Cubs vs. Cardinals Prediction, MLB Picks for Tuesday, July 28 

July 28, 2026

MLB
AP Photo/Nam Y. Huh
Chicago Cubs 1B Michael Busch hits a home run during an MLB game against the Minnesota Twins.

The Chicago Cubs (60-46) and St. Louis Cardinals (53-53) play the second game of their four-game series at 7:45 p.m. ET on Tuesday, July 28. The Cubs are road favorites, and a win would return a 1.81x payout, per PrizePicks.

The Cubs opened this set with a 7-3 win, powered by a big night at the plate by 3B Alex Bregman, who went deep and doubled twice. The loss dropped the Cardinals’ record to 3-8 since the All-Star break.

Chicago continues to hold the top NL Wild Card spot, while St. Louis sits 1.5 games back of the final berth in a crowded race. 

Below, we'll break down our Cubs vs. Cardinals prediction and picks for Tuesday’s MLB matchup, including the run line, over/under, and key player picks for PrizePicks.

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Cubs vs. Cardinals Prediction, Winner Payout, Over/Under – Tuesday, July 28

SP Colin Rea is slated to take the mound for the Cubs, and he comes in with an underwhelming 4.83 ERA over 105.2 innings this season.

Unfortunately for Chicago, that ERA doesn’t look likely to improve, as the 36-year-old righty also owns poor marks in xERA (5.59), strikeout rate (17.5%), and barrel rate (10.4%), all of which are in the 13th percentile or worse, per Baseball Savant.

While that’s good news for the Cardinals’ bats, they still might not have a clear pitching advantage to begin this game.

As of Tuesday morning, St. Louis hasn’t officially announced its starter, but it’s expected to be SP Michael McGreevy. At first glance, the right-hander boasts an impressive 3.07 ERA across his 20 starts and has solid marks in walk rate (5.9%) and ground-ball rate (46.5%).

However, his 5.48 xERA is only slightly better than Rea’s, and he similarly has a lackluster K-rate (16.3%) and barrel rate (10.2%). While this may have looked like a pitching mismatch on the surface, McGreevy could be due for regression, perhaps making this a more even battle. 

Offensively, the Cubs ought to have a distinctive advantage. According to FanGraphs, Chicago ranks third in MLB with a 111 wRC+, while St. Louis sits 21st at 95. 

Cubs vs. Cardinals Winner Payout, Over/Under – Tuesday, July 28

The Cubs enter Tuesday’s game as a road favorite against the Cardinals, returning a 1.81x payout if they win outright, via PrizePicks Team Picks.

Here are the full payouts for the Cubs vs. Cardinals game on PrizePicks.

Cubs vs. Cardinals Payouts

Team Winner Spread Over/Under
Chicago Cubs 1.81x Cubs -1.5 (2.32x) Over 8.5 (1.75)
St. Louis Cardinals 1.88x Cardinals +1.5 (1.56x) Under 8.5 (2x)
Payouts listed are live as of writing and are subject to change.
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Team Picks data is live at the time of writing and is subject to change.


Cubs vs. Cardinals Prediction on Winner – 7/28/26

Here are the key game stats and trends behind our Cubs vs. Cardinals prediction on the winner for Tuesday, July 28.

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  • The Cubs are averaging the third-most runs per game (5.17). The Cardinals are 16th (4.42), and they score the third-fewest at home (3.72).
  • The gap between these offenses has been even more pronounced since the All-Star break, as the Cubs have posted a 129 wRC+ compared to the Cardinals' 69. 
  • Although Rea has had mixed results in his two post-break starts, he’s produced a promising 3.19 xFIP, 24.4% K-rate, and 4.4% BB-rate.
  • In addition to McGreevy's low strikeout rate, he frequently allows loud contact, as evidenced by his 42.2% hard-hit rate (25th percentile) and 90.2 mph average exit velocity (17th percentile). 
  • In July, Chicago is 12-8, while St. Louis is 9-15. The Cardinals have just three wins in the second half. 

Cubs vs. Cardinals Picks, Player Stats for PrizePicks: 7/28/26

Here are the top Cubs vs. Cardinals picks to target on Tuesday, July 28. Today’s MLB picks for PrizePicks include Jordan Walker and Michael Busch.

Cardinals OF Jordan Walker vs. Cubs: 5.5 Fantasy Score

  • Walker won this year’s Home Run Derby, and he enters this game with an impressive 93.5 mph average exit velocity (96th percentile). He’s also 89th percentile or better in xwOBA (.365), barrel rate (13.9%), and hard-hit rate (50.0%).
  • The 24-year-old’s 79.2 mph average bat speed is in the 100th percentile and ranks second overall in MLB.
  • Rea has shown some reverse split tendencies, as he’s been worse against right-handed batters in both xFIP (5.28) and K-rate (16.0%). Most notably, he’s coughed up 2.42 HR/9 off a 49.6% fly ball rate in same-handed matchups.
  • Although Walker hasn’t homered since July 9, he’s still posted a .373 wOBA and .218 ISO this month. 
  • The outfielder has 14 stolen bases in 2026, giving him another path toward scoring fantasy points. 
Add Jordan Walker to your PrizePicks Lineup now.

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Cubs 1B Michael Busch vs. Cardinals: 5.5 Fantasy Score

  • Busch bats third for the Cubs vs. right-handers, and he’s shown a good eye this year with a 14.0% walk rate (94th percentile) and 24.7% chase rate (81st percentile). That’s helped him to an above-average .338 xwOBA (67th percentile).
  • The 28-year-old has logged at least 1 hit in 10 of the last 12 games, and half of those have been multi-hit outings.
  • McGreevy’s strikeout rate drops to 13.6% against left-handed batters, and his xFIP is also worse in the split (4.55).
  • The Cardinals’ bullpen ranks 25th in both xERA (4.69) and xFIP (4.56).
Add Michael Busch to your PrizePicks Lineup now.

Make Cubs vs. Cardinals Picks on PrizePicks

The Cardinals have struggled lately, and the Cubs will look to take advantage. Can St. Louis bounce back to even the series on Tuesday?

Don’t wait until the first pitch — make your Cubs vs. Cardinals picks on PrizePicks now and earn real money if you’re right.

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Kenyatta has been writing fantasy and betting content since 2017, previously working for FanDuel Research and numberFire. In 2021, he won the FSWA award for Best Baseball Article. In a prior life, he traveled all over working in live event production at ESPN.