Mikolas And Cardinals Will Take Series Finale

Padres vs. Cardinals, 2:15 ET

It is Wednesday, and do you know what that means? That means that it is getaway day for most teams as many are wrapping up series. Unfortunately, after yesterday, I could use a getaway. I took the Brewers and Cubs over and they combined to score one run (silver lining: it bolstered my Justin Steele Cy Young ticket a bit). I also took the Red Sox and they were battered by the Astros. 0-2 is never a good look, but perhaps I can go 2-0 today and it starts with a game between the Padres and Cardinals.

The Padres and Cardinals are in a three game battle and this is actually a rubber match between the two squads, but there is also some undertone here. This series is a battle of two of the most underperforming squads in all of the Majors. The Padres were expected to finish second in the division and are likely going to finish fourth. They've lost four of the past five games and are currently nine games under .500 for the season. Pinpointing exactly what is wrong with them is a bit hard to do as they have quality starting and good enough hitting. Their team only has a .238 batting average so that has to be part of the issue, but the superstars aren't really having bad seasons. They traded for Rich Hill at the deadline and he basically has just been an opener for them as he hasn't completed more than three innings in four of his past five starts. Maybe this is his last season, but at least he got to collect one last jersey for his wall as he joined his 13th different team. He hasn't fooled many Cardinals hitters as they've gone 24-for-75 against him.

WASHINGTON, DC - MAY 25: Fernando Tatis Jr. #23 of the San Diego Padres reacts after striking out against the Washington Nationals at Nationals Park on May 25, 2023 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Patrick Smith/Getty Images)

St. Louis is also having one of the worst years that I can remember from the Cardinals. They are nearing 20 games under .500 and since they called it a season at the deadline, there isn't much hope that they end the season strong. Unlike the Padres, the shortcomings of the Cardinals should be easily addressed. Pretty simply, the pitching for St. Louis sucks. They have a 4.71 ERA collectively and they are allowing opposing hitters to bat .276 against them. Like the Padres, both teams are 1-4 over their past five games. They are sending out Miles Mikolas to help them get this last game in a battle of underperformers. Mikolas has had a bad season. I was a big supporter of his, but I've jumped off the bandwagon. He started the month pretty strong with back-to-back seven inning, two earned run performances. Then we has allowed at least four earned runs over the past three outings. Mikolas has allowed Cardinals hitters to bat .230 against him. He's been terrible at home this season, but he has been slightly better during day starts.

As bad as I find both teams, one of them has to win this game, and I am betting that it will be the Cardinals. The track record for the Cardinals against Rich Hill is better than the Padres against Mikolas. Neither team has much motivation to win this game but will take the Cardinals as a slight home favorite. If you want the protection of a tie after five, you can pay an extra ten cents and do Cardinals through five innings.

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