The St. Louis Cardinals made one of the best trades of any team ahead of this year’s deadline by acquiring starting pitcher Jordan Montgomery from the Yankees. Montgomery has become the Cards’ ace and is on the mound Wednesday as a big favorite on the MLB odds vs. Washington.

How to Bet Nationals at Cardinals MLB Odds & TV Info

• When: Wednesday, 7:45 PM ET
• Where: Busch Stadium
• Probable pitchers (away/home):  Cory Abbott/Jordan Montgomery
• TV: MLB Extra Innings
• Stream/gameday audio: https://www.mlb.com/live-stream-games/
• Opening MLB Lines: Cardinals -300, Nationals +280 (total 8)

Why Bet on Washington?

This time of year, weird results can happen. From Saturday-Monday, for example, Washington became the first team in MLB history to have 3 straight games where they won by 6+ runs against a team with 30+ more wins than them (two over the Mets, one over St. Louis).

DH Nelson Cruz was back in the Nationals‘ starting lineup for Tuesday’s game against the Cardinals. Cruz was at cleanup following a three-game absence due to a right knee contusion stemming from a foul ball during last Friday’s game against the Mets. Cruz has produced a 9.8% barrel rate and a .322 expected weighted on-base average with 10 homers and 64 RBIs this season.

Second baseman/outfielder Cesar Hernandez was not in the lineup for Tuesday’s game. Hernandez reached base eight times over his last four games, but manager Dave Martinez wanted to get Alex Call in the lineup against a left-handed starter. Hernandez is batting .248 with a homer and 28 RBIs.

After a sluggish start to his time in D.C., touted young shortstop Abrams is beginning to look like the highly skilled hitter and defender the Nats believed they were getting from the Padres all along in last month’s Juan Soto trade.

With only six hits in his first 44 at-bats, Abrams at times looked overwhelmed by big league pitching. Through it all, manager Davey Martinez insisted it was only a matter of time before the 21-year-old started to apply what he was being coached and saw the results to match. Sure enough, Abrams now looks like a completely different hitter. He has nine hits in his last 24 at-bats, raising his batting average with the Nationals from .136 to .224. He’s still got a long way to go, but even his outs right now feature quality swings.

Abrams’ offensive improvements have come as he’s also looked more and more comfortable in the field. Charged with four errors in his first 10 games at shortstop, he’s now played 10 consecutive clean games.

“We got him here, and I didn’t put any expectations on him whatsoever,” Martinez said. “We talked about that: ‘You’re going to come here, you’re going to play, you’re going to be our shortstop. We’re going to take baby steps with you. I just want you to go out there and have fun.’ He’s been really good with everything.”

It’s Cory Abbott (0-2, 4.39 ERA) on the mound Wednesday. He was recently called back up from Triple-A to take over for the injured Cade Cavalli (shoulder) as Washington’s No. 6 starter. While he has been serviceable as a spot starter, it is unlikely he wins a rotation spot in 2023. Abbott likely will simply serve as an opener in this one.

Abbott hasn’t been able to stick during his major league career. He has been a member of three organizations since the beginning of this year’s spring training, has bounced between Triple-A and the majors often over the past two years, and has been developed as a starter while making more appearances as a reliever during his brief time in MLB. This year, Abbott was designated for assignment by the Cubs on April 16, then traded to the Giants five days later. Two weeks later, the Nationals claimed him after San Francisco designated him for assignment.

Why Bet on St. Louis?

The Cardinals have gone 10-1-1 in their last 12 series since July 26, with wins in each of the last seven. St. Louis split a two-game set at Toronto (July 26-27) and lost two-of-three in Colorado (Aug. 9-11).

One-time NL Rookie of the Year favorite Nolan Gorman went 0-for-3 with two strikeouts Monday and is 5-for-39 with 17 strikeouts in his previous 13 games. If he doesn’t turn it around soon, the Cardinals could start to give Brandon Donovan more time at second base.

Pitcher Steven Matz has been out since late July due to a torn MCL in his left knee, but appears to be on track to rejoin the Cardinals in a relief role sometime later this month as he began a minor-league rehab assignment on Tuesday. The 31-year-old southpaw will likely require a couple of outings before he’s an option for St. Louis’s bullpen mix.

It’s lefty Jordan Montgomery on the mound here. Montgomery (8-3) earned the win last Friday over the Cubs, pitching six-plus shutout innings. He allowed seven hits and two walks while striking out four. He gave up two hits to lead off the seventh before reliever Jordan Hicks struck out pinch-hitter Zach McKinstry, Nick Madrigal and Seiya Suzuki.

Friday’s outing wasn’t dominant – Montgomery threw just 59 of 93 pitches for strikes — but the Cubs’ poor offense wasn’t able to cash in on any of the nine baserunners. The southpaw has given up only six runs in 36.2 innings as a Cardinal. He’s pitched to a 3.15 ERA, 1.06 WHIP and 129:29 K:BB through 151.1 innings across 27 starts between the Yankees and St. Louis.

Said Cardinals star third baseman Nolan Arenado: “He fits perfectly here. We’re so happy he’s here and he’s a Cardinal. I just can’t believe he’s here. It’s been awesome. We’re so fortunate to have him.”

Montgomery will make his first career appearance/start vs. the Washington Nationals. They are one of six teams he’s yet to face in his MLB career. The others include ARI, LAD, STL, SF and SD. Monty has a career mark of 2-4, 6.53 ERA in 9 career games vs. NL East teams.

Game Trends

• Nationals are 15-41 in their last 56 during game 3 of a series.
• Nationals are 16-44 in their last 60 games vs. a left-handed starter.
• Nationals are 3-11 in their last 14 Wednesday games.
• Cardinals are 4-1 in their last 5 Wednesday games.
• Cardinals are 4-1 in their last 5 home games vs. a right-handed starter.
• Nationals are 20-41 in the last 61 meetings in St. Louis.

Expert Prediction

• Cardinals 6, Nationals 3

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