The St. Louis Cardinals open their season as they visit the Los Angeles Dodgers. It is time to continue our MLB odds series with a Cardinals-Dodgers prediction, pick, and how to watch.
2023 was a disaster for the Cardinals. They lost over 90 games for just the first time since 1990. They finished last place in the Central Division, and second to last in the National League. For as bad as it was for the Cardinals there is hope. They added Sonny Gray to the top of the rotation, plus they have Miles Mikolas and Lance Lynn. Further, the Cardinals added Kyle Gibson to round out the rotation. They also bring back some solid bats, including Paul Goldschmidt and Nolan Arenado.
Meanwhile, the Dodgers are already 1-1 on the young season, playing two games with the Padres in South Korea before coming back to finish spring training and get ready for the regular season. the Dodgers have high hopes for the season as well, coming back with many of the parts that have made them great, while also adding some major parts. Not only did they bring in Shohei Ohtani, but they also brought in James Paxton, Teoscar Hernandez, and Yoshinobu Yamamoto. It was a great offseason for a team looking to return to the World Series.
Here are the MLB Odds, courtesy of FanDuel.
MLB Odds: Cardinals-Dodgers Odds
St. Louis Cardinals: +1.5 (-105)
Moneyline: +188
Los Angeles Dodgers: -1.5 (-112)
Moneyline: -225
Over: 8.5 (-120)
Under: 8.5 (-102)
How to Watch Cardinals vs. Dodgers
Time: 4:10 PM ET/ 1:10 PM PT
TV: BSMW/SNLA/MLB.TV
Stream: fuboTV (Click for free trial)
Why The Cardinals Will Cover The Spread/Win
The two major players for the Cardinals come on the corner infielders. At first base, there is Paul Goldschmidt and then Nolan Arenado sitting at third base. Both are coming off a rough season, and neither has looked great this spring. Arenado comes in with a .234 batting average this spring but does have six RBIs. Meanwhile, Gold Schmidt is hitting just .128 for the Spring with an OPS of just .478. Further, they have a combined one home run in the spring so far in over 90 at-bats. Up the middle, it is Nolan Gorman and Masyn Winn. Gorman burst onto the scene last year with a solid season. He is just .236 but has 27 home runs and 76 RBIS while having a .805 OPS. Winn played just 36 games last year but is expected to be the everyday shortstop this year. He hit just .172 in those games.
In the outfield, it will be Victor Scott, Brendan Donovan, and Jordan Walker, with Matt Carpenter as the DH. Walker is coming off a year in which he hit 16 home runs and had a .787 OPS, while Donovan moves to the outfield from the infield. He played 94 games last year, hitting .284 while driving in 34 runs. Victor Scott will be making his MLB debut when he takes the field. In the minors, he has been solid. He has hit .290 in the minors over 163 games. He also stole 107 bases i that time. His speed is dangerous and will be a welcome addition to this lineup.
It will be Miles Mikolas on the hill for the Cardinals. He was just 9-13 last year with a 4.78 ERA and a 1.32 WHIP. He has not been great in his career and will be the top guy for the Cardinals this year. Milkolas made his major league debut in 2012 but truly became a major part of the rotation in 2018 with the Cardinals. He was 18-4 that year. Since then, he is 32-43 but does have a positive WAR overall.
Why The Dodgers Will Cover The Spread/Win
The Dodgers feature great players at every position. At Catcher, it stars Will Smith. Smith drove in two runs in the two games with Sandiego, hitting .500. He has been a consistent plus offensive catcher and starts things off great with the infield. At the corners, Max Muncy and Freddie Freeman prowl. Both are all-star-level players. Freeman is coming off hitting .331 last year and driving in 102 runs. Still, he hit just .167 against the Padres in the two games, while being walked four times—Muncy hit 33 in the two games, with a double. The center of the diamond is run by Gavin Lux and Mookie Betts. Lux moved from shortstop to second base to allow Betts to move from the outside. Bettis coming off an amazing series with the Padres. He hit .667 while adding a home run and driving in seven runs in two games.
It is Teoscar Hernandez, James Outman, and Jason Heyward in the outfield. Hernandez is coming off a solid year with the Mariners last year. He hit .258 last year while having a .741 OPS. He had 26 home runs and 93 RBIs last year. Outman struggled in his two-game series. He did score twice but did not have a hit, while taking three walks. Heyward has become more of a platoon player but is a solid platoon player who is great in the outfield. The Dodgers also have Shohei Ohtani. He hit .300 in the series with the Padres and is a power threat in the middle of the line-up.
It will be Tyler Glasnow getting the start for the Dodgers in this one. Glasnow is coming off a 10-7 season with the Rays in 2023. He also started the game against the Padres, going five innings, giving up two hits and two earned runs while walking four.
Final Cardinals-Dodgers Prediction & Pick
While the Cardinals are expected to make strides this year, they are not nearly the team the Dodgers are. Tyler Glasnow has already had a solid outing on the year, while Mile Mikolas has been inconsistent since his solid 2018 season. The major players from the Cardinals are aging and coming off rough seasons. Further, they have not shown many signs of a rebound in spring training. The Dodgers already have two games under their belt and looked solid in them. The prediction for this Cardinals-Dodgers game is the Dodgers take an easy victory behind a solid start from Tyler Glasnow.
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Final Cardinals-Dodgers Prediction & Pick: Dodgers -1.5 (-112)
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