Over Under 2/2 – St. Louis Cardinals/Pittsburgh Pirates
If you read my other articles, you know how much I love Jameson Taillon tonight. He owns an 8.1 K/9 through his career, but it has sat at 8.4 over his last two seasons. Taillon is a bit more unpredictable as a pitcher this season, though, as he has stated that he feels comfortable with his slider acting as a fifth option in his pitching arsenal. Last season, he threw his slider only 18.2% of the time, but that number jumped to 30.1% in his only game this season. This added pitch should increase his swinging strike rate, resulting in more strikeouts. As if that isn’t enough, Taillon gets a matchup against the St. Louis Cardinals, who lead the slate in strikeouts per at-bat. Miles Mikolas is nearly the exact opposite as a pitcher. He has struggled in his career with a 6.4 K/9. He also essentially throws four pitches with two being a 4-seam fastball and a sinker. It’s somewhat similar to Taillon, who uses his changeup only slightly more than Mikolas. With that being said, Mikolas owns a career 8.9% swinging strike percentage. He has also allowed an 85.3% contact rate. As if that wasn’t enough, the Pittsburgh Pirates rank fourth last on the slate in strikeouts per at-bat, and Mikolas will struggle to find strikeout success in this matchup.
Play $50 on Jameson Taillon OVER 5.5 strikeouts and Miles Mikolas UNDER 4.5 strikeouts to win $118.50 (2.37x)
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