Cardinals visit the Astros to open 3-game series

Updated Jun. 3, 2024 4:01 a.m. ET

Associated Press

St. Louis Cardinals (27-29, second in the NL Central) vs. Houston Astros (26-34, third in the AL West)

Houston; Monday, 8:10 p.m. EDT

PITCHING PROBABLES: Cardinals: Kyle Gibson (4-2, 3.60 ERA, 1.22 WHIP, 52 strikeouts); Astros: Justin Verlander (3-2, 3.26 ERA, 1.13 WHIP, 44 strikeouts)

BETMGM SPORTSBOOK: LINE Astros -175, Cardinals +147; over/under is 8 runs

BOTTOM LINE: The Houston Astros host the St. Louis Cardinals on Monday to begin a three-game series.

Houston has gone 15-17 at home and 26-34 overall. The Astros have a 22-9 record in games when they have more hits than their opponents.

St. Louis has a 15-17 record on the road and a 27-29 record overall. The Cardinals have an 18-4 record in games when they scored five or more runs.

The teams meet Monday for the first time this season.

TOP PERFORMERS: Kyle Tucker has 11 doubles and 19 home runs for the Astros. Yordan Alvarez is 14-for-38 with two doubles and two home runs over the past 10 games.

Brendan Donovan has 14 doubles, a triple and four home runs for the Cardinals. Lars Nootbaar is 13-for-38 with a double, a triple, two home runs and seven RBI over the last 10 games.

LAST 10 GAMES: Astros: 4-6, .227 batting average, 2.68 ERA, outscored opponents by one run

Cardinals: 7-3, .241 batting average, 2.38 ERA, outscored opponents by seven runs

INJURIES: Astros: Cristian Javier: 15-Day IL (forearm), Oliver Ortega: 60-Day IL (elbow), Bennett Sousa: 60-Day IL (shoulder), Penn Murfee: 60-Day IL (elbow), Luis Garcia: 60-Day IL (elbow), Lance McCullers Jr.: 60-Day IL (elbow), Jose Urquidy: 15-Day IL (forearm), Kendall Graveman: 60-Day IL (elbow)

Cardinals: Brendan Donovan: day-to-day (neck), Lars Nootbaar: 10-Day IL (oblique), Nick Robertson: 15-Day IL (elbow), Riley O'Brien: 60-Day IL (forearm), Willson Contreras: 10-Day IL (arm), Giovanny Gallegos: 15-Day IL (shoulder), Tommy Edman: 60-Day IL (wrist), Steven Matz: 15-Day IL (back), Drew Rom: 60-Day IL (biceps), Keynan Middleton: 15-Day IL (forearm)

___

The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar.