Washington at St. Louis

It is not very often we get the Cardinals ace on the mound at home after a loss as we do today. There is not much need for a write-up here as we have ridden Chris Carpenter and the Cardinals several times this season and it is no different today as this was the same pitcher that had a 23-5 record last year with less than a 2.78 ERA. This is the same once Cy Young winner that currently sports a 3-1 record with a 1.91 ERA. The Cardinals are 12-1 when Carpenter starts as a favorite of -200 or more, Carpenter is 5-0 when facing a team with a losing record, the Nats are 0-6 when Hernandez faces a team with a winning record and the Cardinals are a remarkable 51-15 in Carpenter's last 66 starts. Over the past three seasons, Carpenter is also 16-1 after two straight outings in which he gave up less than 3 earned runs. Big line but Cards after a loss are about as good as you get. With Carpenter on the mound, done deal.