St. Louis Cardinals vs Pittsburgh Pirates Betting Pick & Prediction 7/24/24

Both the Cardinals and Pirates will be looking to pick up a win in today’s NL Central matchup, as the Cardinals are 2nd in the division with a record of 53-48, while the Pirates are 3rd at 51-50. Today’s forecast in Pittsburgh calls for broken clouds and temperatures in the upper 60s.

First pitch from PNC Park is set for 12:35 PM ET, and MLBN will be televising this matchup. Matthew Liberatore is starting for the Cardinals, while the Pirates are going with Martin Perez. St. Louis is the slight money line favorite, and the over/under line is currently 8.5 runs.

ST. LOUIS CARDINALS VS PITTSBURGH PIRATES BETTING PICK

The Pick: St. Louis Cardinals Moneyline -105

This game will be played at PNC Park at 12:35 ET on Wednesday, July 24th.

HOW TO BET THE CARDINALS VS PIRATES:

• We have the Cardinals winning by a score of 6 to 5
• However, if you’re looking for a run line pick, we like the Pirates to cover
• As for an over/under pick, we have this game finishing with 11 runs and like the over

It was a low-scoring game in the most recent game of this Cardinals vs. Pirates series. St. Louis went into the matchup as +155 underdogs and squeaked out a 2-1 win. Both teams scored one run in the first inning, and the Pirates could only muster one more run in the 8th inning. As for the Cardinals, they scored the game’s go-ahead run in the 9th, and the Pirates went down quietly in the bottom half of the inning.

Pittsburgh wasted a good outing from Paul Skenes, as he gave up just two earned runs in 8 1/3 innings of work. Ryan Fernandez got the win for the Cardinals out of the bullpen, and Ryan Helsley got the save. Lance Lynn started for St. Louis, giving up two earned runs across five innings.

Nolan Arenado was the difference for the Cardinals, as he homered twice, scored three times, and finished with two RBIs. Jack Suwinski also had a two-hit game for St. Louis. As for the Pirates, their top hitter was Bryan Reynolds, who went 2/4.

Cardinals Records & Stats

St. Louis is 53-48 overall and trails the Brewers by five games in the NL Central. The Cardinals are 16-15 against other teams in the division and have a chance to pick up a game on the Brewers as they take on the Pirates today. So far, they are 26-22 at home and 27-26 on the road.

As the road favorite, the Cardinals have gone 10-6 this season, and they are 28-23 when favored overall. St. Louis has an overall series record of 16-12-3, and they have won two straight series on the road.

Over their last seven road games, the St. Louis Cardinals have covered the run line each time. They are 27-26 against the run line on the road this season, and their average run differential in those games is -0.3 runs per game. They have been a better bet as an underdog, going 33-17 against the run line in those games.

St. Louis is on the road in Pittsburgh tonight, and the over/under line is set at 8.5 runs. The Cardinals have played in 22 games with an over/under line of 8.5 runs this season, and their record in those games is 22-13. Overall, St. Louis has an over/under record of 47-51 for the season, and their games have averaged 8.6 runs per game.

So far this season, Matthew Liberatore has made 33 appearances and 5 starts. He has a record of 2-2 and an ERA of 4.15. Liberatore’s WHIP for the season is 1.21. Out of his 33 appearances, he has made one quality start and is averaging 7.1 strikeouts per nine innings. The last time he pitched was on July 14th out of the bullpen, where he went one-third of an inning and didn’t give up a run. He finished with a no-decision in that outing. Leading up to this start, he has had three straight no-decisions.

For the season, the Cardinals are averaging just 4.1 runs per game, which is 22nd in the league. They have been slightly better at home, averaging 4.2 runs per game. As a team, they are batting .245, which is 10th in the league, and their on-base percentage of .308 is 15th in the MLB. However, their OPS of .695 is just 18th in the league.

St. Louis will be looking for Alec Burleson and Nolan Gorman to continue their strong seasons at the plate. Burleson is batting .293 for the season and has gone 15/41 with three homers over his last 10 games. Gorman is batting just .207 but is 11th in the league with 19 homers. Brendan Donovan is also a threat in the lineup, as he has gone deep nine times and is batting .269.

Pirates Records & Stats

Pittsburgh is 51-50 overall this season and is 7.0 games behind the Brewers in the NL Central. So far, they have gone 16-15 in divisional games. The Pirates will host the Cardinals today, and they are 25-26 at home this season.

The Pirates have been on a nice roll, winning seven of their last ten games. At home, they have been good as the underdog, putting together a mark of 12-12. As the underdog overall, the Pirates are 29-30 and 22-20 as the favorite. Pittsburgh’s overall series record is 14-12-5, and they have won three straight series overall and two straight on the road.

When betting the run line on the Pirates, it’s best to do so when they are the underdog, as they are 40-19 against the run line in those games. They are just 15-27 against the run line as the favorite. Their overall run line record is 55-46, with an average run margin of -0.1 runs per game. Their scoring margin is -0.4 runs per game at home and 0.2 runs per game on the road.

The Pittsburgh Pirates are at home today against the St. Louis Cardinals. The over/under line for the game is set at 8.5 runs, which is slightly higher than their combined run average of 8.4 runs per game. The Pirates have played to the over in 19 of the 32 games this season where the line was set at 8.5 runs. Overall, the Pirates have an over/under record of 46-54 this season.

Martín Pérez gets the start for the Pirates today and will be looking to bounce back from a rough outing vs. the Phillies. In that start, which came on July 19th, he went 3 2/3 innings, giving up six earned runs, and two homers. He finished with a no-decision in the outing. Looking back over his last four starts, Pérez has finished with a no-decision in three of them. So far this season, he has made 15 starts, has a record of 1-5, and an ERA of 5.61. Opposing batters are hitting .312 off the left-hander this season.

Heading into today’s game, the Pirates are averaging just 4.1 runs per game, which is 23rd in the league. This is a team that has struggled to hit for power, as they are 19th in home runs and have a collective batting average of just .233. However, they do have a few hitters that have been swinging the bat well of late, including Bryan Reynolds, who is 13/26 in his last seven games.

Reynolds is also the Pirates’ top hitter for the season, with a batting average of .288 and 18 home runs. Oneil Cruz is batting .253 for the season and is 2nd on the team with 15 homers.