The rivalry game for the MLB free pick June 1st doesn’t look to disappoint as Friday night the Cubs and Cardinals needed extra innings to decide the affair. Oddsmakers have made the Cards’ -143 favorites in Saturday night’s affair – and there’s good value on both teams. The Cubs owned St. Louis when they played back in Wrigley, but the Cardinals want to return the favor at Busch this weekend. Who gets the edge in this one?
Cubs Dropped a Winnable Game Friday Night
After the extra innings loss on Friday, the Cubs have now lost 6 of their last 8 games. The good thing is that Chicago usually bounces back well from a loss, winning 13 of their last 18 the game after a defeat. The Cubs managed just a single run last night, but can they bounce back in the MLB free pick June 1st? Anthony Rizzo has gone 5-9 (.556) vs. the Cardinals starter Flaherty in his career. Chicago scored a 4-0 win over the St. Louis starter in early May as Rizzo had 3 of the Cubs 6 hits. The Cubs have scored 2 runs or less in 3 of the last 5 however which is making the ‘under’ of 9 look solid.
Of course in any ‘under’ bet you need solid pitching which is where Chicago’s Jose Quintana comes into play. The lefty has gone for 3ER allowed or less in 8 of his last 9 starts. Of course, there are question marks as Quintana’s last start resulted in the Reds scoring 5ER on 12 hits vs. Quintana in 5.1 innings. The Cardinals hit the Southpaw well too, getting 30 hits in 87 career AB (.345). Quintana did pitch well May 5th vs. St. Louis however, giving up 2 ER in 6 IP despite the fact that Chicago was on their way to a 13-5 win.
Does St. Louis Save Their Season This Weekend?
Could the Cardinals 2-1 extra innings win on Friday be the kickstart they need for their season? Granted, St. Louis is only 3.5 GB from the Cubs in the Central but the year has been disappointing for most involved. The Cardinals have now rattled off 2 wins in a row, scoring a big 5-3 win vs. Philadelphia on Thursday. The Cards’ have an edge in the MLB free pick June 1st being 17-12 at home. They had jut 5 hits vs. the Cubs on Friday night, but forced Joe Maddon to use 7 pitchers. The Cardinals used only 3 by comparison as Miles Mikolas hurled for 7 innings.
The St. Louis offense hasn’t exactly been tearing the cover off the ball which makes the ‘under’ in Saturday’s game look solid yet again. St. Louis has been held to 3 runs or less in 5 of the last 9 but Paul Goldschmidt is 6-11 with 2 HR vs. Quintana. Dexter Fowler and Marcell Ozuna are both hitting over .420 vs. the Cubs starter. Can starting pitcher Jack Flaherty do his part in limiting the Cubs offense? The right-hander seems to be coming into his own with just 2ER allowed total in his last two starts (12.0 IP).
MLB Free Pick June 1st Betting
Only about 56% of the public bettors like St. Louis in this one yet the line has shifted from Chicago +105 at open to roughly +136 depending on your book. Therefore the Cubs have a great chance of bouncing back on Saturday night but more importantly temps near 85 degrees at first pitch mean a lot of runs early. The Cubs bullpen was especially strained on Friday, and although the underdog payout is nice, the ‘over’ is the safer play.
MLB Free Pick: Cubs / Cardinals *Over* 9
