NL Wild Card Game 2021: Cardinals vs. Dodgers Odds and Fantasy Picks
Two of the best pitchers in Major League Baseball are scheduled to go head-to-head Wednesday night, with a spot in the National League Division Series on the line.
Adam Wainwright will head to the mound for the St. Louis Cardinals at Dodger Stadium to face Max Scherzer and the Los Angeles Dodgers in the NL Wild Card Game.
The longtime aces were two of the most consistent hurlers in the regular season, but Scherzer holds a slight edge over his opponent.
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The 37-year-old pitched 14 innings without an earned run against the Cardinals in the regular season. He made one appearance against the NL Central side with the Washington Nationals and the other came on September 6 with the Dodgers.
Wainwright conceded four earned runs off seven hits in 8.1 innings versus L.A. on September 8.
The St. Louis ace produced a 17-7 regular-season record, but there were times when he looked much more susceptible to conceding than Scherzer.
NL Wild Card Game Odds
Run Line: Los Angeles Dodgers (-1.5)
Money Line: Los Angeles (-220; bet $220 to win $100); St. Louis (+180; bet $100 to win $180)
Over/Under: 7.5
Fantasy Picks
Trea Turner
Trea Turner enters the postseason as one of the hottest hitters in baseball. He finished the regular season on a 19-game hitting streak in which he produced 10 multi-hit performances.
The Dodgers infielder went 5-of-10 in the final series against the Milwaukee Brewers. He had three home runs and nine RBI in those three contests.
Turner is expected to play an even larger role at the top of the Dodgers order with Max Muncy sidelined by an elbow injury.
Dodgers manager Dave Roberts told reporters that Muncy is "very unlikely" to play against the Cardinals.
Turner could be utilized as a tone-setter in front of Mookie Betts and Corey Seager. Roberts may opt to move Seager into the No. 3 or No. 4 spot to have a left-handed bat split up a group of right-handers.
Turner is the perfect playoff leadoff man because he has a high on-base rate and he can get himself into scoring position easily.
The 28-year-old had 195 hits, 107 runs and 32 stolen bases during his split time between the Nationals and Dodgers in the regular season. He is also 5-of-14 in his career against Wainwright and 3-of-10 with two runs and a double in 2021.
When Wainwright faced the Dodgers in September, he allowed an earned run in the first inning before settling into a rhythm.
If Turner serves as the catalyst for the Los Angeles offense, the reigning champion has a chance to chase the Cardinals ace earlier than expected.
Betts and Seager are strong choices for their RBI capabilities, but if Turner reaches base, he should be in a good spot to add points for stolen bases and runs on top of his hit production.
Paul Goldschmidt
St. Louis' offensive catalyst could be the player who earned three hits off Scherzer in their last meeting on September 6.
Paul Goldschmidt was responsible for three of the six hits Scherzer allowed over his eight scoreless innings, while Tommy Edman had two hits and Edmundo Sosa had the other.
Goldschmidt's bat is one of the main reasons why St. Louis reached the postseason. He had a .340 batting average in September with nine home runs and 19 RBI. From September 15-30, he had eight multi-hit performances, including three base knocks in four of those appearances.
The 34-year-old homered in two of St. Louis' three games against the San Diego Padres in the 2020 Wild Card Series, and he has gone yard in every Game 1 he has participated in.
The first baseman opened his playoff account with the Arizona Diamondbacks in the 2011 NLDS. He went deep in Game 1 versus the Colorado Rockies in 2017 and hit his first Cardinals playoff home run against Atlanta in the opening game of the 2019 series.
Goldschmidt's track record against Scherzer this season and in playoff openers should make him the top fantasy target from the St. Louis roster.
Statistics obtained from Baseball Reference.
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