The San Francisco Giants try to extend their five-game winning streak when they take on the St. Louis Cardinals in the second of a three-game weekend series on Saturday night. The first pitch for the contest is scheduled for 7:15 p.m. ET at Busch Stadium in St. Louis.
The Giants took the opener, 7-2, on Friday night, improving to a major league-best 58-32. San Francisco leads the NL West by three games over the second-place Los Angeles Dodgers and by six games over the third-place San Diego Padres.
St. Louis has dropped three of four, leaving it at 44-47 in 2021. The Cardinals are in fourth place in the NL Central standings, one game behind the third-place Chicago Cubs.
MLB odds have the Giants with a moneyline of -123, while the Cardinals are listed at +113. The over/under for the contest has been set at eight runs.
Power Surge
The Giants had three home runs, including two by outfielder Mike Yastrzemski, giving him 14. Yastrzemski had the big hits, but he pointed to the team effort of getting on base in front of him to make them more than solo homers.
“We really did a good job of sticking to our approach, and that’s what made us successful the first part of the year,” Yastrzemski said after Friday’s win. “Not try to do too much and not overthink things or try to be the only hitter in the lineup. It’s nine of us versus one of them — that’s kind of the way that we think about it in terms of a collective offense.”
Yastrzemski is batting .238 with 38 RBIs and 46 runs scored, leading the team with 20 doubles and tying for the team lead with two triples.
Shortstop Brandon Crawford is batting .289 with 15 doubles and a triple. He leads the team with 18 home runs, 58 RBIs, and 49 runs scored, though he came out of the series opener in the eighth inning with a hamstring cramp after extending his hitting streak to 10 games.
Right-hander Anthony DeSclafani will be on the mound, bringing a 10-3 record and 2.68 ERA. The 31-year-old has 99 strikeouts and 29 walks over 107⅓ innings of work.
DeSclafani has been outstanding in two July starts, going 2-0 with a 1.23 ERA. His last start came against Washington on July 10, as he went six shutout innings and allowed just three hits while striking out six and walking one.
Call to Arms
The Cardinals’ starting rotation has been wracked with injuries, though the team is hoping Jack Flaherty and Miles Mikolas may be getting closer to returning after both were throwing on Friday. St. Louis was in first place in the division early in the season before Flaherty went down with an oblique injury.
Left-hander Kwang Hyun Kim will get the start. The 32-year-old is 4-5 with a 3.11 ERA, striking out 59 and walking 25 over 72⅓ innings.
Kim has also been great in two July starts, going 2-0 with a 0.00 ERA over 13 innings against the Cubs and the Giants. Kim faced San Francisco on July 5 and went seven scoreless innings, allowing only three hits while striking out two and walking two. He’s won his last three starts.
First baseman Paul Goldschmidt had a home run on Friday night, extending his current hit streak to 11 games. The former All-Star is batting .265 with 15 doubles, 14 home runs, 50 RBIs and a team-high 49 runs scored this season.
Third baseman Nolan Arenado went 1-for-5 with a run scored in the series opener. He leads the Cardinals with 17 home runs and 56 RBIs while also scoring 43 times in his first season in St. Louis.
Cardinals Even Series
Both of Saturday’s starting pitchers have been great this month, though Kim had some of his success against the team he’ll face in this one. St. Louis is playing at home and has more potential for some offensive fireworks, so we like it to even this series up with a win.
When doing your MLB betting, take the Cardinals to get the victory at home.
Pick: St. Louis Cardinals +113
