Chicago Cubs vs. St. Louis Cardinals Prediction and Betting Odds. The 98-65 Chicago Cubs are set to take on the 100-62 St. Louis Cardinals at Busch Stadium, St. Louis, Missouri tonight October 9, 2015, first pitch is scheduled 6:45 PM

Betting Odds
Moneylines: Cubs -110 / Cardinals -105
O/U: 6.5 runs

Pitching Match Up
Chicago: Jon Lester (11-12, 3.34 ERA)
St. Louis: John Lackey (13-10, 2.77 ERA

In their last games: Cubs beat the Pittsburgh Pirates 4-0 in the NL Wild Card game and the Cardinals lost to the Atlanta Braves 2-0.

The Cubs head into St. Louis for Game 1 of the 5 game NLDS. The 11-12 Jon Lester goes for the Cubs and the 13-10 John Lackey goes for the Cardinals. The Cubs open at -110 as the slight road favorite with a line sitting at 6.5. The Cubs entered the post-season red-hot winning their last 8 games and then blanking the Pirates 4-0 in Pittsburgh in the NL Wild Card game. They rank tied for 15th in runs scored and 3rd in team ERA. Their pitching has been stellar in their 9 game winning streak giving up a total of 9 runs. The Cardinals did not end the season well losing their last 3 games. They rank 24th in the Majors in runs scored and have the best team ERA.

Chicago at St. Louis Key Betting Trends

Chicago is 10-1 in their last 11 road games.
The Cubs are 8-0 in their last 8 road games vs. a right-handed starter.
Chicago has an Under record of 3-0-1 in their last 4 road games.
St. Louis is 16-5 in their last 21 games vs. a left-handed starter.
The Cardinals is 1-4 in their last 5 overall.
St. Louis has an Over record of 3-1-1 in their last 5 home games.

Key Player Injuries

CHICAGO CUBS
Jason Motte P 15-Day Disabled List
Jacob Turner P 60-Day Disabled List

ST. LOUIS CARDINALS
Carlos Martinez P 60-Day Disabled List
Jordan Walden P 60-Day Disabled List

Consensus Pick (Moneyline)
Chicago: 42%
St. Louis: 58%

Free MLB Pick

Jon Lester got off to a slow start this season, but ended well and ending up finishing 9th in the National League in innings pitched and 7th in strikeouts. However, this season the Cubs only won 1 of 5 games facing the Cardinals when he was on the mound. Overall, the Cubs are 5-2 in Lester’s last 7 road starts. John Lackey ended the season with the best ERA of his career and the Cardinals are 4-1 in their last 5 games against the Cubs when he has gotten the call. The Cardinals are 18-5 in Lackey’s last 23 home starts. Lester and Lackey combined for 3 wins when they were teammates for the Boston Red Sox in their 6 game win over the Cardinals in the 2013 World Series.

Just like the Astros who took Game 1 for the Kansas City Royals after winning the AL Wild Card on the road I think the Cubs will do the same and take Game 1 of this NLDS.

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