The St. Louis Cardinals are coming into this contest as massive favorites as they seek to complete the sweep of a three-game series against the Arizona Diamondbacks. I think this will be a much closer game than the books expect though, and I would not be surprised to see Arizona record an upset.

Here are my keys to the game:

1. Pitching - The D'Backs will hand the ball to Josh Collmenter (3-5, 5.19 ERA) who's coming off a solid start when he held the Cubs to two runs on six hits over five innings in a 5-4 win not factoring in the decision. He is 2-1 with a 0.96 ERA over 18 2/3 innings spread out over four appearances (one start) against the Cardinals since 2012, and he's yet to concede a run at Busch Stadium where he's hurled four scoreless innings. The Cardinals will counter with Lance Lynn (3-4, 3.46 ERA) who was lit up for five runs on 10 hits with two homers over six innings in a 5-0 loss at Kansas City his last start. He is 2-0 with a 2.89 ERA in five career starts against Arizona, but the current members of the D'Backs have a combined batting average of .328 over 64 at bats against the 28 year old right-hander.

2. Situational - The D'Backs are 6-2 in their last eight games as a road underdog and 7-1 in Collmenter's last eight starts with four days of rest.

3. X-Factor - Jason Heyward is just 1-for-9 so far in the series and his struggles are likely to continue tonight as he's a pathetic 2-for-14 over previous meetings with Collmenter.

Selection: This is a play on the Arizona Diamondbacks +1.5 (8*)