St. Louis Cardinals at Atlanta Braves Betting Preview
20 June 2021
The Cardinals have dropped each of the first two games in this series, and this team just continues to play inconsistent baseball. St. Louis brings an overall record of 35-35 into this game, and that has them in fourth place in the National League Central.
Atlanta has gone just 32-35 on the year, but they are still in third place in the tough NL East. The Braves remain a popular pick to win the National League, but this team is running out of time to get things going.
Cards Struggling to Score
When the Cardinals acquired Nolan Arenado in a trade with the Rockies, most baseball experts believed that St. Louis would become a great offensive team. That hasn’t happened yet, and the Cardinals have scored just eight total runs in their last five games.
Arenado has done his best for the Cardinals, leading the team with 44 RBIs to go along with 12 home runs. The Cardinals are still waiting for Paul Goldschmidt to get things going on offense, and there are still some holes in this offense.
Injuries have plagued St. Louis as well, especially when it comes to the starting rotation. Kwang Hyun Kim is slated to start on Sunday night, and he is 1-4 with a 3.72 earned run average this season.
Atlanta Not Getting Outs
The Atlanta Braves have a team ERA of 4.39 so far this season, and the lack of pitching has really put the offense in a tough position all season long. There are some big names in the starting rotation, but it will be a veteran taking the ball on Sunday night.
Drew Smyly has gone 3-3 with a 5.63 ERA to begin the year, and he will need to give his team a chance on Sunday night. The Braves will have to cover just 21 outs on Sunday, and that could play into their favor.
Ronald Acuna Jr. leads the team with 18 home runs and a batting average of .293. Atlanta is still waiting on Freddie Freeman to return to his MVP form from a season ago, and the Braves won’t be able to make a run until that happens.
Braves Win on Sunday Night
This is going to be a long day of baseball for the Cardinals and Braves on Sunday, but it should be two competitive games. Both teams have aspirations of reaching the playoffs this season, but each team has also struggled at times.
Atlanta does seem to be playing much better baseball at this time than the Cardinals, and they should have an advantage in the pitching matchup on Sunday night. The Braves also have an offense that is starting to heat up, and they will take control of this game.
Bet the Atlanta Braves over the St. Louis Cardinals in this National League showdown on Sunday Night Baseball.
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