St. Louis Cardinals at San Diego Padres 5/14/21 - MLB Picks & Predictions

The St. Louis Cardinals open a three-game series on the road at Petco Park Friday against the San Diego Padres. St Louis is 22-15 following a 4-1 loss to the Milwaukee Brewers in the second of a three-game series on Wednesday. St Louis is first in the National League Central with a two-game lead over the second-place Brewers. The loss snapped a four-game winning streak for the Cardinals.

Dylan Carlson is batting .286 to lead St Louis and the left fielder has a team high .363 on-base percentage. Outfielder Tyler O'Neill is the leader in home runs with seven, while third baseman Nolan Arenado is the leader in RBIs with 23 and infielder Tommy Edman is the leader in hits with 42. On Friday, St.Louis will send Johan Oviedo to the mound. The right-hander is 0-1 with an ERA of 4.61, 13 Ks and 4 BBs.

San Diego is 21-17 following its 3-2 loss to the Colorado Rockies on Wednesday in the second game of a double header in which the Padres won the first 5-3. San Diego has been besieged with injury and illness and has players such as Fernando Tatis Jr, Jurickson Profar, Wil Myers, Jorge Mateo, and Eric Hosmer all out due to covid.

Eric Hosmer is batting .305 to lead San Diego and the first baseman has team highs in hits with 40 and on-base percentage .370. Shortstop Fernando Tatis Jr is the leader in home runs with nine, while third baseman Manny Machado is the leader in RBI's with 22. On Friday, San Diego will send Joe Musgrove to the mound. The right-hander is 2-4 with an ERA of 3.00, 54 Ks and 7 BBs.