Rockies vs Cardinals Prediction - MLB Picks 8/5/23

St. Louis Cardinals (48-63) vs Colorado Rockies (43-66)

Game Info: Saturday, August 5, 2023 at 7:15 pm (Busch Stadium)

Steven Matz (2-7) (4.06) vs Ty Blach (1-0) (4.22)

Betting Odds: St. Louis Cardinals -233 / Colorado Rockies +175 --- Over/Under: 9.5 Click Here for the Latest Odds

The St. Louis Cardinals will host the Colorado Rockies for game two of their three-game set this Saturday from Busch Stadium. Colorado blitzed Adam Wainwright and took game one by five, 9-4.

Rockies Preview & Projected Starter

Colorado moved to 43-66 after defeating St. Louis. The Rockies are really good in game one, and after winning their seventh opening contest in.m eight tries, they’ll attempt to double down here. The Colorado offense is scoring 4.5 runs per game, while batting .256, with a .317 on-base percentage. The pitching staff carries a 4.70 ERA, with a 1.43 WHIP.

Ty Blach (1-0, 4.22 ERA, 9 Ks) will get the call for Colorado. The seventh-year lefty put together his best outing of the year versus Oakland last week, tossing five scoreless frames to earn his first victory. Yes, it was the A’s, but Blach has now tossed 10.1 innings of shutout ball since returning in July, and he may face an uphill battle versus the Cards lineup here.

Rockies Player Trends & Props

• Ryan McMahon has produced a run in six of the last eight games, and he leads Colorado in hits (102), home runs (18), and RBI (57).

• Elias Diaz has multiple hits in four of his last six appearances, and he’s posting splits behind the plate of .277/10/50.

• Ezequiel Tovar collected a pair of hits in the game one victory, and he’s posting an identical line of .257/10/47.

Cardinals Preview & Projected Starter

St. Louis moved to 46-60 after falling to Chicago. The Cardinals have dropped seven of their last nine games, and the straight has possibly l served as the final nail in the coffin on their season. The St. Louis' offense is scoring 3.97 runs per game, while batting .258, with a .328 on-base percentage. The pitching staff carries a 4.64 ERA, with a 1.49 WHIP.

Steven Matz (2-7, 4.34 ERA, 85 Ks) will start for St. Louis. The eighth-year left hander completed a strong July of action after rejoining the rotation last month. Matz picked up his second win over the Cubs in ten days, after tossing six innings of shutout ball last turn out. Matz's second season in St. Louis got off to a rocky start, but it’d be nice to him carry this momentum into the final stretch of the season. Matz faced the Rockies at Coors back in April, and despite the final result (5.2 IP, 6 ER, L), he’ll be at Busch this go round, and facing a much different lineup.

Cardinals Player Trends & Props

• Nolan Arenado homered against his former squad last night, and he’s St. Louis’ leader in RBI (79), with 23 home runs, while batting .283.

• Paul Goldschmidt produced a run for just the third time in the previous ten contests in the game one loss, but he leads the Cards in hits (116), with splits of .276/18/57.

• Wilson Contreras has reached base in nine of his last ten appearances, and he’s batting .247, with 40 RBI.

• Nolan Gorman one-upped his fellow Norman last night with a pair of homers to take the team-lead with 24, and he’s batted in 67 runs.

Corey’s Free Pick

St. Louis’ struggles no longer surprise us, but it was kind of sad to see Adam Wainwright have an outing like that, and there may be some retribution here in game two. The Cardinals haven’t had too many things go well this season, but yes, Saturday looks optimistic. STL will turn to an improved Steven Matz, who will face a manageable lineup here at home, and I think he gets the Cards back into the win column here. Back St. Louis for game two at home, and insure it with the Over.