The St. Louis Cardinals and Cleveland Indians will meet for an InterLeague matchup this week at Busch Stadium in St. Louis. This is the first matchup between these Midwest teams since 2015. Both the Cardinals and Indians have playoff aspirations, and both teams should factor in the playoff mix in 2018.
The Cleveland Indians come into this series having won seven straight games. The Indians have taken complete control of the American League Central division, and lead the division by 8 games. The Cardinals split a four game weekend series with the Milwaukee Brewers and remain in third place in the National League Central. The Cleveland Indians are 127 over the St. Louis Cardinals on Monday night.
Cleveland Offense on Fire
The Indians are on a seven game win streak in large part to their red hot offense. The Indians have scored 54 total runs in their last seven games, and exploded for 12 runs in the series finale against the Tigers on Sunday. Edwin Encarnacion delivered the huge blow in the game, when he launched an 8th inning grand slam to complete the scoring for the Tribe.
Mike ClevInger will start for the Indians in the series opener against the Cardinals. Clevinger has pitched well for the Indians in 2018, and is 6-2 with a 3.00 ERA through his 15 starts this season. Clevinger has been great in his previous two outings, giving up just 2 earned runs in 14.2 innings pitched. Clevinger tries to lead the Indians to their 8th straight win.
Cardinals Trying to Find Consistency
The St. Louis Cardinals are just 4.5 games back in the National League Central, but the Cardinals have been up and down all season long. The Cardinals have not had a long win streak yet this season, but appear capable of stringing a bunch of wins together. The Cardinals will send young John Gant (1-2, 4.39 ERA) to the mound in the series opener on Monday night.
The Cardinals have struggled to score runs this season, but have not struggled in the home run department. Veteran Matt Carpenter leads the team with 13 bombs this season, they have four other players in double digits in home runs. Newcomer, Marcell Ozuna, is starting to get hot for the Cardinals and leads the team with 75 hits to go along with his 10 home runs.
Cleveland Stays Hot, Beat Cardinals
The Cardinals were able to win the final two games in their weekend series against Milwaukee, and will hope to stay hot at home. St. Louis has struggled with injuries this season, and are handing the ball to young John Gant in the series opener. Gant will have his hands full with a tough Indians lineup.
Cleveland has taken complete control of the American League Central, and appears to be one of the favorites to win the World Series. The Indians can score a ton of runs, and feature a lineup full of young, talented hitters. Look for the Indians to stay hot on Monday night, and win their 8th straight game. Take the Cleveland Indians -127 over the St. Louis Cardinals on Monday.
