Why Sunday Night Baseball’s Pitchers Are the Untold Heroes You Can’t Afford to Ignore

Some games just slap differently, don’t they? Tonight’s Cubs vs. Cardinals showdown isn’t your run-of-the-mill snooze fest—it’s Sunday Night Baseball at its competitive best, featuring two formidable pitchers and a rivalry that has fans on edge. Now, I ask you this: can the Cubs keep defying the creeping doubt that their season feels a bit like a house of cards ready to tumble, especially with their patchwork bullpen and key injuries? Meanwhile, the Cardinals are clawing to keep their postseason hopes alive, despite recent shakeups and trading away their closer. With Shota Imanaga’s precision on the mound for Chicago and Sonny Gray’s ace-level dominance for St. Louis, tonight’s face-off holds more than just bragging rights—it’s a crucial test of grit for both squads. So, buckle up, because this one’s got the makings of a classic. LEARN MORE.

Cubs vs. Cardinals, 7:00 ET

There are some games that are just more exciting than other ones. I’ve said it before, but the Rockies playing the Athletics is not interesting unless you’re a diehard fan of either franchise, and frankly, neither of those teams really has diehard fans. Sports betting makes things more interesting and at least has you paying a bit of attention, but it does the same thing for a game with two great teams or two good pitchers as it does for games between bad teams. Tonight we get a good rivalry, highlighted by Sunday Night Baseball, and two strong pitchers as the Cubs take on the Cardinals.

The Cubs are still one of the best teams in baseball, but it does feel like this team is a bit of a fake. Sure, they have some very good hitters on the roster. They’ve found ways to win games despite having a used up bullpen and injuries to three of their starting pitchers, but it feels like we are waiting for the collapse to happen. Perhaps it is due to them not making a trade at the deadline that addressed their areas of need. Maybe it is just what Cubs fans do – wait for the floor to fall out beneath us. I really don’t know. They are falling further and further behind the scorching hot Brewers, and in the second half of the season, they are just 10-10. Tonight, they look to take the series from the Cardinals with Shota Imanaga on the hill. For the year, Imanaga is 8-4 with a 3.12 ERA, and a 1.00 WHIP. He has been slightly better on the road than he has at home, but it isn’t substantial. What I love about Imanaga is that he doesn’t give up many walks. He has just 17 for the season, almost allowing more homers than walks this year. Most of the homers came in the month of July, too. He allowed nine in July and just seven the rest of the season. He did face St. Louis once this season in St. Louis, allowing no runs over five innings on just one hit and one walk.Â

The Cardinals are not quite out of the postseason race, but their chances look bleaker and bleaker by the day. They essentially threw in the towel when they traded away their closer, but the team is still playing .500 baseball. The problem is that an average performance and season won’t get you to the postseason, even with three Wild Card spots. They are 4.5 games back of the Mets at the moment, but a win here and a Brewers win would position themselves even better at getting into the postseason. I can’t imagine the Mets, Padres, and Cubs all make it to the playoffs. Someone will eventually slip up and open the door for the Reds, Giants, or Cardinals. Tonight, they get their staff Ace, Sonny Gray on the mound. I watched Gray’s last start against the Dodgers and he was phenomenal. He allowed just one solo homer to Freddie Freeman, and one walk over seven innings while striking out eight hitters. He has pitched better at home than he has on the road, but almost two full runs. The bad news is that while he hasn’t faced Chicago this year, the Cubs are hitting almost .300 against him over 100 at-bats.Â

This is a big game for both clubs. I’m not going to say that it makes or breaks anything, but it is important to win against divisional opponents, especially ones that are your rivals. I think the Cardinals have a good chance to win the game, but I think the Cubs have a better one. I do think the Cubs win, but I also like the under for the game. I’m backing the under 8 runs tonight.Â

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