Game Information
St. Louis Cardinals (24-20) at Kansas City Royals (25-20)
Time: 6:40pm CT Friday
How to watch: FanDuel Sports Network, Matrix Midwest
Probable pitchers: Andre Pallante (3-2, 4.36 ERA) vs Cole Ragans (2-2, 4.20 ERA)
DraftKings Odds
Moneyline: Royals -148, Cardinals +124
Total: 8.5 (over -105, under -115)
Cardinals, Royals Renew I-70 Rivalry
The sizzling-hot St. Louis Cardinals continue their nine-game road trip tonight across the state against the Kansas City Royals.
The Redbirds are 5-1 on the trip so far, and they are winners of 10 of their last 11 games overall. The hot streak has brought them to within 1 game of the Cubs for first place in the NL Central.
Pallante On The Bump
The Cards are on an impressive run of starting pitching that has brought their starters’ ERA down to 3.82, which ranks in the top half of MLB.
Tonight’s starter Andre Pallante did his part last time out. The right-hander pitched 7.1 innings of 2-run ball last Saturday in Washington, and it was very encouraging to see him have no walks and 7 strikeouts.
Royals Cooling Down
The Cardinals may be catching their opponent at the right time. The Royals had been on a 16-2 tear over an 18-game stretch, but they have now lost four out of their last five since that hot run. Kansas City averages just 3.4 runs per game, which ranks 27th in MLB.
The Royals have been carried by their pitching, as their 3.03 team ERA ranks second in baseball. Tonight’s starter Cole Ragans has struggled from a results perspective this season, but as I’ll outline below, he is due for a big bounceback in performance.
My Lean
Ragans is an outstanding left-hander that leads MLB with a 14.4 K/9, but he has been incredibly unlucky so far this season. His ERA sits at 4.20 despite a 2.31 xERA, 2.22 FIP, and 2.25 xFIP. Ragans has been undone by a BABIP against of .375, so that is going to come down and he is overdue for a dominant start.
I noted the Royals’ offensive struggles above, so I lean under in the first five innings - but it falls short of making my card here on Friday.
The reason I’m passing on making this a bet is the weather. It’s going to be a warm night in Kansas City of about 80 degrees, and the wind is expected to be blowing out to right field at about 17 MPH. So if either or both of these pitchers leave the ball up in the zone, fans sitting in the right field seats will need to be ready for homers flying their way.
Lean: Under 4.5 in the first five innings at -135 on DraftKings
Eric Sontag hosts Domesticated Gamblers every Friday on the Sports Hub STL YouTube channel. Follow him on X @GamblingDads, and click here for his daily picks on all of our St. Louis area sports teams. Picks = betting the game - minus odds betting to win 1 unit, plus odds risking 1 unit. Leans = no strong opinion, not betting the game. Disclaimer