated the second game by getting 17 hits, likely wearing out the Cardinal bullpen. The big question is whether St. Louis can manage to bounce back and squeeze a good performance out of Kwang Hyun Kim because if they can’t, they’re likely looking at their first sweep of the season.

Consistent and Reliable

The good news for the Cardinals is that Kim has proven to be a relatively consistent pitcher so far this year, holding his past four opponents to just one earned run. In his past two starts, the one run that Kim gave up was all the opposition got, extending the Redbirds to a perfect 5-0 in games where Kim pitches.

But there’s a problem here: the bullpen had to work overtime on Saturday because of Adam Wainwright get-ting shelled, and Kim isn’t a pitcher with a lot of endurance. He hasn’t made it out of the sixth inning in any of his five starts in 2021, and his pitch count is a big reason. Kim is a strikeout pitcher who gives up just over a hit per inning, meaning that he usually works longer into the count with opposing hitters. He’s effective when he’s in the game, but with the St. Louis bullpen both tired and struggling, five innings of solid pitching just might not be enough in this contest.

Bullpen Battle

While St. Louis would rather stay out of a bullpen showdown in this matchup, San Diego is likely planning on it. Ryan Weathers has been used as both an emergency starter and a reliever, and he’s usually limited to just over one turn through the lineup (unless the opponent is the Dodgers, for some bizarre reason). Seeing him only once has made life difficult on San Diego’s opponents, as only Texas and Pittsburgh have managed to plate anything against him in 22.1 innings of work.

The way San Diego wants to play this game is to get Weathers through the lineup once and then pinch-hit for him so they can turn the game over to the bullpen. Ideally, the pinch hit will come in a big inning that forces St. Louis to get back into its bullpen because once the Cardinals have to go to the pen, the Padres will have a large advantage.

Betting Trends

• The Cardinals are 3-7 in their past ten games as a road underdog.
• The Cardinals are 11-5 in their past 16 meetings.
• The Padres are 5-1 in their past six overall.
• The Padres are 4-1 in their past five against the NL Central.
• The under is 3-1-1 in the Cardinals’ past five games.
• The under is 5-1 in the Padres’ past six against a left-handed starter.
• The over is 5-1-1 in the teams’ past seven meetings in San Diego.

Weather Report

Weather shouldn’t affect the game much, with temperatures at 62 degrees at the first pitch and the wind blowing toward first base at 10 miles per hour.

Dan’s pick

It’s hard to pick St. Louis to get swept, but the Padres seem to have the Cardinals’ number right now, and St. Louis is using a tired bullpen after Saturday’s disaster. The pieces are definitely in place for San Diego to keep this rolling right now, as the Padres have won four of five and seem to have rediscovered their offense after the way they unloaded on the Cardinals.

Any time you can get a quality team that’s playing well and playing at home for little juice, it’s a good idea to jump on it. So that’s what I’ll do here; give me the Padres.  Bankroll running low? Instead of re-depositing and receiving NOTHING, you might want to consider cashing in on a 100% REAL CASH bonus on your first deposit of $100 to $300 at MyBookie Sportsbook. Free loot is good loot! Must use bonus code PREDICT100 to receive the specially arranged bonus. Click here to sign up now!