Cubs (Wood) at Cardinals (Williams)
Randall Simon and Aramis Ramirez hit back-to-back home runs in a six-run third inning Tuesday night as the Chicago Cubs beat the St. Louis Cardinals as a $1.35 road favorite, 7-4. The combined 11 runs jumped ‘over’ the closing 8 ½-run total.
The Cubs, who won for only the third time in 14 games at Busch Stadium over the last two seasons, moved a half-game ahead of the Cardinals for second place in the tight NL Central. It was the first of eight games in 11 days between these rivals.
The middle game of this three-game set has been moved to 7:05 ET, with ESPN televising.
Kerry Wood, just 1-3 in his last five starts, will try to stay above .500 (11-10) when he gets the start for the Cubs. The fire-balling right-hander has been tagged for 10 runs on 11 hits (two home runs) in his last two outings spanning just 6 2/3 innings.
Wood is 6-3 in 11 road assignments, and his 3.30 ERA is mainly responsible for the ‘under’ going 7-3 in his last 10 away efforts. He is 0-1 in two starts against the Cardinals this season, allowing eight runs on 10 hits (four homers) in 10 combined innings. Both starts occurred at Wrigley Field.
St. Louis will counter with Woody Williams, who is 0-3 in his last five starts to lower his record to 14-6. The veteran right-hander is a sizzling 10-3 in 15 home appearances, and his 2.97 ERA is considerably lower than his 4.32 ERA in 11 road outings. Not surprisingly, the ‘under’ is 5-1 in his last six home starts.
Williams has had good success against the Cubs this season, evidenced by his 2-0 record in three starts. He has yielded seven runs on 23 hits (one home run) in 25 2/3 combined innings. Two of the three contests dipped ‘under’ the closing total.
Bruce Dreckman, Wednesday’s home plate umpire, has seen the ‘under’ go 18-9 in his 27 assignments behind the dish. There is an average of just seven runs per game when he is calling balls and strikes.
Most offshore books opened the Cardinals as $1.30 home favorites, with the total set at 8 ½ runs.
Randall Simon and Aramis Ramirez hit back-to-back home runs in a six-run third inning Tuesday night as the Chicago Cubs beat the St. Louis Cardinals as a $1.35 road favorite, 7-4. The combined 11 runs jumped ‘over’ the closing 8 ½-run total.
The Cubs, who won for only the third time in 14 games at Busch Stadium over the last two seasons, moved a half-game ahead of the Cardinals for second place in the tight NL Central. It was the first of eight games in 11 days between these rivals.
The middle game of this three-game set has been moved to 7:05 ET, with ESPN televising.
Kerry Wood, just 1-3 in his last five starts, will try to stay above .500 (11-10) when he gets the start for the Cubs. The fire-balling right-hander has been tagged for 10 runs on 11 hits (two home runs) in his last two outings spanning just 6 2/3 innings.
Wood is 6-3 in 11 road assignments, and his 3.30 ERA is mainly responsible for the ‘under’ going 7-3 in his last 10 away efforts. He is 0-1 in two starts against the Cardinals this season, allowing eight runs on 10 hits (four homers) in 10 combined innings. Both starts occurred at Wrigley Field.
St. Louis will counter with Woody Williams, who is 0-3 in his last five starts to lower his record to 14-6. The veteran right-hander is a sizzling 10-3 in 15 home appearances, and his 2.97 ERA is considerably lower than his 4.32 ERA in 11 road outings. Not surprisingly, the ‘under’ is 5-1 in his last six home starts.
Williams has had good success against the Cubs this season, evidenced by his 2-0 record in three starts. He has yielded seven runs on 23 hits (one home run) in 25 2/3 combined innings. Two of the three contests dipped ‘under’ the closing total.
Bruce Dreckman, Wednesday’s home plate umpire, has seen the ‘under’ go 18-9 in his 27 assignments behind the dish. There is an average of just seven runs per game when he is calling balls and strikes.
Most offshore books opened the Cardinals as $1.30 home favorites, with the total set at 8 ½ runs.
