Cardinals vs. Cubs Prediction and Odds for Friday, June 3 (Betting on Two Pitchers Heading In Opposite Directions)

NL Central rivals clash on Friday when the Chicago Cubs and St. Louis Cardinals face-off in Game 2 of a five-game weekend series at Wrigley Field. The Cardinals enter this divisional series in second place in the NL Central and with a 5-1 record in their previous six games.

The Cubs, on the other hand, fell to fourth place after going 3–5 in the eight games before this series commenced on Thursday. The Cardinals are within striking distance of the Brewers in first place and can take over the top spot with a big weekend in Chicago.

Here are the odds for this game, courtesy of WynnBET Sportsbook.

Cardinals vs. Cubs Odds, Run Line, and Total

Run Line

• Cardinals -1.5 (+145)
• Cubs +1.5 (-175)

Moneyline:

• Cardinals -106
• Cubs -104

Total:

• 8 (Over -110/Under -110)

Cardinals vs. Cubs Prediction and Pick

The Cubs might be having more downs than ups this year, but today’s starter Marcus Stroman has me on the fence about this game. Stroman was rough to start the year and posted a gnarly 6.98 ERA in April. However, since the beginning of May, the veteran righty is 2-1 with a 1.50 ERA in 24 innings. He hasn’t given up more than two runs in his last five starts and just one home run in his last four. We witnessed Stroman find his groove in May and I’d like to see what he does with that momentum to start June off at home against a dangerous Cardinals team. 

The Cardinals rank fifth in runs per game, sixth in batting average, and 12th in BABIP. But their starter tonight, Miles Mikolas, has been heading in the wrong direction since the beginning of May. In stark contrast to Stroman, Mikolas had a 1.52 ERA in five April appearances but saw that number grow to 3.77 in May. Not bad mind you, but Mikolas is getting worse and worse.

He gave up just two runs in his first two starts of the month combined. Then gave up five runs in his next two starts followed by six in his previous appearance. That game was a brutal 8-0 loss to the Brewers at home. Mikolas gave up six earned runs in 5 ⅔ innings off nine hits and two home runs. I see a pattern here and don’t want to side with Mikolas until he turns things around. Put in a good start and we’ll talk. But, for today, I'll take the streaking Stroman. 

Pick: Cubs ML -104

Follow all of Matt De Saro’s betting picks HERE