Game Information
St. Louis Cardinals at Boston Red Sox
Time: 1:10pm CT Friday
How to watch: FanDuel Sports Network
Probable pitchers: Erick Fedde (1-0, 1.50 ERA) vs Walker Buehler (0-1, 8.31 ERA)
DraftKings Odds
Moneyline: Red Sox -148, Cardinals +124
Total: 9 (over -105, under -115)
Cardinals Play Boston Home Opener
The St. Louis Cardinals will be at Fenway Park on Friday afternoon for the Boston Red Sox’ home opener.
Erick Fedde gets the ball for the Redbirds after a strong start in his season debut, while Walker Buehler looks to rebound after getting roughed up in his first outing of 2025.
Cards’ Offense Red Hot
The Cardinals just wrapped up a 4-2 homestand that saw them average 7.0 runs per game. Their offense has been all over the basepaths this season with a .298 average, .381 OBP, and .879 OPS.
Fedde will be making his first ever appearance at Fenway Park in this one. He pitched 6 innings of 1-run ball last week against the Twins with 2 hits allowed and 0 walks, although he had only 2 strikeouts.
Sox Bats Heating Up
The Red Sox are coming off a series win at Baltimore, including an 8-4 win on Thursday. Unfortunately for the Cardinals, Rafael Devers appears to be over his season-opening slump. After starting the year 0 for his first 21, Devers is 3 for his last 6 to help the Sox win their last two games.
Buehler allowed 4 runs on 7 hits in 4.1 innings pitched with just 3 strikeouts in his Boston debut. It continued the trend of Buehler no longer being a big strikeout pitcher, as he has averaged under a strikeout per inning since 2022.
My Leans
I actually think Fedde is a slightly better pitcher than Buehler at this stage of their careers, so I agree with the early money coming in on the Redbirds. As of the time of this writing, the Cards have gotten only 24% of the bets, but 57% of the dollars wagered have been on the Cardinals.
So I lean the Cards to win, but I don’t feel strongly enough to bet it. Neither Fedde nor Buehler are big bat-missers, and with two very capable offenses, I wouldn’t be surprised if one or both teams put up a lot of runs. I also lean over in this game, but with the total having already moved up from 8.5 to 9, it falls short of making my card. I believe the total of 9 is correctly set and no longer offers value.
Leans: Cardinals +124 on the moneyline and over 9 at -105 on DraftKings
Eric Sontag hosts Domesticated Gamblers every Friday on the Sports Hub STL YouTube channel. Follow him on X @GamblingDads, and click here for his daily picks on all of our St. Louis area sports teams. Disclaimer