Play: St. Louis Cardinals
Rating: 8/10*

The St. Louis Cardinals' bats are red hot and they go for a sixth consecutive win Thursday night. I think they'll give Kansas City right-hander Jason Hammel enough problems in this matchup to complete the sweep of the four-game series.

Hammel (5-9, 4.73 ERA) has allowed three runs in each of his last three starts, and he's posted a 5.68 ERA and a 4-6 record in previous meetings with the Cards. The current Cardinals roster is batting a combined .282 over 110 at bats against Hammel with Yadier Molina going 10-for-24 with four doubles and a triple.

Lance Lynn (10-6, 3.12 ERA will take the ball for St. Louis. Lynn has struggled with Royals in the past, but he's entering this contest red hot going 4-0 with a 1.21 ERA through his last six starts overall (Cards 5-1 in those games). We can also note that Lynn is 5-3 with a 2.58 ERA in 10 home starts on the season.

I also like the perceived umpire advantage for the home team here. The Cardinals are 6-1 in their last 7 games with Marty Foster behind home plate while the Royals 1-4 in their last five games with Foster calling balls and strikes.

My selection is an 8* play on St. Louis Cardinals ML.