The Chicago Cubs and St. Louis Cardinals will open up a four-game series at Busch Stadium on Monday night. It’s time to continue our MLB odds series and make a Cubs-Cardinals prediction and pick.

These NL Central clubs have fallen off lately and are now nine games back of the Milwaukee Brewers in the standings. They certainly won't reach the postseason as a wild card team, which means that their playoff hopes depend on winning this division.

Here’s how sportsbooks have set the opening Cubs-Cardinals odds.

MLB Odds: Cubs-Cardinals Odds

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Chicago Cubs +1.5 (-199)

St. Louis Cardinals -1.5 (+174)

Over 9 Runs (-104)

Under 9 Runs (-116)

Why The Cubs Could Cover The Spread

The Chicago Cubs have been a tale of two stories as they've been very impressive at Wrigley Field and awful on the road this season. They are 18-30 with a -1.00 average run differential through their first 48 road games. The Cubs have lost 14 of their last 18 games and are watching their season rapidly fall apart. They have won five of their last six games against St. Louis however and will desperately need to get back on track over the next four games. Chicago fans will pray that Kris Bryant and Javier Baez are able to continue their recent success against a struggling Cardinals club.

Chicago will turn to Alec Mills for the crucial series opener. Mills has been serviceable through 18 appearances and six starts this season. He is currently 4-2 with a 4.84 ERA and 40 strikeouts through 48.1 innings of work. The veteran right-hander has been effective lately with three runs or fewer allowed over his last three starts to date. He will get to face the St. Louis Cardinals for the first time in 2021.

Why The Cardinals Could Cover The Spread

Similar to the Chicago Cubs, the St. Louis Cardinals have been far more productive at home this season. They are 46-47 on the season thanks to their 25-19 record at Busch Stadium. Their struggles have mostly come on the road as the Cardinals are seven games under .500. St. Louis has won five of their last six home games, including two out of three against the San Francisco Giants in their most recent series. The Cardinals entered the season with the best odds of winning the NL Central and if they don't get things going in a hurry, they will be an afterthought in the division before the trade deadline.

St. Louis will look to stay hot as they hand the ball to right-hander Jake Woodford to open the series. Woodford is 1-1 with a 4.62 ERA and 21 strikeouts over 17 relief appearances this season. He has been awful with a 7.56 ERA over his last seven appearances and will now make his first start of the season in the opener. The 24-year-old starter will be tasked with limiting a Cubs offense that has really struggled in road games.

Final Cubs-Cardinals Prediction & Pick

I am going to pick the Cardinals to win an ugly divisional game in St. Louis. This pitching matchup isn't the best and these teams have been very disappointing for most of the season. St. Louis should be able to win this game because of their recent success at home. The Cardinals have much-needed momentum and a favorable matchup against a Cubs team that hasn't been able to do anything on the road. St. Louis defeated the league-leading San Francisco Giants in two out of three games over the weekend and should have added confidence heading into this series.

FINAL PICK: St. Louis Cardinals ML (-105)