St. Louis Cardinals vs. Milwaukee Brewers Prediction, Preview, Picks & Odds - 6/21/2022

Time: 8:10 p.m. ET

Venue: American Family Field, Milwaukee, WI

Where to watch: FS1

DraftKings: Brewers -120, Cardinals +100

BetMGM: NL

Caesars: Brewers -125, Cardinals +105

Cardinals: 38-31

Brewers: 39-30

Never bet against Corbin Burnes in a big game. It could be the 69th (nice) game of the season or it could be the 149th. If Burnes is pitching with first place on the line, you're likely to get the best possible effort you can from the NL Cy Young winner. And that's exactly what Burnes provided in the beginning of the four-game series for the Milwaukee Brewers, putting on a dominant performance in a 2-0 win over the St. Louis Cardinals.

Burnes went seven innings, allowing just two hits and striking out 10 as the Brewers won their fourth straight game and reclaimed first place in the National League Central over the Cardinals. On the other side, Miles Mikolas did just enough to keep this thing going for as long as he could, but Tyrone Taylor's two-run home run was the lone difference to give the Brewers a big division win.

"I try not to make any game bigger than it is," Burnes said. "It's still mid-to-end of June, playing baseball. We've still got a lot of games left. If you start making one game bigger than the other, you start putting extra pressure on yourself and start trying to do too much."

But nevertheless, given how dominant the Cardinals looked just a few weeks ago, for the Brewers to respond in kind and put together a nice run to re-take first place is a good sign. And it's also a good sign that Burnes is dominating the way that he has over in his past few starts. He's had to carry things with Brandon Woodruff and Freddy Peralta on the injured list.

And once again, he delivered.

"I thought Corbin was as good as we've seen him this year," Brewers manager Craig Counsell said.

"His stuff's electric," Cardinals manager Oliver Marmol said. "We know it is."

Juan Yepez had the only two hits Burnes allowed before exiting after the seventh. Devin Williams and Josh Hader, per usual, handled things in the eighth and ninth to get the win. Hader recorded his 20th save in 21 opportunities, further distancing himself as Reliever of the Year.

"It's kind of whoever blinks first or (you) kind of know going out that it might be a one-swing ballgame," Mikolas said. "They put a good swing on the ball, and that was it."

That was indeed it, but this felt like a classic Brewers-Cardinals game with pitching dominating the scene. And now the Cardinals will get the chance to do the same in Tuesday's pitching matchup, sending Jack Flaherty to the mound against former Texas Rangers and Colorado Rockies pitcher Chi Chi Gonzalez. The right-hander Gonzalez made two appearances with the Minnesota Twins this season before opting out of his minor-league stint.

Flaherty has yet to record a decision since making his debut last Wednesday against Pittsburgh. He lasted just three innings and gave up two runs. The Cardinals will also be without outfielder Tyler O'Neill, who went on the IL. Lars Nootbaar was called up from Triple-A.

The Brewers need bodies with the aforementioned star pitchers out, and I'm not sure I can trust Gonzalez in this instance. He wasn't good in Minnesota, and with the Brewers needing their pitching to be good, this won't be a low-scoring game. Give me St. Louis. Cardinals win 8-5

Cardinals are 79-60 the past three seasons when the money line is +125 and -125.

Cardinals are 6-14 as a road underdog this season.

Cardinals are 19-10 against division opponents this season.

Brewers are 15-27 at home the past three seasons when the line is between +125 and -125.

Brewers are 22-11 against division opponents this season.

Cardinals:
Tommy Edman (S) SS
Brendan Donovan (L) 2B
Paul Goldschmidt (R) 1B
Nolan Arenado (R) 3B
Lars Nootbaar (L) LF
Dylan Carlson (S) RF
Albert Pujols (R) DH
Harrison Bader (R) CF
Ivan Herrera (R) C
SP - Jack Flaherty

Brewers:
Christian Yelich (L) DH
Willy Adames (R) SS
Andrew McCutchen (R) LF
Hunter Renfroe (R) RF
Luis Urias (R) 3B
Keston Hiura (R) 1B
Victor Caratini (S) C
Tyrone Taylor (R) CF
Mark Mathias (R) 2B
SP - Chi Chi Gonzalez

Batting average: Paul Goldschmidt -- .339

Home runs: Paul Goldschmidt -- 16

RBI: Paul Goldschmidt -- 58

Wins: Miles Mikolas -- 5

ERA: Miles Mikolas -- 2.64

Batting average: Rowdy Tellez -- .253

Home runs: Hunter Renfroe -- 13

RBI: Rowdy Tellez -- 39

Wins: Eric Lauer -- 6

ERA: Corbin Burnes -- 2.31