Cubs vs. Cardinals prediction and odds for Sunday, July 30 (Bellinger is Staying Put)

There was a lot of work that needed to be done to keep the Chicago Cubs in contention and together at the trade deadline and it appears that eight straight wins was enough. The Cubs are keeping Cody Bellinger and at 53-51 are just 3.5 games behind the Brewers for the top spot in the NL Central. The Cardinals meanwhile are keeping Nolan Arenado, but that’s for next year, because at 46-60, their season is over. 

Today, the Cardinals will hand the ball to Steven Matz at home against Kyle Hendricks. Matz is 1-7 with a 4.34 ERA this year and Hendricks is 4-4 with a 3.45 ERA. 

Despite the recent hot streak, the Cubs are still underdogs on the road as they go for the sweep and their seventh straight win against St. Louis. 

Cubs vs. Cardinals odds, run line and total

Cubs vs. Cardinals prediction and pick

Steven Matz had a really rough start to the season, to the point where he was yanked from the starting rotation and sent to the bullpen, but he’s back starting games and is pitching really well. Matz has given up just five runs in four starts this month and four of those came in one start against the Nationals. Last time out he went six scoreless and only gave up five hits. He even got his first win of the year against the Cubs on July 20. 

The Cubs are top 10 in home runs against lefties and just outside the top 10 in OPS, so there’s a chance that they have an easier time against Matz today, but even if they don’t they’ll be able to score runs. Matz isn’t going to go the distance and the Cardinals bullpen is 24th in ERA this year at 4.61 and this month they have a 5.67 ERA. 

Really this just comes down to the Cubs being a far superior team. Kyle Hendricks will give them a good start and their offense is more reliable than the bats for St. Louis. Cody Bellinger is legitimately one of the best hitters in baseball again and there’s no way I’m fading the Cubs on an eight game win streak. I’m happy to take Chicago as an underdog on the road today. 

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