St Louis Cardinals vs Arizona Diamondbacks Prediction, Preview and Odds - 07/18/2026

Game Time: 4:10 pm ET, Saturday, July 18, 2026

Venue:  Chase Field, Phoenix, AZ

Where to Watch:  MLB TV

DraftKings:  Moneyline odds:  Cardinals +100, Diamondbacks -120; Over/Under:  9 runs

Bet365:  Moneyline odds:  Cardinals +100, Diamondbacks -120; Over/Under:  9 runs

BetMGM:  Moneyline odds:  Cardinals +100, Diamondbacks -120; Over/Under:  9 runs

St Louis Cardinals:  50-45 (3rd place, NL Central)

Arizona Diamondbacks:  49-47 (2nd place, NL West)

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St Louis Cardinals:  4-6 last 10

Arizona Diamondbacks:  6-4 last 10

The Cardinals are entering this series off a loss and won their 3-game series against the Atlanta Braves 2-1 in their last series. They enter this game with a 50-45 record overall and have a road record of 24-19. This is the 2nd game of a 3-game series with the Diamondbacks on Saturday with the series opener still to be played on Friday. Their offense ranks 20th in the MLB with a .708 OPS. Michael McGreevy is their starting pitcher on Friday while Dustin May is making his start in this game on Saturday. He is 5-6 with a 4.55 ERA this season. His team lost their last 2 straight games this season with him making an appearance. In his last MLB regular season appearance, he allowed 2 ER, 0 HR, and 4 BB with 4 SO on 2 hits through 4 IP against the Atlanta Braves.

The Diamondbacks are entering this series off a win and completed the sweep in their 3-game series against the Los Angeles Dodgers 3-0 in their last series. They enter this game with a 49-47 record overall and have a home record of 27-20. This is the 2nd game of a 3-game series with the Cardinals on Saturday with the 1st game of this series still to be played on Friday. Their offense ranks 25th in the MLB with a .691 OPS. Merrill Kelly is their starting pitcher on Friday while Brandon Pfaadt is making his start in this game on Saturday. He is 3-1 with a 4.70 ERA this season. His team won their last 3 straight games this season with him making an appearance. In his last MLB regular season start, he allowed 2 earned runs, 0 homers, and 0 walks with 2 strikeouts on 6 hits through 5.1 innings pitched against the Los Angeles Dodgers.

The current betting odds have the Diamondbacks listed as a slight favorite in this game according to Draftkings Sportsbook. The Cardinals have looked good in their games this season with their 50-45 record overall which has them right in the middle of the NL Central. They have been a good road team too with their 24-19 road record this year. Meanwhile, the Diamondbacks have looked good in their games this season with their 49-47 record overall which has them right near the top of the NL West. They have looked a lot better in their own ballpark too with their 27-20 home record this season. The Diamondbacks went into the All-Star break with some momentum from sweeping the Dodgers and they are now 6-4 in their last 10 games while the Cardinals are only 4-6. The Diamondbacks are going with Pfaadt in this one and he hasn't looked great this season. He is 3-1 with a 4.70 ERA, but lately he has looked a lot better since coming back from an injury. He only gave up 2 earned runs in his last start and even his team has been having more success with him lately, winning 3 games in a row now with him starting. The Cardinals are going with May in this one and he hasn't looked great this season. He is 5-6 with a 4.55 ERA and he has been giving up a lot of runs all year. He only gave up 2 earned runs in his last start, but that hasn't been a common theme for him and the team has lost 2 games in a row now with him starting too. The Diamondbacks are starting to turn the corner now and they will be motivated to come out of the All-Star break strong since they are right in the NL Wild Card race, so look for them to take advantage of this pitching matchup. The best way to place a bet here is on the Diamondbacks to win this game. 

Cardinals Diamondbacks Prediction:  Our MLB Pick for Saturday, July 18, 2026 (4:10 pm ET start time) is Diamondbacks 5 Cardinals 4.

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St Louis Cardinals: 145-156 (-10.4 units) on the moneyline against right-handed starters. 98-96 (-5.1 units) on the moneyline vs. an NL team with a slugging percentage of .400 or worse on the season. 138-154 (-8.6 units) on the moneyline vs. a team with a good bullpen whose WHIP is 1.350 or better. 11-2 UNDER against NL West opponents.

Arizona Diamondbacks: 125-104 (+7.9 units) on the moneyline vs. an NL team with a team batting average of .255 or worse. 105-107 (+10.2 units) on the moneyline when playing against a team with a winning record. 101-73 (+18.2 units) on the moneyline when the total is 9 to 9.5. 28-19 UNDER vs. an NL team with a team batting average of .255 or worse.

St Louis Cardinals:  M. Rajcic (SP) Sixty Day IL - Elbow. R. Urias (3B) Sixty Day IL - Elbow.

Arizona Diamondbacks:  T. Troy (LF) Ten Day IL - Shoulder. Z. Gallen (SP) Fifteen Day IL - Elbow. J. Lawlar (LF) Ten Day IL - Hamstring. M. Soroka (SP) Fifteen Day IL - Lower-Body. R. Nelson (SP) Sixty Day IL - Elbow. J. McCann (C) Ten Day IL - Quad. C. Mena (SP) Sixty Day IL - Shoulder. B. Walston (SP) Sixty Day IL - Elbow. A. Puk (RP) Sixty Day IL - Elbow. C. Burnes (SP) Sixty Day IL - Elbow. J. Martinez (RP) Sixty Day IL - Elbow. A. Saalfrank (RP) Sixty Day IL - Shoulder.

“It is a different group. The way I look at it is, the ceiling is higher when it comes to what’s possible for this group.” - Oliver Marmol after his team’s loss against the Braves in their game on Sunday. 

“I told the group, even though it was 3-0, I felt like we were going to win this game. And I kept telling the guys as they were walking by me, ‘We're going to win this game. Just go out there and execute. The guys just executed, just stayed hungry, and the at-bats were really good.” - Torey Lovullo after his team’s win against the LA Dodgers in their game on Sunday. 

JJ Wetherholt (Z) 2B

Iván Herrera (D) DH

Jordan Walker (D) RF

Alec Burleson (Z) 1B

Lars Nootbaar (Z) LF

Masyn Winn (D) SS

Nathan Church (Z) CF

José Fermín (D) 3B

Jimmy Crooks (Z) C

Ketel Marte (A) DH

Geraldo Perdomo (A) SS

Corbin Carroll (Z) RF

Gabriel Moreno (D) C

Lourdes Gurriel Jr. (D) LF

Ildemaro Vargas (A) 2B

Nolan Arenado (D) 3B

Tim Tawa (D) 1B

Ryan Waldschmidt (D) CF

Batting Average:  Jordan Walker (.294)

Hits:  Jordan Walker (105)

Home Runs:  Jordan Walker (22)

RBI:  Jordan Walker (74)

Stolen Bases:  Jordan Walker (13)

Wins:  Andre Pallante (10)

Saves:  Riley O'Brien (24)

ERA:  Ryan Fernandez (2.70)

Batting Average:  Jordan Lawlar (.316)

Hits:  Ketel Marte (95)

Home Runs:  Ketel Marte (17)

RBI:  Ketel Marte (54)

Stolen Bases:  Geraldo Perdomo (15)

Wins:  Michael Soroka (8)

Saves:  Paul Sewald (22)

ERA:  Brandyn Garcia (1.90)

Managers:

St Louis Cardinals: Oliver Marmol (5th season)

Arizona Diamondbacks: Torey Lovullo (10th season)