Nationals vs. Cardinals (September 8): Homer happy Cards seek eighth straight series win

After a wild finish last night, the Washington Nationals and St. Louis Cardinals have an early start this afternoon for their series finale at Busch Stadium.

Thanks to a four-run eighth, Washington led 5-1 entering the bottom of the ninth. With one out remaining, St. Louis had pushed two runs across and had the tying runs on first and third.

Veteran catcher Yadier Molina made it a one-run game with an RBI single, setting the stage for Tommy Edman. And on the first pitch Edman saw, he belted a double to left to score Tyler O’Neill and pinch runner Ben DeLuzio and cap the comeback.

What a comeback!!! Tommy Edman walks it off to complete a five-run rally and the #STLCards win it!!!!

TV: Bally Sports Midwest
Stream: https://t.co/cPTJTNVVMc pic.twitter.com/1qznEW9fUD

— Bally Sports Midwest (@BallySportsMW) September 8, 2022

With their wild win, the Cardinals are now 9.5 games ahead of the Milwaukee Brewers in the NL Central and have won 30 of their last 39 games.

Today, the Cards will be aiming for their eighth consecutive series victory and 11th series win in their last dozen series. After getting great starts from new additions Jose Quintana and Jordan Montgomery in the last two games, they will be looking for more of the same from rotation stalwart Adam Wainwright today.

Washington Nationals vs. St. Louis Cardinals Matchup Information and Betting Odds

Matchup Information

• Matchup: Washington Nationals (48-89, 26-42 away, 5th in the NL East) vs. St. Louis Cardinals (81-56, 47-23 home, 1st in the NL Central)
• Venue & Location: Busch Stadium (St. Louis, Missouri)
• Date: Thursday, September 8, 2022
• Game Time: 1:15 p.m. Eastern Time (12:15 p.m. local time)
• Nationals vs. Cardinals TV Info: MLB Network

Nationals vs. Cardinals Pitching Matchup

• Washington: Josiah Gray (2022: 24 starts, 7-9, 4.91 ERA)
• St. Louis: Adam Wainwright (2022: 27 starts, 10-9, 3.21 ERA)

Nationals vs. Cardinals Odds

Game odds are via BetOnline. Odds from other reputable sports betting sites may also be mentioned in this article.

Moneyline

• Washington Nationals +250
• St. Louis Cardinals -310

Over/Under

• Over 7.5 (-115)
• Under 7.5 (-105)

Run Line

• Washington Nationals +1.5 (+115)
• St. Louis Cardinals -1.5 (-138)

Washington Nationals vs. St. Louis Cardinals Prediction and Best Bets

Nationals vs. Cardinals Prediction: St. Louis to win

Nationals vs. Cardinals Best Bet: St. Louis -1.5 (Best Value: -132 at BetUS) & St. Louis team total over 4.5 runs (Best Value: -120 at BetOnline)

Outside of the ninth inning last night, the Nationals have been fairly stingy in St. Louis. In that frame, Washington gave up as many runs as they have in the other 25 innings pitched in the series.

Gray gave up six runs in five innings against the Mets in his last start, but it wouldn’t be a surprise to see a much better performance today, given that he has pitched well against quality opposition a number of times this season and has been better on the road than at home.

Home and Away Splits for Josiah Gray

• Home (11 starts): 2-7, 6.15 ERA, .262 OBA, 1.54 WHIP
• Away (13 starts): 5-2, 3.64 ERA, .213 OBA, 1.19 WHIP

Also, after giving up four or more runs in his previous start, Gray has allowed more than three runs in just one of eight starts this season.

But after winning in seven of his first nine road starts this season, the Nats have dropped his last four, all since they traded Juan Soto and Josh Bell.

Those fortunes are unlikely to change today against a team that has shown a real aversion to losing over the last several weeks.

And scoring plenty of runs has been a big part of that. Over their last 39 games, the Cardinals have scored five or more runs 26 times.

Notably, in their last 11 series, they have scored five or more runs in at least two games of a series nine times, including each of their last six entering this series.

Will they make it seven in a row today? The run support Wainwright has gotten at home and overall is an encouraging sign.

St. Louis has scored at least five runs ten times in his 15 home starts this season, including three straight and six of the last seven. Overall, they have scored at least five runs in 18 of his 27 starts this season.

Gray has given up 34 homers this season, with 18 of those being surrendered in his last nine starts. After giving up multiple homers in just three of his first 15 starts, he has allowed multiple homers in six of his last nine. That could spell major trouble for him and the Nationals against a lineup that has blasted 68 homers in its 30-9 run.

Home Run Splits for the St. Louis Cardinals

• First 98 Games: 105 HR (1.07 HR per game)
• Last 39 Games: 68 HR (1.74 HR per game)

If the Cardinals do score five or more runs this afternoon, it is highly likely that they will cover the run line for the 28th time (in 48 games) as a home favorite and the 48th time overall (in 83 games) as a favorite this season.

Only the Dodgers, unsurprisingly, have higher win percentages in those two areas.

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