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The St. Louis Cardinals take on the San Francisco Giants. Check out our MLB odds series for our Cardinals Giants prediction and pick.
Jordan Hicks will start for the Cardinals. Alex Cobb takes the ball for the Giants.
This will be a bullpen game for the Cardinals, a plot twist for anyone considering the MLB odds. Jordan Hicks has a 3.65 ERA. He has not pitched more than 3 1/3 innings in any game this season. He usually pitches two to three innings per appearance. He did not allow a run in his first two games of the year but has allowed at least one run in his last three appearances.
Alex Cobb has a 5.40 ERA for the Giants, which will naturally affect how people assess the Cardinals Giants odds on Friday night. His most recent start on May 1 against the Nationals was a total disaster. He didn't get help from his defense, which meant that he gave up only one earned run, but he couldn't pitch around his defense's failures, either. Cobb gave up five runs on four hits and three walks and did not escape the first inning. He got just two outs before being taken out of the game.
Courtesy of FanDuel, here are the Cardinals-Giants MLB odds.
MLB Odds: Cardinals-Giants Odds
St. Louis Cardinals: +1.5 (-192)
San Francisco Giants: -1.5 (+158)
Over: 7.5 (-102)
Under: 7.5 (-120)
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Why The Cardinals Could Cover the Spread
The Giants have been really bad over the past seven games, losing six and getting thumped in most of them. The Giants have scored only one run in each of their last three games. They suffered 14-4 and 11-5 losses at home to the Washington Nationals last weekend. They have been brutal after such a bright start to their season.
The Cardinals were in a funk but rescued themselves on May 1, coming from behind to beat the Diamondbacks, 7-5. That win averted a series loss at home to Arizona. It seemed to spark the Cardinals, who then won a series against Kansas City and then came to San Francisco and thumped the Giants on Thursday night. The Cardinals have scored a total of 17 runs in their last two games and have managed to wake up their bats, which went through a lull on multiple occasions over the past week.
The other reason the Cardinals could cover the spread: They're getting a run and a half. That's always the most important part. Remember that when making a Cardinals Giants prediction.
Why The Giants Could Cover the Spread
After so much bad baseball over the past week, the Giants are bound to play better. This team started the season 13-5 and looked a lot like the team which was the best in baseball in the 2021 regular season. Then came this ugly 1-6 stretch. It has a lot of people concerned, but it's a long season. Every team will have a bad week at some point. The Giants are too good to stay down. They will fight back.
The fact that the Cardinals are going through their bullpen for this game should help the Giants' hitters, who have been in a funk. St. Louis won't be sending Adam Wainwright or Miles Mikolas to shut down San Francisco. Hitters should get some better matchups and, accordingly, better pitches to hit. This is part of the calculus when making a Cardinals Giants pick.
Final Cardinals-Giants Prediction & Pick
If the Giants come alive and dominate this game, it won't be a surprise, but St. Louis is hitting and pitching well, whereas the Giants have been brutally bad. Maybe San Francisco wins, but the Giants could win by one run and still not cover. Why not take the run and a half with the Cardinals here? Alex Cobb doesn't merit enough trust to take the Giants against the spread.
Final Cardinals-Giants Prediction & Pick: Cardinals +1.5
