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One of the marquee interleague series of the season starts Friday from St. Louis as the New York Yankees visit the Cardinals in what could be a World Series preview. The Yanks are favored on the MLB betting lines.

How to Bet Yankees at Cardinals MLB Odds & TV Info

When: Friday, 8:15 PM ET
Where: Busch Stadium
Probable pitchers (away/home): Nestor Cortes/Dakota Hudson
TV: MLB Extra Innings
Stream/gameday audio: https://www.mlb.com/live-stream-games/
Opening MLB Lines: Yankees -140, Cardinals +130 (total 8.5) | Bet the Game

Why Bet on New York?

New York has a minor advantage in that it was off Thursday. One bright spot in Wednesday’s home loss to the Mariners: Shortstop Kiner-Falefa went 2-for-3 with a run and an RBI. Kiner-Falefa has turned in two straight two-hit games, lifting his average to .275. The 27-year-old is tied for third on the team in games played this season, but that’s on the back of his solid glove at shortstop along with the Yankees’ lack of a reliable backup at the position.

The Yankees remain without DH Giancarlo Stanton due to an Achilles injury. He’s not too far off but for sure won’t play Friday. The 32-year-old slugger is hitting .228/.309/.498 with 24 homers and 61 RBI across 328 plate appearances.

Aaron Judge didn’t play New York’s game Wednesday but it was simply rest. He’ll be in there Friday. Judge has a league-leading 43 home runs and 93 RBI. Judge has reached base multiple times in 14 of his last 15 games and 15 of his last 17 games. He has 5HR in his last six games, 7HR in his last nine games, 10HR in his last 12 games, 12HR in his last 15 games and 13HR in his last 17 games. Judge has homered against 17-of-18 opponents faced this season. The only team he has faced and hasn’t homered against is Texas (0HR in 3G).

In his past 15 games, Judge is batting .444/.565/1.167 (24-for-54) with 20R, 3 doubles, 12HR, 27RBI, 13BB, 2HP and 2SB. He has 11RBI in his last six games, 23RBI in his last 12 games and 27RBI in his last 15 games.

It’s lefty Nestor Cortes on the mound here. Cortes (9-3) picked up his ninth victory of the season last Saturday, limiting the Royals to two runs on five hits over his five innings. He allowed a sacrifice fly to Salvador Perez in the third inning and a run-scoring single to Maikel Garcia in the fourth, but that was the extent of the damage done against him. Cortes got 10 swings and misses on 90 pitches in the game, posting a CSW of 28 percent. He has a 2.53 ERA and 1.02 WHIP. Cortes is now at 106 ²/₃ innings, his highest number in the majors.

Why Bet on St. Louis?

The Cardinals are at a disadvantage as they played a doubleheader on Thursday, but at least it was home. Lars Nootbaar delivered a game-tying sac fly in the seventh and a game-winning single in the ninth as the Cardinals edged the Cubs 4-3 in the first game of Thursday’s doubleheader. Nootbaar has been red hot over the past 18 games.

Nolan Gorman hit his 9th HR as a second baseman, trailing only Kolten Wong among Cardinals rookie second baseman in franchise history (11 HR in 2014).

Cardinals manager Oliver Marmol said that ace pitcher Jack Flaherty will throw a bullpen session in St. Louis this weekend and could be cleared to begin a minor-league rehab assignment as soon as next week. Flaherty was shut down with the strained right shoulder June 27 and was transferred to the 60-day injured list a couple weeks later, but Marmol said Thursday that he remains hopeful the Cardinals ace can return when first eligible in the final week of August.

It’s right-hander Dakota Hudson (6-6) on the mound Friday. Hudson didn’t factor into the decision during last Saturday’s 7-6 loss to Washington, allowing two runs on four hits and two walks with one strikeout in 4.1 innings. Making his first start since July 14 due to a neck injury, Hudson kept the damage to a minimum, surrendering a Victor Robles solo home run in the third inning and putting one runner on in the fifth who came around to score after Hudson departed. The 27-year-old has averaged an improved two walks per game during four July starts, though he still ranks last among 62 qualified starters with a 1.23 K/BB. Hudson carries a 4.10 ERA and 1.36 WHIP into this game.

This will be Hudson’s 1st career start and appearance against the NY Yankees. He has a 1-0 mark with 2.25 ERA in two starts vs, AL East clubs this season, taking ND in 4-2 loss at Tampa Bay on 6/7 and winning 11-2 at Boston on 6/18. Hudson is 4-4, 3.62 ERA career in 13 games (11 starts) in interleague play with 6 quality starts. The Cardinals are 3-1 in his four career interleague starts at Busch Stadium.

Game Trends

Yankees are 1-6 in their last 7 vs. a team with a winning record.
Yankees are 0-4 in their last 4 interleague games vs. a right-handed starter.
Yankees are 0-6 in their last 6 road games vs. a team with a winning record.
Cardinals are 4-1 in their last 5 during game 1 of a series.
Cardinals are 4-1 in their last 5 interleague home games vs. a left-handed starter.

Expert Prediction
Yankees 5, Cardinals 4 | Bet the Game

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