Cubs host Cardinals as Shota Imanaga and Kyle Leahy give bettors reason to back the over 8
I want to start by noting that there may be some bad weather in Chicago, so it’s possible this game may never happen. Before you stop reading, there’s still a good chance they’ll make it into the game, but I just wanted to give a heads up. Things could be much worse than risking your money and having the game cancelled. Today we celebrate America and today we feature a game with two teams teaming up for the colors red, white and blue as the Cardinals take on the Cubs.
Louis Cardinal teammates in St. Louis on Wednesday, April 1, 2026. The crowd surrounds Masyn Winn, who hit the game-winning hit in the eleventh inning of a baseball game against the New York Mets in St. Louis. (AP Photo/LG Patterson)
St. The St. Louis Cardinals are in pretty good shape this season. In a season where expectations were almost non-existent, they found a way to not only be competitive but also look like a potential playoff team. I don’t think anyone will be afraid of them in a five- or seven-game series, but I think the Cardinals are a solid club with a lot going for them right now. They are 46-39 years old and have a winning record. Their offense is solid, especially their batting average, but they also have a solid number of runs scored this year and are right in the middle of the majors with 396 home runs.
Today we look at starting pitcher Kyle Leahy. On the season, Leahy is 6-4 with a 4.09 ERA and 1.48 WHIP. Neither of these numbers are overly impressive, and I have some concerns about Leahy’s WHIP. If he allows this much traffic on the bases, the chances of teams posting skewed numbers will increase. He was in worse shape away than at home; He had a 3-1 record and a 5.35 away ERA. The good news for him is that he had a very nice month of June with a 3.76 ERA for the month and only one game in which he allowed more than three earned runs. He faced the Cubs earlier this season and allowed one run on six hits over 4.1 innings.
June 29, 2026; Chicago, Illinois, USA; Chicago Cubs pitcher Shota Imanaga (18) celebrates after shutting out the top of the sixth inning against the San Diego Padres at Wrigley Field. Mandatory Credit: Patrick Gorski-Imagn Images (Patrick Gorski-Imagn Images)
The Chicago Cubs have had an interesting season. At one point they thought they could be the best team in the league. At another, they looked like they might be the worst team in baseball. They had two 10-game winning streaks and a 10-game losing streak. This is not quite normal. Someone said you win a third of your games, lose a third, and what you do with the other third makes the difference to your season. I think that’s probably true for these Cubs, too. Their pitching staff is greatly reduced, so they will rely on the offense, hot or cold, to get them results.
Tonight, they have Shota Imanaga, one of the team’s starters who hasn’t been injured at any point this year. I’ve really liked Imanaga over the years and we’ve had a lot of success with him. But I realize he’s not an Ace and might not even be someone you want in your postseason rotation. He wasn’t very good this year, going 5-6 with a 4.30 ERA and 1.08 WHIP. This WHIP shows me that he might be the bearer of bad luck, but the 20 homers he allowed also tell me that when he gets hit, he gets hit very hard. He’s struggled a bit this year with a 4.55 ERA at home. He also got shaken up in his start against the Cardinals, pitching 5.1 innings and allowing five earned runs on five hits, including three homers.
June 23, 2026; St. Louis, Missouri, USA; St. Louis Cardinals starting pitcher Kyle Leahy (62) pitches against the Arizona Diamondbacks during the sixth inning at Busch Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jeff Curry-Imagn Images (Jeff Curry-Imagn Images)
This is a game where we need to make some runs. Weather could be a factor for this game to be played tonight, but I think the overall weather should give us some solid conditions for the hitters to come into play. I think the Cardinals are very lively dogs in this game and their +134 line is too good to ignore, so I’ll touch on that a bit.
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The problem is, I don’t really like either of these pitchers. Leahy gives up a lot of runs and Imanaga is sensitive to the long ball. I think the smart play in this game is to complete more than 8 runs. Both teams have a lot of firepower on offense, so give me over 8. The wind will be blowing from here on out, which is actually in the Cubs and underdogs’ favor, so bettors beware.
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