6:35 pm
May 1

Cardinals @ Pirates

Who will WIN this matchup?

St. Louis Cardinals (14-12)

@ Pittsburgh Pirates (12-13)

 

Starting Pitchers:

Flaherty (STL): 4-0; 3.18 ERA

Cahill (PIT) 1-2; 7.11 ERA

 

Current odds:

St. Louis Cardinals: (-145)

Pittsburgh Pirates: (+135)

 

• The St. Louis Cardinals have one kink in their formula they surely want to fix Saturday evening in the second game of a weekend series against the Pirates in Pittsburgh. That would be cutting down on free passes. St. Louis pitchers walked nine Friday, but the team still got a series-opening 7-3 win aided by homers from Matt Carpenter and Tyler O’Neill. O’Neill is a more valuable part of the formula. Since coming off the injured list, he is 9-for-26 with four homers.

• Friday’s win, in the first of 19 meetings between the clubs this season, boosted the Cardinals to 13-2 at PNC Park since the beginning of 2019, including five wins in a row. Pittsburgh will need to win Saturday and Sunday to keep its unbeaten series streak alive. The Pirates have gone 4-0-2 in their past six series after losing their first two.

• St. Louis right-hander Jack Flaherty (4-0, 3.18 ERA) is scheduled to start against Pittsburgh right-hander Trevor Cahill (1-2, 7.11) on Saturday. Flaherty reached a season high by going seven innings Sunday in a win against Cincinnati, giving up one run and three hits with six strikeouts and no walks. Against the Pirates, Flaherty is 6-1 with a 1.89 ERA in nine career starts. He has struck out 58 and walked 13 in 57 innings.

• Cahill, meanwhile, had a couple of rough outings early but found his footing last Saturday in a win at Minnesota when he gave up one run and two hits in six innings, with two strikeouts and two walks. Against the Cardinals, Cahill is 1-3 with a 4.02 ERA in 14 career appearances, six of them starts.

6/10
Confidence
StreakSmarter Pick
St. Louis Cardinals
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