Rubber Match Should be a Great Matchup Tonight
The Atlanta Braves and the St. Louis Cardinals will battle on Sunday at New Busch Stadium. With the Series tied at one-game a piece, this will be the deciding game in the series. The Braves Teheran has pitched better than his record and had some tough luck. Flaherty has yet to find his groove, but has been effective in key spots this season. It all unfolds on ESPN Sunday Night Baseball.
TV: 7:05 p.m. ET, ESPN; LINE: Cardinals -150; O/U: 9 -110.
PITCHING MATCHUP: Braves RH Julio Teheran (3-4, 3.67 ERA) vs. Cardinals RH Jack Flaherty (4-3, 4.19)
It has been a miserable season for Jedd Gyorko so far. He got his biggest hit of of the season in last nights game. The hit sends the Cardinals into Sunday’s home contest against the Braves looking for a series victory. Gyorko, who entered Saturday hitting just .167 capped a four-run, eighth-inning uprising with a three-run homer to lift St. Louis to a 6-3 victory. Gyorko had only seven singles and two RBI’s before the 3 run blast. The victory was only the sixth win in 21 games for the Red Birds.
There were other good signs Saturday for the Cardinals. That is a good sign as they are 7-15 this month. Matt Carpenter finished with three hits and two RBI’s. It included two game-tying singles to give him six hits in his last 12 at-bats and raise his average to .222. Atlanta lost for just the fourth time in 15 games. They scored fewer than four runs for only the third time in the last 13 games. Dansby Swanson singled in four at-bats to extend his hitting streak to eight games. Austin Riley finished 1-for-4 with a run-scoring double. That gives the rookie at least one hit in nine of his first 11 major-league games. Atlanta took a 3-2 lead in the seventh inning by bashing three doubles. The team has 27 two-base hits and 26 homers while batting .262 after the sixth inning this season.
This, That, and a Dart Throw
The Braves‘ Teheran quietly has been one of the reasons Atlanta has played well this month. He has given up only two earned runs while limiting opponents to a .132 batting average. This was over 22 2/3 innings in four starts. The 28-year-old is the “Old Man” of the Braves young staff. He held San Francisco to one run and three hits with six strikeouts in 5 2/3 innings on Tuesday. He did not factor in the decision of Atlanta’s 4-3 loss. Teheran defeated the Cardinals at home on May 16th. He gave up just two hits in five scoreless innings. Ronald Acuna Jr. was hitless in three at-bats on Saturday and enters the series finale 1-for-18 with six strikeouts in his last four games. Saturday’s loss dropped the Braves to 24-3 when leading after seven innings this season.
The Cardinals‘ Flaherty has allowed four or more earned runs in three of his first five starts. He has pitched well enough to have a 3.34 ERA. He has held opponents to a .188 batting average over his last five outings. The young hurler has gone 2-2 in that stretch. He settled for a no-decision last Sunday at Texas after giving up two runs and four hits in six innings. Flaherty had a road victory over the Braves on May 14th. He allowed three runs on three hits and five walks over six innings in a 14-3 rout. The Cardinals have gone 0-5-1 in their last six series. That is their longest such winless streak since 2017.
The Dart Throw: Braves 5, Cardinals 2
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MLB Sunday Night Baseball Betting Odds & Trends
| Atlanta Braves |
|---|
| Atlanta is 10-5 ATS in its last 15 games |
| Atlanta is 11-4 SU in its last 15 games |
| The total has gone UNDER in 6 of Atlanta’s last 8 games |
| Atlanta is 6-3 ATS in its last 9 games on the road |
| Atlanta is 7-2 SU in its last 9 games on the road |
| The total has gone UNDER in 5 of Atlanta’s last 7 games on the road |
| Atlanta is 4-2 ATS in its last 6 games when playing St. Louis |
| Atlanta is 4-2 SU in its last 6 games when playing St. Louis |
| The total has gone OVER in 17 of Atlanta’s last 23 games when playing St. Louis |
| Atlanta is 8-3 ATS in its last 11 games when playing on the road against St. Louis |
| Atlanta is 5-1 SU in its last 6 games when playing on the road against St. Louis |
| The total has gone OVER in 7 of Atlanta’s last 10 games when playing on the road against St. Louis |
| St. Louis Cardinals |
|---|
| St. Louis is 4-9 ATS in its last 13 games |
| St. Louis is 6-15 SU in its last 21 games |
| The total has gone UNDER in 5 of St. Louis’s last 7 games |
| St. Louis is 2-5 ATS in its last 7 games at home |
| St. Louis is 2-5 SU in its last 7 games at home |
| St. Louis is 2-4 ATS in its last 6 games when playing Atlanta |
| St. Louis is 2-4 SU in its last 6 games when playing Atlanta |
| The total has gone OVER in 17 of St. Louis’s last 23 games when playing Atlanta |
| St. Louis is 3-8 ATS in its last 11 games when playing at home against Atlanta |
| St. Louis is 1-5 SU in its last 6 games when playing at home against Atlanta |
| The total has gone OVER in 7 of St. Louis’s last 10 games when playing at home against Atlanta |
Next up:
Atlanta home to Washington Tuesday, May 28
St. Louis at Philadelphia Tuesday, May 28
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