Pirates vs. Cardinals Pick
Are the host St. Louis Cardinals going to take the opener versus the Pittsburgh Pirates at 8:15PM EST Friday night?
According to oddsmakers at Bovada.lv, the Cardinals are a -166 favorite to win on the moneyline. The Pirates are a +143 underdog, while the over-under is set at 8.
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Getting the start for Pittsburgh is Trevor Williams (6-7, 4.14 ERA), while St. Louis will go with Luke Weaver (4-1, 2.50). Williams threw seven shutout innings in a 3-1 home win over the Reds his last start, allowing eight hits while striking out five and walking one. Two starts before, he threw eight shutout frames in a 1-0 10-inning home win over the Dodgers. He has a 1.34 WHIP with 100 strikeouts in 134 2/3 innings. He holds a 4.74 ERA in 13 road appearances (10 starts). Weaver has a 1.11 WHIP with 45 strikeouts in 36 innings. He gave up two earned runs on four hits with nine strikeouts and two walks over seven innings in a 7-3 win at the Giants his last start. St. Louis has won his last five appearances (four starts).
Pittsburgh enters at 67-74 and 28-40 on the road, while the Cardinals are 72-68 and 37-31 at home. The Pirates have won six of the last 10 meetings and the over-under is 5-5.
The last four days saw Pittsburgh split a four-game home series with the Cubs, dropping the last two games including Thursday’s finale by an 8-2 final. Jameson Taillon took the loss as he allowed six earned runs in 4 2/3 innings, although he did help his own cause by going 2-for-2 at the plate. Jordan Luplow contributed an RBI double in the loss. St. Louis could not complete a four-game sweep at the Padres Thursday as it fell 3-0. Lance Lynn took the hard-luck loss as he gave up one earned run over six innings. Paul DeJong was 2-for-4 with a double, while Harrison Bader was also 2-for-4.
Weaver has been a revelation to the Cardinals staff, allowing them to trade away Mike Leake. Look for him to once again be in fine form while Williams comes down to earth a bit after a couple recent stellar outings.
MLB DAILY PREDICTION: ST. LOUIS CARDINALS -166