The St. Louis Cardinals (28-43) and the New York Mets (33-37) will wrap up their three-game series on Sunday, June 18. First pitch from Citi Field in Queens, New York is set for 1:40 p.m. ET. St. Louis will start Matthew Liberatore (1-2, 5.14 ERA), while New York counters with Carlos Carrasco (2-3, 5.71).
The Mets are the -130 moneyline favorites at DraftKings Sportsbook. The Cardinals are the +110 underdogs, and the run total is set at 9.5. St. Louis will stay on the road and begin a three-game series against the Washington Nationals on Monday. New York will hit the road to take on the Houston Astros in a three-game set beginning Monday.
Cardinals-Mets picks: Sunday, June 18
Injury report
Cardinals
Day to day: OF Dylan Carlson (elbow)
Out: RP Ryan Helsley (forearm), OF Lars Nootbaar (back)
Mets
Out: RP Drew Smith (suspension), RP Edwin Uceta (ankle)
Starting pitchers
Matthew Liberatore vs. Carlos Carrasco
Liberatore will make his sixth appearance and fifth start of the season. He was able to bounce back in his last outing but dealt with a lack of run support from the St. Louis batting order. The lefty pitched six innings and allowed just two earned runs on seven hits, striking out five and walking two but not factoring into the decision.
Carrasco will start his ninth game of the year. The veteran’s stat line shows that he has struggled this season, but a lot of it can be attributed to a lack of run support. Carrasco last threw 4.2 innings against the Pittsburgh Pirates, allowing two earned runs on six hits while striking out one and walking three to take his third loss of the season.
Over/Under pick
The Cardinals are riding the struggle bus yet again, and have scored three runs or fewer in four of their last six. The Mets can’t seem to right the ship but are still scoring runs, having tallied at least four runs in four of their last six. This is a high run total, especially with the previous two games in this series ending 6-1 and 5-3. Even with the pitching matchup, I am taking the under.
Pick: Under 9.5
Moneyline pick
The way this season has gone, neither team inspires much confidence to win on the moneyline. St. Louis ended a six-game losing streak with a win on Saturday. New York has gone 2-3 in its last five and 3-7 over its last 10. This one really should be a pick ‘em, but I am leaning towards the Mets at home, provided that Carrasco doesn’t backslide into a bad outing on the mound.
Pick: Mets
