Al DeMarco

Sunday's Play

5 Dime - St. Louis (Wainwright) - 1 1/2 Runs over Houston (Norris)

Houston had re-entered the thick of the N.L. Central race after a three-game home sweep of St. Louis July 20-22. But since a home win against the Mets on July 24, the Astros have slumped badly, losing seven of eight, scoring no more than three runs in any of the setbacks.

Since that sweep in Houston, the Cardinals have rebounded nicely, going on a 7-3 tear in their last 10 games, the last nine of which coincided with the arrival of Matt Holliday, who is batting .606 with three homers and 10 RBIs since being acquired from Oakland.

St. Louis, already 5-1 on its current seven-game homestand, has won seven of nine against Houston at Busch Stadium the past two seasons combined.

The Cardinals' Adam Wainwright has quietly become a 12-game winner (12-6 with a 2.80 ERA) following a tremendous month of July in which he went 4-1 with a 1.17 ERA in six starts. He is 6-0 with a 1.91 ERA in seven career starts versus the Astros, including an April 11 victory against them this season in which pitched five innings of four-hit, shutout ball.

With Roy Oswalt injured, Houston is turning to Bud Norris for today's game. He was 4-9 with a 2.63 ERA in 19 starts for Triple-A Round Rock, and just made his major league debut with three innings of one-run relief at Wrigley Field on Wednesday.

Despite playing this game on the Run Line, the price of this contest is still hovering around -135 or -140 because of Houston's recent slump and Wainwright's career domination of the Astros. However, with the Astros struggling to put runs on the board, and the Cardinals seeking to complete payback for July's three-game sweep in Houston, I've got the bankroll to make this somewhat higher priced investment.