Cardinals vs Giants Betting Odds & Veteran Pitching Showdown

Two of the oldest starting pitchers in Major League Baseball will face off Tuesday night in the Cardinals’ Adam Wainwright, who will be 40 next month, and the Giants’ Johnny Cueto, who is 35. San Francisco is a home favorite on the MLB odds.

How to Bet Cardinals at Giants MLB Odds & TV Info

When: Tuesday, 9:45 PM ET
Where: Oracle Park
Probable pitchers (away/home): Adam Wainwright/Johnny Cueto
TV: MLB Extra Innings

Why Bet on St. Louis?

Monitor the status of Cards outfielder Tyler O’Neill as he injured his finger over the weekend – nothing that would land him on the injured list most likely. O’Neill got hit by a fastball on his right hand during Friday night’s game, and after running the bases for himself he left the game and then the ballpark for an X-Ray. Manager Mike Shildt said the initial review of the finger was encouraging.

It is the second time this season that O’Neill has had a hand injury, and he went on the injured list earlier this season with a fracture that happened while stealing second. It’s why he wears a protective glove when on the bases.

Nolan Arenado was chosen by the fans to start at third base for the National League in the 2021 All-Star Game. It’s Arenado’s sixth consecutive All-Star nod in his nine years in the majors, including his fourth straight fan election. Arenado joins Mike Schmidt (6, 1979-84) and Scott Rolen (4, 2002-05) as the only NL third basemen with at least four consecutive fan-elected starting assignments. Arenado is the third Cardinals third baseman to garner a fan election, joining Joe Torre (1971-72) and Rolen (2003-05). The last Cardinal to start an All-Star Game was shortstop Jhonny Peralta (2015) and the last Cardinals All-Star third baseman was Matt Carpenter (2016).

It’s Adam Wainwright (6-5) on the mound here. Wainwright fired eight innings last Thursday while allowing two runs in a no-decision against the Rockies. Wainwright made only one mistake, a two-run homer to Brendan Rodgers. Unfortunately for the 39-year-old, the Cardinals only provided two runs of support. He walked just one and struck out four and his ERA dropped to 3.49.

The veteran has been enjoying a bit of a renaissance as he’s now thrown six straight quality starts, going a total of 41 innings with a 2.41 ERA and more strikeouts than baserunners allowed in the stretch.

“Waino came up in an era that trained — and he’s probably one of the last parts of that era of the game — that trained or expected pitchers to go deep in games,” said manager Mike Shildt. “He trained himself. He was groomed to do it.”

Why Bet on San Francisco?

The Giants have scored 52.8 percent of their runs this year via the home run. That percentage is the highest in the majors.

Star Giants catcher Buster Posey is considered day-to-day after being diagnosed with a left thumb contusion. Posey was hit on the thumb by a foul ball during Sunday night’s game against the Diamondbacks, forcing his early exit in the sixth inning but the National League’s starting catcher in the upcoming All-Star Game was able to avoid significant injury.

“You see me smiling, that’s my level of relief,” Gabe Kapler said. “My level of concern when Buster threw his glove off was pretty high, obviously. He’s pretty even and doesn’t react with that much emotion very often, so obviously we take that really seriously.”

Right-hander Kevin Gausman and shortstop Brandon Crawford were also named to the NL All-Star team. Posey, who earned his seventh career All-Star nod, and Crawford will both return to the Midsummer Classic for the first time since 2018 after enjoying resurgent seasons in their age-34 campaigns. The last time SF had at least three representatives in the game was 2016 when Brandon Belt, Madison Bumgarner, Johnny Cueto and Posey all were All-Stars.

It’s Cueto (6-4, 4.00) on the mound here. Cueto gave up five runs in five innings while picking up a loss last Thursday to the Diamondbacks. Cueto was dealing with an illness in this game, but not COVID-related. He allowed two homers in the game; a two-run shot to Josh Reddick and a solo homer to Pavin Smith.

“I wasn’t feeling well, I didn’t have any energy,” Cueto said. “But that’s not an excuse. I wanted to go out there and perform and give it my all.”

Cueto has factored into the decision in six straight starts, going 3-3 in the stretch with a 4.15 ERA and a 22:8 K:BB.

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