St. Louis Cardinals vs Pittsburgh Pirates Prediction MLB Picks 7/3/24

In this article we will formulate a St. Louis Cardinals vs Pittsburgh Pirates prediction for this MLB game on Wednesday, July 3rd at PNC Park in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. To formulate this prediction for game two in the series, we will examine:

• The Cardinals recent form and recent player performance 
• The Pirates recent form and recent play performance
• Recent Betting trends and streaks involving St. Louis
• Recent Betting trends and streaks involving Pittsburgh
• Recent betting trends in games played between St. Louis and Pittsburgh 
• A summary that ties it all together and produces a favorable betting outcome for Today’s Game between St. Louis and Pittsburgh

Cardinals Continue to Chase the Brewers 

The St. Louis Cardinals are 44-40 this season and they have won three of their last four games. St. Louis won game one in this series by a score of 7-4 on Tuesday night. Prior to this series, the Cardinals split four games with the Reds, won two out of three against the Braves, and swept the Giants in three games. St. Louis is 8-3 in their last 11 games and they are second in the NL Central. 

The St. Louis pitching staff has a 3.89 ERA, a 1.25 WHIP, and a .244 opponent batting average. The Cardinals offense has scored 335 runs with a .240 batting average and a .307 on base percentage. Nolan Gorman is batting .192 with 17 home runs and 41 RBI’s for the Cardinals this season. St. Louis has allowed three runs or fewer in five of their last nine games. 

Pirates Look to Bounce Back 

The Pittsburgh Pirates are 40-44 this year and they have lost three of their last four games. Pittsburgh dropped game one in this series on Tuesday night and they allowed seven runs in the loss. Prior to this series, the Pirates lost two out of three against the Braves, won two out of three against the Reds, and lost two out of three against the Rays. Pittsburgh is 3-5 in their last eight games and they are third in the NL Central. 

The Pittsburgh pitching staff has a 4.00 ERA, a 1.28 WHIP, and a .247 opponent batting average. The Pirates offense has scored 337 runs with a .227 batting average and a .296 on base percentage. Bryan Reynolds is batting .271 with 13 home runs and 46 RBI’s for the Pirates this season. Pittsburgh has scored at least four runs in five of their last seven games. 

Starting Pitchers

The projected starting pitcher for St. Louis is Miles Mikolas, who is 6-7 with a 5.32 ERA and a 1.25 WHIP over 94.2 innings pitched this year. Mikolas has allowed two earned runs or fewer in three of his last five starts, but has allowed 13 earned runs in his last two outings. The projected starting pitcher for Pittsburgh is Jared Jones, who is 5-6 with a 3.66 ERA and a 1.10 WHIP over 86.0 innings pitched this year. Jones has allowed two earned runs or fewer in three of his last four starts. 

Why the Pirates will beat the Cardinals

• The Pirates have won seven of their last eight night games against National League opponents following a loss.
• The Cardinals have lost five of their last six night games against the Pirates following a win.
• The Cardinals have failed to cover the run line in each of their last six games following a road win.
• The Pirates have covered the run line in each of their last four games against the Cardinals at PNC Park following a loss.

Total Runs Facts

• Seven of the Cardinals’ last eight road games against NL Central opponents have gone UNDER the total runs line.
• Each of the Pirates’ last five home games after playing the previous day have gone UNDER the total runs line.
• The ‘Inning 1 UNDER 0.5 runs’ market has hit in each of the Cardinals’ last six games as road underdogs against NL Central opponents.
• The ‘Inning 1 UNDER 0.5 runs’ market has hit in each of the last six night games between the Cardinals and Pirates.

Pittsburgh Pirates Player Prop Facts

• Bryan Reynolds has recorded at least one RBI in five of the Pirates’ last six games as home favorites against NL opponents.
• Bryan Reynolds has recorded at least one hit in each of the Pirates’ last 13 Wednesday night games against NL opponents that held a winning record.
• Edward Olivares has recorded at least one Single in eight of his last nine appearances after playing the previous day.
• Andrew McCutchen has hit a home run in each of the Pirates’ last two games against NL Central opponents.
• Bryan Reynolds has scored at least one run in each of the Pirates’ last eight Wednesday games at PNC Park.
• Connor Joe has recorded at least one Double in three of the Pirates’ last four home games against the Cardinals.
• Bryan Reynolds has recorded at least one total base in each of the Pirates’ last 13 Wednesday night games against NL opponents that held a winning record.

St. Louis Cardinals Player Prop Facts

• Brendan Donovan has recorded at least one hit in each of the Cardinals’ last 14 night games against NL opponents that held a losing record.
• Tommy Edman has recorded at least one Single in seven of his last eight appearances in night games.
• Miles Mikolas has recorded a win in four of his last five appearances with the Cardinals as underdogs against NL Central opponents.
• Brendan Donovan has recorded at least one RBI in each of the Cardinals’ last four road games against opponents that held a losing record.
• Miles Mikolas has recorded five or more strikeouts in four of his last five appearances with the Cardinals as underdogs against NL opponents.
• Alec Burleson has hit a home run in two of the Cardinals’ last three road games against opponents that held a losing record.
• Nolan Arenado has scored a run in four of the Cardinals’ last five games.
• Tommy Edman has recorded a Double in three of his last four appearances with the Cardinals as road underdogs against the Pirates.
• Brendan Donovan has recorded at least one total base in each of the Cardinals’ last 14 night games against NL opponents that held a losing record.

St. Louis Cardinals vs Pittsburgh Pirates Prediction 

St. Louis was able to pick up the win in game one of this series on Tuesday and they continue to draw closer to the Brewers in the NL Central. The Cardinals have played very well over the last month, but they are still just 20-22 on the road. Pittsburgh is 19-21 at home and even though they are four games below .500, they are not an easy team to go up against. The Cardinals are starting Mikolas, who has the ability to be a solid pitcher, but he has really struggled in his last two outings. Pittsburgh is going with Jones, who is young, but has been very good for most of the season. I don’t trust Mikolas in this spot, so my St. Louis Cardinals vs Pittsburgh Pirates prediction is for the Pirates to win. 

David Racey's Pick: Pirates ML