Cubs Face Cards Team Decimated by Injuries
The Chicago Cubs and the St. Louis Cardinals will meet on Sunday Night Baseball. New Busch Stadium will host the prime-time matchup. 8:05 pm EST is scheduled first pitch and ESPN will have the telecast.
PITCHING MATCHUP: Cubs LH Jon Lester (2-1, 2.73 ERA) vs. Cardinals RH Michael Wacha (4-1, 3.62)
Oddsmakers opened the Cardinals as -120-moneyline favorites versus the Cubs, while the game’s total opened at 8.5. The Cubs are now -107-moneyline favorites. The total is not at 8Over -125.
The Cardinals are in position to complete a three-game sweep of the Cubs on Sunday night. A chance of the sweep is after the improbable erasing of deficits of 4-0 and 6-4 on Saturday. Kolten Wong’s two-run walk-off homer in the 10th inning capped an 8-6 victory Saturday.
The win was costly. It cost the first-place Cardinals center fielder Tommy Pham. He left in the second inning with right groin tightness. Catcher Yadier Molina left the game in the ninth inning after being hit by a foul tip. Closer Bud Norris left in the 10th inning with a triceps injury.
Cardinals Look to Wacha to Keep Game Close
Wacha has won four straight decisions. The
Cardinals have won his last five starts. The 26-year-old allowed two runs and five hits over five innings in a no-decision against the White Sox on Tuesday.
Despite the injuries the Cardinals improved to 3-1 this season against the two-time defending National League Central champions.
Wacha missed the Cubs in the last series. He probably didn’t mind as he is 4-7 with a 6.41 ERA in 16 career games (14 starts) against them. That includes an 0-3 mark last season.
Cubs Have Lost 4 Straight
The Cubs will enter Sunday’s showdown having lost four straight games. They are running in place. They won five straight and then lose a few.
The
Cubs finally showed promise offensively Saturday. They snapped a nine-game string of games in which they scored three or fewer runs.
Lester has already beaten the Cardinals once this season. He threw six innings and allowed an unearned run and two hits April 19. Lester is 6-4 with a 3.16 ERA in 15 career starts against the Cardinals.
Lester has not allowed an earned run in three of his six outings this season either. That includes his no-decision against Colorado last time out. The 34-year-old yielded two unearned runs in 5 2/3 innings versus the Rockies.
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Next up:
Chicago home to Miami Monday, May 7
St. Louis home to Minnesota Monday, May 7
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