Philadelphia Phillies vs. St. Louis Cardinals Picks, Predictions, Odds

The Philadelphia Phillies (87-75) will travel to take on the St. Louis Cardinals (93-69) Friday for game one of the NL Wild Card round. First pitch is scheduled for 2:07 PM ET at Busch Stadium in St. Louis, Missouri and can be viewed on ABC.  

Updated on 04/17/2024

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PHILADELPHIA PHILLIES at ST. LOUIS CARDINALS BETTING PREDICTION

The Phillies finished the regular season third in the NL East standings and third in the NL Wild Card race. Philadelphia has played well in the second half of the season but struggled over their last 20 games with a 7-13 SU record, most recently losing two of three games to the Astros. The offense has been down over that stretch, averaging 3.9 runs per game compared to their season average of 4.6 runs per game. The bullpen has struggled as well over their last 20 games with a team ERA of 4.75 compared to their season ERA of 3.97 (18th). The right-hander Zack Wheeler (12-7, 2.82 ERA) is expected to start Friday.  

St. Louis finished the regular season as NL Central Champions with an impressive 93-69 SU record. The Cardinals played great in the second half of the season with a 43-24 SU record and at one point winning 19 of 25. They have however struggled as of late, losing nine of their last 15 games. The offense has averaged just 3.86 runs over that stretch, well below their season average of 4.76 runs scored per game. The bullpen has a respectable 3.73 ERA over that stretch which outperforms their season ERA of 3.79 (10th). The left-hander Jose Quintana (6-7, 2.93 ERA) is scheduled to start Friday.  

I like the Phillies in game-one despite their recent struggles on the road. Wheeler gives them the slight pitching advantage in this one and went 7.0 innings while giving up zero runs in both his outings against the Cardinals this season. Quintana has been solid for the Cardinals after being traded from the Pirates midseason, but I think the Phillies offense may give him some troubles. Backing the Phillies moneyline here in game one.  

Score Prediction: Phillies 3, Cardinals 2 
Best Bet: Phillies ML (-104)

PHILADELPHIA PHILLIES at ST. LOUIS CARDINALS BETTING ODDS

PHILADELPHIA PHILLIES at ST. LOUIS CARDINALS BETTING RESOURCES

• Date: Friday, October 7, 2022
• Matchup: NL East vs. NL Central
• Venue: Busch Stadium
• Location: St. Louis, Missouri
• Time-TV: 2:30 p.m. ET – ABC
• Expert Picks

PHILADELPHIA PHILLIES BETTING ANALYSIS

The Phillies finished the regular season with an 87-75 SU and 81-81 ATS record. They have struggled on the road as of late with a 4-10 SU record over their last 14 but have been better overall this season with a 40-41 SU road record. The total has gone over in four of their last six games. Going against this trend, the total has gone under in eight of their last nine when playing on the road against St. Louis.  

Philadelphia’s offense has played well this season. As a team they have a batting average of .253 (8th), on base percentage of .317 (11th), slugging percentage of .422 (6th) and have scored 747 total runs. The left fielder Kyle Schwarber has been huge for the offense with a batting average of .218 (126-577), 46 home runs, and a team leading 94 RBIs. Designated hitter Bryce Harper has also been having a solid season with a batting average of .286 (106-370), 18 home runs and 65 RBIs.  

The Phillies bullpen has looked good at times, and not so good at other times this season. As a team they are allowing opponents a batting average of .245 (16th), have a WHIP of 1.26 (14th), and team ERA of 3.97 (18th). Right-handed pitcher Zack Wheeler is expected to start game one. Wheeler is 12-7 SU with an ERA of 2.82 and has allowed 125 hits, 48 earned runs, and struck out 163 batters in 153.0 innings of work. In his latest outing on October 2nd, Wheeler gave up two hits and zero runs in 5.0 innings of work against the Nationals.  

ST. LOUIS CARDINALS BETTING ANALYSIS

The Cardinals finished the regular season with an 93-69 SU record and 87-75 ATS the record. St. Louis is 5-2 SU in their last seven home games and 53-28 SU at home this season. The total has gone over in four of the Cardinals last five games. Going against this trend, the total has gone under in their last five meetings with the Phillies. St. Louis is 8-4 SU in their last 12 games against an NL East opponent.  

The St. Louis offense has been consistent all throughout the season. As a team they have a batting average of .252 (10th), on base percentage of .325 (4th), slugging percentage of .420 (7th) and have scored 772 total runs (5th). The first baseman Paul Goldschmidt has been having a great season with a batting average of .317 (178-561), 35 home runs, and 115 RBI’s. Third baseman Nolan Arenado has also been a huge part of the offense with a batting average of .293 (163-557), 30 home runs, and 103 RBI’s.  

The offense is the bread and butter of this team, but the bullpen has done a decent job as well. On the season they are allowing opponents a batting average of .247 (18th), have a WHIP of 1.27, and team ERA of 3.79 (10th). The southpaw Jose Quintana is scheduled to start Friday. Quintana is 6-7 this season with an ERA of 2.93 and has given up 154 hits, 54 earned runs, and struck out 137 batters in 165.2 innings of work. In his most recent outing, Quintana gave up one hit and zero runs to the Pirates in 3.0 innings.  

KEY PLAYERS

• PHI: Rhys Hoskins - 1B (-)
• PHI: Bryce Harper - DH (-)
• STL: Paul Goldschmidt - 1B (-)
• STL: Nolan Arenado - 3B (-)

PROBABLE PITCHERS

• PHI: Zack Wheeler - RHP (-)
• STL: Jose Quintana - LHP (-)