Kansas City Royals vs St Louis Cardinals Prediction, Preview and Odds - 06/05/2025

Game Time: 7:45 pm ET, Thursday, June 5, 2025

Venue:  Busch Stadium, St. Louis, MO

Where to Watch:  FDSMW

DraftKings:  Moneyline odds:  Royals -102, Cardinals -118; Over/Under:  7.5 runs

Bet365:  Moneyline odds:  Royals +100, Cardinals -120; Over/Under:  7.5 runs

BetMGM:  Moneyline odds:  Royals +100, Cardinals -120; Over/Under:  7.5 runs

Kansas City Royals:  32-29 (4th place, AL Central)

St Louis Cardinals:  33-27 (2nd place, NL Central)

Do not miss out on our expert handicapper analysis! Matt Fargo is on a HOT STREAK in the MLB on a 30-28 MLB RUN for +$10,740 PROFIT! Make sure you check out his picks and many more from the expert handicappers featured in the Shop Picks section.

Kansas City Royals:  4-6 last 10

St Louis Cardinals:  6-4 last 10

The Royals are entering this series off a loss and lost their 3-game series against the Detroit Tigers 2-1 in their last series. They enter this game with a 32-29 record overall and have a road record of 13-16. This is the series finale of a 3-game series with the Cardinals on Thursday with the 2nd game still to be played on Wednesday. The Royals won the series opener on Tuesday. Their offense ranks 26th in the MLB with a .664 OPS. Rookie pitcher Noah Cameron is their starting pitcher on Wednesday while Cole Ragans is making his start in this game on Thursday. He is 2-3 with a 4.53 ERA this season. His team lost their last 2 straight games this season with him making an appearance. In his last MLB regular season start, he allowed 4 ER, 0 HR, and 0 BB with 7 Ks on 5 hits through 5 IP against the St Louis Cardinals.

The Cardinals are entering this series off a loss and lost their 3-game series against the Texas Rangers 2-1 in their last series. They enter this game with a 33-27 record overall and have a home record of 19-9. This is the 3rd game of a 3-game series with the Royals on Thursday with the 2nd game of this series still to be played on Wednesday. The Cardinals lost the 1st game of this series on Tuesday. Their offense ranks 10th in the MLB with a .726 OPS. Miles Mikolas is their starting pitcher on Wednesday while Matthew Liberatore is making his start in this game on Thursday. He is 3-4 with a 3.08 ERA this season. His team lost 2 of their last 3 games this season with him making an appearance. In his last MLB regular season start, he allowed 4 earned runs, 1 homer, and 1 BB with 5 strikeouts on 7 hits through 5 innings played against the Texas Rangers.

The current betting odds have the Cardinals listed as a slight favorite in this game according to Draftkings Sportsbook. The Cardinals have looked good in their games this season with their 33-27 record overall which has them right near the top of the NL Central. They have also looked a lot better in their own ballpark this year with their 19-9 home record. Meanwhile, the Royals have looked good in their games this season with their 32-29 record overall, but that record also has them near the bottom of the AL Central in a competitive division. They haven't been a good road team either with their 13-16 road record this season. The Royals took the 1st game of this series on Tuesday with a big comeback win, but they have not looked good coming into this series as they are 4-6 in their last 10 games. The Cardinals are 6-4 in their last 10 games and have looked a lot better at home this year so they should have enough to edge out the Royals in this one. Liberatore is on the mound for the Cardinals and he hasn't looked great this year. His team has lost 2 of the last 3 games he started in and he did give up 4 earned runs in his last start, but he hasn't been that bad as he is 3-4 with a 3.08 ERA and he will pitch better in this game at home. Ragans is on the bump for the Royals in this one and he hasn't looked any better this season. He is 2-3 with a 4.53 ERA and has been giving up runs all year. He also gave up 4 earned runs in his last start and the team has lost 2 games in a row now with him starting. The Cardinals have been the hotter team lately and have had the better offense this season so look for them to take advantage of this pitching matchup. The best way to place a bet here is on the Cardinals to win this game. 

Royals Cardinals Prediction:  Our MLB Pick for Thursday, June 5, 2025 (7:45 pm ET start time) is Cardinals 5 Royals 4.

Don't miss our champion handicappers free picks, best bets, and expert baseball picks today.  And if you enjoyed this Kansas City Royals St Louis Cardinals prediction, be sure to drop by every day for our daily MLB projections and previews.

Kansas City Royals: 73-87 (+4 units) on the moneyline as an underdog of +100 to +150. 9-9 (+3.2 units) on the moneyline vs. an NL starting pitcher whose ERA is 3.20 or better. 51-29 (+25.4 units) on the moneyline vs. poor power teams - averaging 0.9 or less HR's/game. 51-29 UNDER vs. poor power teams - averaging 0.9 or less HR's/game.

St Louis Cardinals: 186-197 (-23 units) on the moneyline in all games. 98-92 (-16.9 units) on the moneyline in home games. 51-54 (-8.5 units) on the moneyline against left-handed starters. 6-3 UNDER at home after 6 consecutive games versus interleague opponents.

Kansas City Royals:  M. Garcia (3B) Day To Day - Thumb. L. Erceg (RP) Fifteen Day IL - Back. C. Ragans (SP) Fifteen Day IL - Groin. A. Marsh (SP) Sixty Day IL - Shoulder. J. McArthur (RP) Sixty Day IL - Elbow. S. Long (RP) Fifteen Day IL - Elbow. H. Harvey (RP) Fifteen Day IL - Shoulder. K. Wright (SP) Fifteen Day IL - Shoulder.

St Louis Cardinals:  J. Walker (RF) Ten Day IL - Wrist. Z. Thompson (RP) Sixty Day IL - Lat.

“Hit the ball pretty well. No cigar. Victor Scott is pretty good out there. He made a great play.” - Jac Caglianone after their win against the Cardinals in their game on Tuesday.

“If you allow him to play more, you’ll see him step on the gas a little more, meaning more power. Some of that contact is being traded for power at the moment. Especially if you’re not playing every day. The more at-bats you get, the faster you allow yourself to drive.” - Oliver Marmol on Nolan Gorman after his team’s loss against the Royals in their game on Tuesday.

Jonathan India (R) 2B

Bobby Witt Jr. (R) SS

Maikel Garcia (R) 3B

Vinnie Pasquantino (L) 1B

Salvador Perez (R) C

Jac Caglianone (L) DH

Nick Loftin (R) LF

Drew Waters (S) RF

Kyle Isbel (L) CF

Lars Nootbaar (L) LF

Masyn Winn (R) SS

Brendan Donovan (L) 2B

Willson Contreras (R) 1B

Iván Herrera (R) C

Nolan Arenado (R) 3B

Alec Burleson (L) RF

Nolan Gorman (L) DH

Victor Scott II (L) CF

Batting Average:  Luke Maile (.375)

Hits:  Bobby Witt (68)

Home Runs:  Vinnie Pasquantino (8)

RBI:  Bobby Witt (35)

Stolen Bases:  Bobby Witt (20)

Wins:  Kris Bubic (5)

Saves:  Carlos Estévez (17)

ERA:  Hunter Harvey (0.00)

Batting Average:  Thomas Saggese (.341)

Hits:  Brendan Donovan (71)

Home Runs:  Lars Nootbaar (8)

RBI:  Willson Contreras (32)

Stolen Bases:  Victor Scott (16)

Wins:  Sonny Gray (6)

Saves:  Ryan Helsley (13)

ERA:  Michael McGreevy (0.00)

Managers:

Kansas City Royals: Matt Quatraro (3rd season)

St Louis Cardinals: Oliver Marmol (4th season)