Baseball Betting Odds – Houston Astros vs St Louis Cardinals

One of the National League’s best teams will take on one its worst in Tuesday night’s baseball betting odds. That’s when the St. Louis Cardinals play host to the Houston Astros.

Houston Astros (10-21 SU, 11-20 R/L, 9-20-2 O/U) at St. Louis Cardinals (20-12 SU, 15-17 R/L, 10-21-1 O/U)

Tuesday, May 11: 8:15 p.m.

Houston: +1 ½, -105, +200
(Brett Myers-R)

St. Louis: -1 ½, -115, -140
(Brad Penny-R)

Total Runs:
Over 7 ½: -115
Under 7 ½: -105   

To say that Houston is bad would truly be offensive…to the other 29 teams in baseball. They are abysmal. They are laughable. Quite frankly they are embarrassing. And it won’t get any easier on Tuesday night.

The Astros come into this game ranking last in Major League Baseball in virtually every offensive category of significance. They are 30th out of 30 teams in team batting average, OPS and runs scored per game, and rank 29th out of 30 with just 13 total home runs. As things stand, other than Geoff Blum’s .327 average, and Michael Bourn’s 11 stolen bases, this team doesn’t have much to get excited about. Seven out of their eight regular starters are batting under .300.

So who’s the lucky beneficiary of the Astros ineptitude? St. Louis’ starter Tuesday night, Brad Penny.

Penny enters this game with just a 3-2 record overall, but actually has a sparkling 1.99 ERA. Even more surprisingly, is that the 31-year-old Penny has five quality starts on the season, and hasn’t given up more than three earned runs in any of his outings. He even earned a win earlier in the season against Houston, pitching seven innings of shutout ball in a 2-1 victory April 14.

On the flip side of Houston’s anemic offense is the Cardinals, who, while they’re not great at anything, are really good at everything. It shows with their NL Central leading 20-12 record overall.

Leading the offensive charge is none other than the man himself Albert Pujols. While his numbers aren’t other worldly like in years past, they are efficient, as the first baseman is hitting .314 with a team leading seven home runs and 25 RBI. Colby Rasmus and Matt Holliday form a potent punch in the outfield, combining for 10 home runs. All four are batting over .300, as are catcher Yadier Molina and third baseman David Freese.

So with all that in mind, is there any reason not to take St. Louis in Tuesday night’s baseball betting odds? Not likely.
The Cardinals come into this game with a hot starting pitcher, and an excellent offense, going against Houston starter Brett Myers, who has been effective, but not great early in the season (1-2, 3.60 ERA).

With the home field advantage, and coming off two wins in Pittsburgh over the weekend, make St. Louis your Tuesday night baseball bet.

Aaron’s Pick: St. Louis -1 ½, -115