NLDS Game 3 Preview: St. Louis Cardinals Host the San Francisco Giants

Unlike the ALCS, the NLCS has proven to be a competitive series, thus far.

The St. Louis Cardinals and San Francisco Giants are knotted up at one game apiece in their series. The two teams head to Busch Stadium to play Game Three.

As they hit the road, the Giants send their ace to the mound. Matt Cain gets the ball on Wednesday afternoon in St. Louis. In his last start, Cain defeated the Reds in Game Five of the NLDS.

Cain has struggled in the 2012 playoffs, but had previously been dominant in the postseason. En route to helping the Giants win the 2010 World Series, Cain pitched three starts and didn’t allow an earned run.

Kyle Lohse gets the start for the defending champs. The Cardinals pitcher is in the midst of his best season as a pro. Lohse won a career-high 16 games and threw for a 2.86 earned run average.

There’s a good chance that Carlos Beltran will have a big game. He’s hit three homeruns in this postseason, and has a .389 career average against Cain.

For San Francisco, they’re hoping facing Lohse can get Hunter Pence back on track. He’s hitting .185 in seven playoff games, but has a .295 batting average in 44 at bats against the Cardinals starter.

With the series moving to St. Louis, the Cardinals are expected to win the contest. They are -124 favorites at most Las Vegas sportsbooks.

The game will air nationally at 4 p.m. ET on FOX. You can listen to a free live stream online at espnradio.com.

The winner of the NLCS will likely go on to face the Detroit Tigers in the World Series. They have a 3-0 lead over the New York Yankees in the ALCS.

Prediction: The Cardinals were tied for the best home record in the National League, during the regular season, with 50 wins. Cain is one of the best pitchers in the league, but his ERA is 1.5 times higher on the road. Look for St. Louis to take a 2-1 series lead, at the end of this one.

Predicted Score: St. Louis 6, San Francisco 2