Tampa Bay Rays vs. St. Louis Cardinals 8/8/24 – Tonight’s game between the Tampa Bay Rays and the St. Louis Cardinals at Busch Stadium is becoming a point of focus for many people, particularly those closely monitoring sport expert predictions while MLB season continues. Both teams are sitting around .500 mark with the Rays posting 57-56 while the Cardinals have slightly more superior records at 59-56, setting up a potentially pivotal playoff positioning duel.
Tampa Bay Rays vs. St. Louis Cardinals 8/8/24 Game Info |
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| When: | Thursday, August 8, 2024 at 7:15 PM ET |
| Where: | Busch Stadium |
| TV: | |
| Stream: | MLB.TV |
Tampa Bay Rays (57-56) vs. St. Louis Cardinals (59-56)
This season, the Rays have had issues with inconsistency, and this is clearly shown by their almost .500 record. Their offensive metrics indicate a team average of 0.234, a moderate on-base percentage (OBP) of 0.312 and a slugging percentage (SLG) of 0.375. Nevertheless, the Rays’ pitching team has kept them alive since they possess an ERA of 4.00, which isn’t bad for a major-league staff along with a WHIP of 1.23 that are both good enough to be respectably mediocre in the worst case scenario; however as it’s always said “good hitting beats good pitching”, therefore Tampa Bay needs to give more runs support for its conglomerate of decent arms.
On the contrary, the Cardinals have been performing better than previously with increased batting power such as higher slugging percentage (.386), and homers (118). Although their staff were outperformed slightly by Tampa Bay’s (4.09 ERA and 1.26 WHIP), there was only another thing that held up their less productive bat at best – slightly improved offense line-up they have got behind from start to finish this term. Additionally, St Louis has proved to be strong in closing out games at home as evidenced by their recent performances where they won four times in five games played at Busch Stadium lately
Shane Baz (0-1, 3.60 ERA) vs. Kyle Gibson (7-4, 4.04 ERA)
Shane Baz, however, has shown promise with 3.60 ERA and 24 strikeouts in just 25 innings pitched this season. Shane Baz is a talented young player who has put up some impressive numbers despite only pitching for twenty-five innings this year. Nevertheless, “Baz” as he is commonly referred to by his teammates has registered an average of 1.4 WHIP which shows that runners on the bases have been causing him trouble and they may be targeted by the St Louis lineup. Therefore, if he wants to change his fortunes this season, he will need to exploit his strikeout abilities well while minimizing walks and hits.
On the other hand, Kyle Gibson is a rather experienced option for the Cardinals. Hence his experience could play a major role at such an important stage in time irrespective of his 4.04 ERA over 120.1 innings of baseball pitching games during this whole season even though he is giving up quite a few hits and walks (109 Ks so far). However, Gibson’s performance when playing at home has been particularly strong which could really matter in tonight’s game.
MLB Odds/Point Spread: St. Louis Cardinals -1.5 (+164), Total Odds: 8
A close contest, according to the betting lines, with Cardinals slightly favored at home. This is reflected in the total set at 8 and strong tendencies towards UNDER which mirrors their recent low-scoring games as seen from both teams, supported by their pitching strengths and occasional poor offensive displays.
Tampa Bay Rays Betting Trends
In 5 of the previous five games, the whole total went down for the Rays, which would mean they have low-scoring games; this is in line with their pitching but below par offensive performance. Their last six matches, though, have been lost by them and they are presently 2-4 SU indicating recent slumps especially on travel where their total has also gone UNDER in last 6 matches out of 5.
St. Louis Cardinals Betting Trends
The Cardinals have also seen the total going UNDER in four of their previous five games. Their impressive home performance (4-1 SU over last five home games) and positive record against American League teams (4-1 SU past 5 vs AL opponents) give them a slight edge in this contest.
Tampa Bay Rays vs. St. Louis Cardinals 8/8/24 Betting Picks
The UNDER on the total seems to be a more excellent pick based on the detailed analysis and considering both teams’ recent trends and the strengths of their starting pitchers. Both teams have regularly been engaged in contests with lesser scores, moreover, runs may not come easy since both starting pitchers have good control and strikeout ability too.
Expert baseball predictions include leaning towards the Cardinals to win outright based on their stronger overall performance and home-field advantage. Prop bets could include betting on strikeouts for both starting pitchers, considering their histories and current form.
Free Pick and Prediction: St Louis Cardinals 4, Tampa Bay Rays 2.
Keep an eye on the free picks for other games today, including the matchups between the Philadelphia Phillies vs. Arizona Diamondbacks and the Detroit Tigers vs. Seattle Mariners, for more opportunities to make informed bets in this MLB season.