Baseball: Washington Nationals Vs St. Louis Cardinals

St. Louis (21-17) took over first place from the Chicago Cubs on July 31 and never looked back, winning the division by 7 1/2 games.

The Cardinals began 2010 again looking like the class of the Central, but they’ve stumbled since an 18-8 start. St. Louis has averaged 3.08 runs per game while losing nine of 12, with Sunday’s 7-2 loss at Cincinnati pushing the Reds one-half game ahead of the Cardinals atop the division.

“If it had been the last game of the season and we fell out of first place, it would be a big deal,” said reigning NL MVP Albert Pujols(notes), hitting .250 with only five RBIs in his last 13 games. “We’re in second place. It’s better than being in last place. If we were in last place, we’d be concerned.” Washington Nationals Vs St. Louis Cardinals Baseball Picks:



Washington, which fell to 6-11 when scoring fewer than four runs, may be likely to hit that mark against St. Louis’ Kyle Lohse(notes) (0-3, 5.68), the lone struggling starter in a rotation that’s otherwise a combined 16-9 with a 2.46 ERA.

Lohse allowed nine runs - four earned - and 10 hits over five innings Wednesday in a 9-6 loss to Houston.

“The problem was, when he missed, he missed up,” manager Tony La Russa told the Cardinals’ official website. “He and (pitching coach Dave Duncan) will go to the drawing board and figure out why. There will be a why there.” Washington Nationals Vs St. Louis Cardinals Baseball Betting at SPORTSBETTING.COM