Ala Hann Sport picks

The betting world gets excited this time of the year as division rivals battle it out to see who gets the pennant, and who has to shoot for the wild card berth. As NFL betting starts to gain momentum in St. Louis and Cincinnati, the baseball teams in each city still have a score to settle for the NL Central pennant.

The Reds hold a slim one-game lead over the Cardinals, and both teams have been playing well as of late. In their last 10 games, the Cardinals have won six including the win in the opening game of this series. The Reds have won seven of their last 10 games but, as was mentioned, the Reds dropped the opening game of this series to the Cardinals.

If you are betting on college football then you may have not noticed that the St. Louis Cardinals have a horrible road record. At 24-31, the Cardinals performance on the road is the reason why they are trailing in the standings instead of leading the NL Central by several games. That streak of bad road luck was put to the side at the opening of this series, and the Cardinals hope they have exorcised their road demons for good.

The MLB betting experts simply did not expect the Cincinnati Reds to be challenging for the NL Central pennant so late in the season. The Milwaukee Brewers or possibly the Chicago Cubs were expected to challenge St. Louis for the pennant. The Brewers bats went silent this season and Sweet Lou’s meltdown in Chicago contributed to the demise of the Cubs.

In the final game of this three-game series with the Red, the Cardinals send Adam Wainwright to the mound. Wainwright could be considered the ace of a staff that also includes Cy Young winner Roy Halladay. Wainwright has a 16-6 record and an all-star ERA of only 2.07. Wainwright’s season is being considered one of the best ever by a St. Louis pitcher, and he is only matched by Hall of Fame pitcher Bob Gibson in wins and ERA for a season.

Bronson Arroyo takes the mound for the Reds, and he is having an excellent season for Cincinnati. With a record of 12-6 and an ERA of 3.83, Arroyo has not allowed an earned run in his last two consecutive starts. He has showed great command of his breaking balls, and he has big-time speed on his fast ball.

This is the kind of game baseball fans dream about. It features two division leaders going at it, late in the season to try and gain an edge in the pennant race. Both teams are putting their absolute best pitchers on the mound, and both teams have shown the ability to hit the baseball.

The Cardinals loaded themselves up with pitchers like Halladay and hitters like Ryan Howard, and they made it known that their intention is to compete for the World Series. To get there, they will first have to get by the Cincinnati Reds who are putting up a respectable struggle for the NL Central crown.

Pick: St. Louis Cardinals 2-1