Fernandez, Fish welcome Cards to town
Between Dee Gordon’s return to the Miami lineup and Ichiro Suzuki’s pursuit of hit No. 3,000, St. Louis righty Michael Wacha promises to have his hands full tonight.
There’s also the little matter of dueling Jose Fernandez when the two teams kick off a lengthy series at 7:10 p.m. ET. Oddsmakers at online sports book Bovada.lv endorse the host Marlins in this instance, whereas the Cardinals represent +158 underdogs. The over/under run total rests at seven.
Don Mattingly’s club currently leads the Redbirds by one game for the National League’s second wild-card spot. Even better, the Fish are about to regain the services of their offensive catalyst. Gordon, who paced the NL in batting average and steals last season, is due back after serving an 80-game suspension for using PEDs. His presence atop the order could push Suzuki to the bench for the evening. Nonetheless, the 42-year-old right fielder remains only three base knocks shy of baseball immortality.
Meanwhile, Fernandez aims to improve to 27-1 at Marlins Park. The All-Star holds a 12-4 record with a 2.54 ERA in 2016. Other Miami hurlers continue to struggle with consistency, but Fernandez’s otherworldly stuff helps explain why Miami’s on pace to surpass 85 victories for the first time since 2009.
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For the visitors, Wacha hopes to rebound from an arduous turn vs. the Dodgers. The Texas A&M product rather miraculously managed to avoid the big blow nearly a week ago, scattering 10 hits across six innings. Los Angeles pushed his WHIP, however, to 1.44. The 2013 postseason sensation simply hasn’t looked like his normal, dominant self in months.
Perhaps he’ll be buoyed by the temperament in the Cards’ clubhouse. St. Louis solved the seemingly invincible Jeurys Familia on Wednesday, rallying to knock off the Mets. Of course, Fernandez possesses a knack for curbing momentum. Bank on a low-scoring opener in South Florida.
THURSDAY MLB FREE PICK: CARDINALS/MARLINS UNDER 7 RUNS