The Angels and Cardinals prepare for Game 2 of an interleague clash, with both scheduled starters looking to turn around their season.
Los Angeles Angels at St. Louis Cardinals
Los Angeles struggled to shut down St. Louis’ offense in the first three innings on Friday night, ultimately falling, 9-5, in the first game of the series. The Angels started the year 4-2 on the road, but are now 4-11 in their last 15 road games (-320 overall). One of the main problems for the team offensively is producing extra-base hits, as the team has just 123 compared to 168 by their opponents this season. The starting rotation has been the team’s main barometer in the first 44 games this season, posting a 1.70 ERA in 20 wins and a 7.65 ERA in 24 losses. The Angels are in the middle of a stretch of playing 21 of 27 games on the road, as they will fly the most air miles of any team in 2010 (50,509).
Angels SP Scott Kazmir has dropped three consecutive starts with a 7.71 ERA over that span. The left-hander is set to make just his second career start against the Cardinals, as he allowed two runs in just four innings of work in a 2005 matchup as a member of Tampa Bay. Kazmir is also 0-3 with a 7.59 ERA in four road starts this season (-400), allowing 41 runners to reach base in 21.1 innings of work. His early season struggles are nothing new, coming in with a 31-33 record and 4.44 ERA in 89 career starts before the All-Star break. He also brings in a 5-3 record and 4.83 ERA in 13 interleague starts in his young career.
St. Louis has relied on its starting staff early in the season, coming into Saturday’s contest with a 2.91 combined ERA, trailing only Tampa Bay’s 2.61. Four of the starters that make up the rotation have sub-3.00 ERAs, with today’s starter Kyle Lohse (1-3, 5.11) being the exception. The Cardinals are now 4-3 all-time against the Angels in interleague play and have gone 10-6 in their last 16 games overall against the American League. A concern for manager Tony LaRussa has been his team’s inability to put the ball in play. The Cardinals have averaged 7.2 strikeouts-per-game, after averaging just 6.4 times last year.
Lohse has a good chance of turning his season around with a start at Busch Stadium. The right-hander is 14-8 with a 3.41 ERA in 35 home starts since joining the Cardinals in 2008. He leaves a lot to be desired with this career numbers against Los Angeles standing at a 3-2 record and 6.08 ERA in seven appearances. St. Louis has compiled an even 4-4 record in his eight starts this season (-200), including a 3-2 mark at home (-100). He’s pitched well in three daytime starts despite carrying a 0-2 record, mainly due to his control of issuing just a single walk in 18 innings of work.
Despite a 6-7 daytime record this season (-70), the Angels mark of 74-33 (4,188) can’t be ignored. Los Angeles has shown absolutely no betting value when facing right-handed pitchers this season (14-14).
Bettors may run to the windows and bet the over in this contest due to the well-known struggles for the starting pitchers in this matchup. They must proceed with caution in playing the over, as the under is currently 5-14 in Cardinals’ home games (13-28 in all games). The under is also 5-1 in the Angels’ last five games as a road underdog of +125 to +150.
