How about a little interleague action for Wednesday’s MLB slate? The Guardians are in St. Louis to take on the Cardinals in a Central Division matchup as both teams try to keep the good times rolling. Who takes home the win?
First pitch is set for 1:15 p.m. ET. The Cardinals are -115 moneyline favorites on DraftKings Sportsbook. A Guardians upset is priced at -105. The game total is set at O/U 8.5 runs.
Let’s get into a pick and prediction for this Guardians-Cardinals game.
Guardians vs. Cardinals Preview
First things first, let’s get to know these starting pitchers.
Slade Cecconi toes the rubber for Cleveland in this one. The young right-hander has taken his lumps for the Guardians after debuting young; he has posted expected ERAs of 4.80, 4.49, and 4.99 in his first three seasons. This year, things are only getting worse, posting a 6.17 eERA. The hard-hit balls and lack of strikeout stuff are diminishing his ability as a ground-ball pitcher, but this could be a chance to get back on track.
When Cecconi pitches, you’re going to see a lot of movement; 65% of his pitches are off-speed or breaking: cutter, curveball, sinker, and sweeper. The fastball doesn’t impress with velocity, but he has solid command and uses it as a palette cleanser. Perhaps it can be enough to handle this shaky Cardinals lineup.
New Cardinal Dustin May will be his opposite number. So far, so not good for the free agent signing. After a shaky 2025 between the Dodgers and the Red Sox, May came to the Cardinals to prove he has something in the tank. I’m afraid all he’s proving is that the tank is empty. He can still bring the velocity and movement, but he’s not fooling hitters these days. May isn’t generating whiffs, avoiding hard contact, or keeping the ball on the ground; that is a rough formula.
Both lineups have been bang-on average this season. That’s no surprise for the Guardians, who have thrived on keeping their heads above water while letting their pitching do the talking. So far, so good as far as they are concerned. St. Louis’ lineup has been a pleasant surprise so far, and much of that is due to Jordan Walker’s breakout. The former top prospect is lighting up the scoreboard in a major way to start the year.
Now that we know these teams a bit better, who is going to take this one home?
Guardians vs. Cardinals Pick, Best Bet
It’s fair to have doubts about these lineups. But one thing is for sure: these pitchers are having a bad time.
This total should be a lot higher, in my opinion, and I expect the big bats to get moving early. Jose Ramirez, JJ Wetherholt, Walker, and Chase DeLauter? Someone’s going to set the tone, and the rest of these lineups will follow suit. Both starters will get knocked around, and Cleveland’s bullpen advantage will show itself later in the game.
