The St. Louis Cardinals will take on their divisional rival Pittsburgh Pirates at PNC Park. The matchup starts at 7:05 p.m. ET and you can catch it on either ATPT or FSMW.
St. Louis Cardinals at Pittsburgh Pirates Odds
Vegas is listing St. Louis (-110) as the favorite over Pittsburgh (+100). Bettors are able to gamble on the game’s total with odds sitting at -110 for over 8.5 runs and -110 for under 8.5. Bettors can also wager on the game’s spread with the runline odds standing at +135 for the Cardinals -1.5 runs and -155 for the Pirates +1.5.
The Cardinals have gone 15-10 SU this year and are 14-10 against the spread (ATS). They’ve gained 3.8 units for gamblers taking the moneyline in the season’s early going and 2.9 units ATS. The Pirates, on the other hand, are 15-11 SU and 13-12 ATS. The team has gained 1.6 units for moneyline bettors and 2.4 units ATS.
Pittsburgh games have a 13-9-3 over/under record thus far in 2018. The Cardinals have an over/under record of 12-11-1.
The right-handed Jack Flaherty is projected to start for the visiting Cardinals. Flaherty is 0-0 with a 1.80 ERA and nine strikeouts. He has yet to face the Pirates this year and did not record a start against them in 2017, either.
The Pirates are putting the ball in the right hand of Trevor Williams (3-1, 2.15 ERA), who’s got 21 strikeouts and 15 walks as well as a 1.16 WHIP. Williams made three starts against the Cardinals in 2017, putting together a 0-2 record with an 8.78 ERA.
St. Louis’ pitching staff allowed 3.6 runs per game and its starting pitchers own a 3.11 ERA, 1.21 WHIP and 8.40 K/9. The bullpen has logged an ERA of 3.53, along with a K-per-9 of 8.83.
Cardinals hitters have slashed .244/.332/.404 on their way to 5.0 runs scored per game in 2018, including 5.5 runs per game against divisional foes and 6.4 per game over the team’s last five contests (3-2 SU).
St. Louis’ hitters have been led by outfielder Tommy Pham and first baseman Jose Martinez. Pham is hitting .358/.469/.531 with 29 hits, nine RBIs, 22 runs and five stolen bases, while Martinez is hitting .309 with 29 hits, three homers, 18 RBIs and nine runs scored.
Pham enjoyed batting against righties on the road last year. Across 226 such plate appearances, he maintained a slash line of .352/.438/.633 (compared to his overall season line of .306/.411/.520).
In the home-team dugout, Pittsburgh’s pitching staff has given up 4.5 runs per game overall this season. Its starters have a 3.99 ERA, 1.23 WHIP and 7.1 strikeouts per nine innings. The bullpen has a 4.62 ERA, 1.47 WHIP and 9.3 K/9. In eight divisional games, Pirates starters have an ERA of 3.26 and the bullpen’s ERA is 6.23.
The Pittsburgh hitters have put up 5.0 runs per outing, including 6.6 per game against divisional foes and 5.4 per game over their last five. The team’s hit .276/.347/.432 over its last five games and is 3-2 SU during that stretch.
Catcher Francisco Cervelli and right fielder Starling Marte have led the Pirates’ hitters so far. Cervelli is slashing .306/.400/.542 with three home runs, 18 RBIs and nine runs scored, while Marte’s line is .284/.371/.461 with three homers, 11 RBIs, 19 runs and eight steals.
Marte performed well against righty pitching at home last season, slashing .374/.447/.565 across 132 such plate appearances (compared to his total season line of .275/.333/.379).
The Cardinals have gained 0.9 units and are 9-8 ATS when facing a righty starter this season. The over has cashed in nine of those games, compared to seven that’ve gone under in such games. On the other hand, the Pirates have netted 1.1 units and are 10-10 ATS when facing a right-handed starting pitcher. The over’s hit in eight of those games, as opposed to nine which went under the total.
St. Louis Cardinals vs. Pittsburgh Pirates MLB Pick
Predictions: SU Winner – Pirates, ATS Winner – Pirates, O/U – OVER
Notes
Betting Notes
The over has hit in just two of Pittsburgh’s last seven games.
Pittsburgh has recorded 21.4 Runs + Hits + Errors per game over its last 10 games and 26.6 over its last five.
The Cardinals have hit 10 home runs in their last 10 games. The Pirates have hit eight over their last 10.
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