After a midweek series out west in Colorado, the Cardinals head back home to take on the division-rival Brewers. It's essentially been a 2-team race between them for the top spot in the NL Central all season. It had been the Brewers for quite some time before their recent struggles. They were swept by the Pirates and lost the next series to the Reds. That allowed the Cardinals to leapfrog them and take the division-lead. Milwaukee was able to have yesterday off, but will also have to play this series on the road. With these teams having such a close battle, there's plenty of markets to target and make this series opener profitable. Along with this same game parlay, be sure to check out our thoughts on the side and total for all of today's games.
Let's take a closer look at each leg of our same game parlay.
St. Louis Cardinals ML (-166) over Milwaukee Brewers
The Brewers and Cardinals are getting this series started with a battle of lefties. Eric Lauer will be on the mound for Milwaukee, with Jordan Montgomery opposite him for St. Louis. It will be Montgomery's 2nd start with the Cards, as they acquired him at the trade deadline. His 1st start was actually against his former team, the Yankees. Not only did they win that start, the Cardinals went on to become the 1st team this entire season to sweep New York. That's quite the feat, and it also capped off a 7-game winning streak. During that time was when the Brewers began to see their decline.
While St. Louis added Montgomery at the deadline, the Brewers sent away the best closer of the last few seasons, Josh Hader. Most fans were confused by the move, and it proved valid with their struggles immediately afterwards. That doesn't look to improve given the specific matchups in this game; these teams are on opposite spectrums when it comes to hitting lefties. The Cardinals have been smashing them all season, while the Brewers are the 6th-worst against them. That's the worst news possible for Lauer, as St. Louis has already proven themselves against the best. They lit up Giants ace Carlos Rodon for 8 runs in just 3.2 innings earlier this season. Friday's series opener looks set to allow Montgomery to continue impressing his new team and record back-to-back wins.'