The Pittsburgh Pirates are set to face off against the St. Louis Cardinals at Busch Stadium in Game 0 of their NL Central doubleheader. The action begins at 2:15 p.m. ET and fans can catch it on either ATPT or FSMW.
Pittsburgh Pirates vs. St. Louis Cardinals Odds
Pittsburgh (+145) is the underdog to St. Louis (-155) and oddsmakers have set the Over/Under for this afternoon game at 9 runs (-105 for the over and -115 for the under). Bettors can also wager on the game’s runline with the most recent odds sitting at -150 for the Pirates +1.5 runs and +130 for the Cardinals -1.5 runs.
The Pirates are 18-17 SU and are 18-16 against the spread (ATS). They’ve accumulated 0.6 units for bettors taking the moneyline in the season’s early going, despite having lost 0.4 units ATS. Pittsburgh is 3-4 ATS over its last seven games and the total has gone over in six of those seven. The Cardinals, on the other hand, are 22-17 SU and 23-15 ATS. They’ve gained 4.7 units for bettors taking the moneyline and 9.3 units ATS. St. Louis has a 3-4 ATS record over its last seven games and the over has cashed in four of those seven.
St. Louis games have an over/under record of 20-15-3 so far in 2019. The Pirates have an over/under record of 17-16-1.
Jordan Lyles will get the nod for Pittsburgh. The right-handed Lyles is 2-1 with a 2.20 ERA and 29 strikeouts. He has yet to face St. Louis this year, but he made two starts against the Cardinals in 2018, compiling a 0-2 record against them with a 4.97 ERA and nine strikeouts.
The Cardinals are countering with Miles Mikolas (4-2, 4.02 ERA). Mikolas has 28 punchouts and nine walks, along with a 1.13 WHIP. Mikolas is 0-0 with two strikeouts and a 5.40 ERA in one start against Pittsburgh this year.
As a unit, St. Louis’ pitching staff has allowed 4.5 runs per game overall this season. Its starters have an ERA of 4.41, a WHIP of 1.38 and a strikeouts-per-nine of 7.9. The bullpen has a 3.85 ERA, 1.14 WHIP and 10.4 K/9. In 22 games against NL Central foes, Cardinals starters have an ERA of 5.40 and the bullpen’s ERA is 5.03.
The St. Louis hitters have put up 5.1 runs per outing, including 5.5 per game against divisional foes and 5.0 per game over their last five. The team has hit .245/.342/.362 over its last five matchups and is 2-3 SU during that span.
Shortstop Paul DeJong and first baseman Paul Goldschmidt have led the Cardinals’ offense so far. DeJong is slashing .327/.406/.573 with seven home runs, 18 RBIs and 32 runs scored, while Goldschmidt is hitting .263 with nine homers, 21 RBIs and 26 runs scored.
For the visiting squad, Pittsburgh’s pitchers have allowed 4.7 runs per game and its starting pitchers own a 3.71 ERA, 1.21 WHIP and 7.84 K/9. The bullpen has logged an ERA of 4.87, along with a WHIP of 1.21 and a K-per-9 of 10.70.
The Pirates offense has slashed .236/.300/.375 on its way to 3.6 runs scored per game this year, including 3.5 runs per game against divisional foes and 4.4 per game over the team’s last five outings (3-2 SU).
First baseman Josh Bell and right fielder Melky Cabrera have led Pittsburgh’s hitters. Bell is slashing .300/.372/.631 with nine home runs, 28 RBIs and 22 runs scored, while Cabrera (.324/.360/.463) has produced three homers, 10 RBIs and 10 runs scored.
The Pirates have gained 1.9 units and are 13-11 ATS when facing a right-handed starting pitcher this season. The over has hit in 11 of those games, compared to 12 that’ve hit the under against righty starters. On the other hand, the Cardinals have netted 5.7 units and are 20-12 ATS when facing a right-handed starting pitcher. The over has hit in 17 of those games, as opposed to 13 that’ve gone under.
Pirates at Cardinals MLB Prediction
Predictions: SU Winner – Cardinals, ATS Winner – Pirates, O/U – OVER
Betting Trends
- The over has cashed in four of St. Louis’ last seven games.
- The Pirates have hit 12 home runs in their last 10 games. The Cardinals have hit seven over their last 10.
- The Pirates have a total OPS of .675 this season and an OPS of .702 against right-handed pitchers. The Cardinals’ OPS stands at .771 overall and .797 versus righties.
- St. Louis has recorded 21.1 Runs + Hits + Errors per game over its last 10 outings and 21.0 over its last five.
