Cardinals vs. Phillies MLB Gambling Pick

[Shame About Ray]

MLB Baseball Betting Odds - St. Louis at Philadelphia
BetUS MLB betting odds: Philadelphia -145, St. Louis +125; Total 10.5

The Philadelphia Phillies (48-43) are trying to prevent panic from setting in as they play host to the St. Louis Cardinals (51-40), the National League's best road team, in NL sports wagering action that is set to get underway at 7:05 PM ET at Citizens Bank Park (natural turf) in Philadelphia.



It's an online betting matchup of southpaws, as Mark Mulder (0-0, 13.50 ERA) of the Cardinals goes up against J.A. Happ (0-0, 3.86 ERA) of the Phillies.

At BetUS online sportsbook, Philadelphia is listed as a -145 baseball betting favorite (St. Louis is +125), with a total of 10.5 runs (the Over is -115, while the Under is -105).

Here are some of the MLB Baseball gambling trends as they relate to this MLB wagering matchup:

* STL has played three of its last four games UNDER the total
* STL has won 10 of its last 15 road games
* PHIL has lost 13 of its last 19 games
* PHIL has played four of its last six games UNDER the total
* PHIL has lost nine of its last ten home games
* PHIL has played six of its last eight road games UNDER the total

In the HEAD-TO-HEAD sports betting trends:

* STL has won four of the last five meetings
* Seven of the last ten meetings have gone OVER the total
* STL has won five of the last seven meetings as the road team

On Tuesday night it was a pitcher's duel, as Joel Pineiro of the Cardinals blanked the Phillies over 6-1/3 innings and St. Louis got solo homers from Ryan Ludwick and Rick Ankiel off Cole Hamels to account for the only scoring in the 2-0 Cards victory.

On Wednesday St. Louis is breaking out a name from the recent past - Mark Mulder - in an attempt to give a boost to the starting staff.

The former 20-game winner, who was the American League Cy Young runner-up in 2001 while a member of the Oakland A's, made three disastrous starts last September before undergoing a shoulder operation. He recently came back and made a couple of relief appearances and now he is being inserted into the rotation in place of Mitchell Boggs, who was sent back to the minor leagues.

J.A. Happ has only pitched eight and two-thirds innings in his entire career. Four and two-thirds of those innings took place in his previous start, on the Fourth of July, against the Mets, as he gave up two runs and three hits. He also walked four hitters, which was a little unsettling.

Who would - or should - we have more confidence in here? It is hard to wok it up for either guy here, and maybe that's not the story. Mulder is back in action, and he may be very limited in terms of how long he can go. But Tony LaRussa has enough faith in him to give him a start, and that's got to mean a little something. Happ may need to get his control, well, under control, and his presence does not mean very much to us.

The Phillies are sliding, and they can not win at home, having dropped nine of ten at Citizens Bank Park. Meanwhile, St. Louis, at 24-19, is the NL's best team away from home, so they;re not all that uncomfortable here. Let's go with the Cards, the +125 underdog in the BetUS Major League Baseball betting odds.

JAY'S PLAY: ST. LOUIS (+125)

Go to the BetUS sportsbook today and take a swing at Major League Baseball online betting.