The St. Louis Cardinals (9-16) are on the road to face the San Francisco Giants (11-13) at Oracle Park on Thursday with the home team in position for a sweep of the four-game series. The Giants lead the series 3-0 after winning 7-3 on Wednesday.
Anthony DeSclafani went six innings, giving up two runs on six hits and striking out six, to get the win, and Camilo Doval threw 0.2 scoreless innings to pick up his third save. LaMonte Wade Jr. went 2 for 4 with a home run and a triple in the win.
He drove in two runs. Thairo Estrada went 3 for 5 with a double and one run. Paul Goldschmidt was 4 for 5 with two solo home runs and a double for the Cardinals. Paul DeJong added two doubles and one RBI.
ON THE MOUND
Miles Mikolas (0-1, 7.46 ERA) is in line to start for St. Louis. The right-hander allowed three runs over 5.1 innings in his last start, a 5-4 home defeat against the Mariners on Saturday. He scattered five hits while striking out four and walking two in the no-decision.
Mikolas is making his first appearance against the Giants this season. Mikolas made one start against the Giants in 2022, a 7-1 road victory on May 5. He surrendered one run on seven hits over 5.2 innings, striking out three and walking three.
For San Francisco, righty Logan Webb (1-4, 4.40 ERA) is on the mound. It’s his first appearance of the season against the Cardinals. Webb made two appearances against the Cardinals in 2022, both as the starter, striking out eight and walking five over 11 innings (2-0, 4.09).
In his last start on Saturday, Webb got the win at home against the Mets. He threw seven innings and gave up two runs on five hits, striking out eight and walking one in the 7-4 victory. The righty ranks fourth in the NL in strikeouts (36).
AT THE PLATE
Over the last five games, St. Louis has averaged 3.6 runs a game, a small drop compared to their season average of 4.4. Against right-handed pitchers like Webb this season, the Cards have a .738 OPS. Goldschmidt has been the team’s biggest on-base threat against right-handers with a .422 OBP in 73 at-bats.
San Francisco is averaging 5.6 runs per game in the last five, up slightly from 4.6 for the season. The Giants have ann .814 OPS against right-handers in 2023, second highest in the league. With a 1.042 OPS over 50 at-bats, J.D. Davis has been their best hitter against right-handers.
HOME AND AWAY
St. Louis is 4-8 away from Busch Stadium in 2023, scoring 3.9 runs per game while allowing 4.7 runs. San Francisco has won five in a row in front of their home fans.
The Giants are 7-6 at home this season, averaging 4.0 runs per game while surrendering 4.6. In the last 10 games between the teams at Oracle Park, San Francisco is 6-4 with an average scoreline of 4.9-4.0.
STANDINGS UPDATE
The Cardinals are fifth in the NL Central, eight games behind the division-leading Pirates. The Giants are fourth in the NL West, two games behind the Diamondbacks.
SportsTips’ MLB Pick:
SF Giants (-155)
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*Odds correct at time of publication, courtesy of BetMGM.
