Mets vs Cardinals Prediction - MLB Picks 8/18/23

The New York Mets and St. Louis Cardinals face off on Friday in Game 2 of their MLB series at Busch Stadium. In the first game of this series it was the Mets that were able to secure the 4-2 victory. 

Mets Finally Win a Series

 The Mets have really had an awful series, but they were able to knock off the Pittsburgh Pirates in the last series. In the two wins against the Pirates the Mets gave up only five runs total, and they need the pitching to be lights out again here. The Mets are averaging 4.35 runs while their pitching is giving up 4.75 runs per game. The offense is ranked 19th while the pitching is ranked 19th. Pete Alonso is having a big season for the Mets and he has hit 36 home runs and driven in 89 RBIs. 

Mets Betting Trends

• The Mets have won each of their last nine Friday night games against teams that held a losing record.
• The Mets have failed to cover the run line in seven of their last eight road games.
• The 'Inning 1 UNDER 0.5 runs' market has hit in each of the Mets' last four road games against NL Central opponents.
• The Mets have led after 7 innings in each of their last five Friday night games against the Cardinals.

Cardinals Continue Inconsistency

The Cardinals won the first two games of the series against the Oakland Athletics, but in the last game, the offense really struggled. The Cardinals had nine hits, but they couldn’t find a way to get even one run to cross the plate. The Cardinals are averaging 4.66 runs while their pitching is giving up 4.91 runs per game. The offense is ranked 12th in the league while the pitching is ranked 24th. On the mound for the Cardinals will be Zach Thompson who sits with a 2-4 record and an ERA of 3.96. In his last start against the Kansas City Royals he went four innings giving up four hits and one run.