The Pittsburgh Pirates will be taking on their divisional rival St. Louis Cardinals at Busch Stadium. The game gets going at 8:15 p.m. ET and the action will be televised on both ATPT and FSMW.
Pittsburgh Pirates vs. St. Louis Cardinals Odds
St. Louis (-140) is favored against Pittsburgh (+130) and oddsmakers have put the Over/Under for this night game at 8.5 runs (-115 for the over and -105 for the under). The game’s current runline odds stand at -170 for taking the Pirates +1.5 runs and +150 for the Cardinals -1.5 runs.
The Cardinals are 30-24 SU and 26-27 ATS. They’ve lost 1.4 units for moneyline bettors and 2.3 units against the spread (ATS). St. Louis has covered the spread four times in its last seven games and the total has gone under in four of those seven. The Pirates are 29-27 SU and have gone 25-30 ATS. In total, the team’s accumulated 0.3 units for bettors taking the moneyline, but have lost 4.5 units ATS. Pittsburgh is 3-4 ATS over its last seven games and the under has cashed in three of those seven.
Cardinals games have had an over/under record of 20-29-4 thus far in 2018. Pirates games have gone over 27 times, gone under 22 times and pushed on six occasions.
Jameson Taillon is getting the start for the visiting Pirates. The right-handed Taillon is 2-4 with a 4.53 ERA and 54 strikeouts. He’s 0-0 with six strikeouts and a 4.26 ERA against St. Louis this year (four starts).
The Cardinals are putting the ball in the hands of righty Miles Mikolas (6-0, 2.58 ERA), who has 51 strikeouts and seven walks to his name, as well as a WHIP of 0.98. Mikolas is 0-0 with 12 strikeouts and a 4.15 ERA against Pittsburgh this year.
Pittsburgh’s pitchers have allowed 4.5 runs per game and its starters own a 4.20 ERA, 1.27 WHIP and 7.42 K/9. The bullpen has an ERA of 4.30, along with a WHIP of 1.27 and a K-per-9 of 9.61.
Pirates hitters have slashed .258/.330/.425 on their way to 4.7 runs scored per game in 2018, including 5.3 runs per game against divisional foes and 4.0 per game over the team’s last five outings (1-4 SU).
Outfielders Corey Dickerson and Starling Marte continue to lead Pittsburgh’s hitters. Dickerson is slashing .310/.346/.490 with five home runs, 31 RBIs and 25 runs scored, while Marte (.306/.357/.506) has produced seven homers, 23 RBIs, 32 runs and 10 steals.
In the home-team dugout, St. Louis’ pitchers have given up 3.9 runs per game overall in 2018. The club’s starting pitching staff has an ERA of 3.06, a WHIP of 1.17 and a strikeouts-per-nine of 8.0. The bullpen has a 4.44 ERA, 1.44 WHIP and 8.3 K/9. In 28 divisional games, Cardinals starters have an ERA of 3.15 and the bullpen’s ERA is 4.32.
The St. Louis hitters are putting up 4.4 runs per contest, including 4.9 per game against divisional foes and 5.4 per game over their last five. The team has hit .267/.333/.424 over its last five contests and is 3-2 SU during that span.
The Cardinals’ hitters have been led by first baseman Jose Martinez and left fielder Marcell Ozuna. Martinez is hitting .294/.367/.438 with five home runs, 31 RBIs and 21 runs scored, while Ozuna’s line is .260/.308/.337 with three homers, 23 RBIs and 20 runs scored.
Compared to his overall season slash line of .309/.379/.518, Martinez did not do very well against righties last season, slashing .282/.346/.427 over 237 plate appearances.
The Pirates have gained 1.6 units and are 21-22 ATS when facing a right-handed starting pitcher this year. The over has cashed in 18 of those games, compared to 19 that’ve gone under in such games. On the other hand, the Cardinals have lost 3.8 units and are 18-22 ATS when facing a right-handed starting pitcher. The over has hit in 14 of those games, compared to 22 that’ve cashed the under.
Pittsburgh Pirates at St. Louis Cardinals MLB Tip
Predictions: SU Winner – Cardinals, ATS Winner – Pirates, O/U – OVER
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Notes
Betting Notes
The Pittsburgh defense has allowed four errors over its last five games, compared to seven errors for St. Louis over its last five.
Both teams have hit 11 home runs over their last 10 games.
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