San Francisco at St. Louis

Linecum is off a beauty over Arizona but prior to that game he hadn't won in six starts. Braden Looper is also coming off a good performance against Arizona. He has struggled more than Linecum but the Cardinals are a perfect 7-0 this season with him as starter when facing an NL opponent that bats .255 or worse (SF bats .251). Also, the St. Louis bullpen has a distinct advantage. The Cards’ pen has a 3.22 home ERA with 85% save percentage. San Francisco's pen has saved just 62% on the road and owns a 4.17 ERA. San Francisco's primary offense is Barry Bonds (who is 2-for-5 lifetime against Looper). On the road the Giants are just 16-26. St. Louis is a .500 team at home and they fare especially well against right handed pitchers, scoring 4.6 per game (vs. 4.0 against lefties). The Giants are just 45-61 the past two seasons vs. losing teams and we'll fade them here on the road.