Friday is the beginning of a three-game weekend series from AT&T Park in San Francisco as the St. Louis Cardinals take on the San Francisco Giants. Both teams are on the outside looking in of the playoff picture. The Cardinals are 1.5 games out first in a very competitive NL Central and also 1.5 games out of the final Wild Card spot. The Giants are 19 games out of the NL West in a division race that is pretty much over already. The Giants are also six games out of the last Wild Card spot in the National League, and there isn’t much hope that they’ll make a run. Both teams are playing pretty good as of late. The Cardinals are coming off a series victory against the Seattle Mariners, while the San Francisco Giants have won five of their last six games.
Probable Pitchers
For the Cardinals, Dakota Hudson will take the hill for his 17th start of the season. So far, Hudson is 6-4 with a 3.40 ERA. Last time out was Hudson’s worst start of the year, as he lasted only 1 1/3 innings against the San Diego Padres. He gave up seven runs in total; however, only one of them was earned. That game marked the first loss for Hudson since May 7, ending a streak of terrific pitching.
This was the first time he did not pitch at least six innings, and the first time he gave up more than three runs since that May 7 outing. Hudson has been terrific in Carlos Martinez’s absence in the starting rotation. He has nine quality starts this season for a team that is fighting and clawing to stay alive in the Wild Card race. A good reason for that is that despite his low strikeout numbers, he doesn’t give up many home runs. He’s only given up six home runs in his 16 starts this season.
For the Giants, Drew Pomeranz will get the ball for his 16th start of the season. Pomeranz is 2-8 with a 6.25 ERA and is honestly pitching better than you would think by looking at his record. He has had three starts where he has given up seven runs or more. If you take out those starts, he has given up three runs or less in 12 of his 13 starts. He has had five starts where he has gone five innings and given up three runs or less.
His season would look more respectable if you look deeper into the stats. His xFIP is almost two full runs lower than his ERA at 4.42. His BABIP against is at an outrageous .370. The interesting note is that he is striking out an incredible amount of batters. His K/9 is at a career high at 10.94, and his K% is at 25.8%, the second highest in his career. Pomeranz could be an interesting piece come the trade deadline if teams believe they can rework the lefty.
The Pick
Hudson is a good pitcher. The Cardinals aren’t that great of a hitting team. However, against Pomeranz and a poor Giants team, the Cards should be able to get it done. Take St Louis.
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