Pittsburgh Pirates vs St. Louis Cardinals Prediction, 5/5/2025 MLB Picks, Best Bets & Odds

Game: Pittsburgh Pirates vs St. Louis Cardinals

Date: Monday, May 5, 2025

Location: Busch Stadium in St. Louis, MO

TV: FanDuel Sports Network Midwest

Odds/Point Spread: Pittsburgh (+172) St. Louis (-210)

Busch Stadium is the site where the St. Louis Cardinals (14-18) will take on the Pittsburgh Pirates (12-20) on Monday. The moneyline on this game has Pittsburgh at +172 and St. Louis is priced at -210. The betting total is set at 8. The expected starting pitchers will be Carmen Mlodzinski and Miles Mikolas.

Pittsburgh has a slugging rate of .339 and have been called out on strikes 276 times, while drawing a walk on 112 occasions. They have accumulated 107 RBI's and 238 base knocks for the year, while their team batting average is sitting at .224. The Pirates have accumulated 40 doubles as a team and have smacked 24 baseballs out of the stadium. They have accumulated 109 runs scored and hold an OBP of .303. As a team, the Pittsburgh Pirates are knocking in 3.4 runs per contest, which is 27th in MLB.

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They have accrued a K/BB ratio of 2.39 and the pitching staff holds a WHIP of 1.25. Pirates pitchers have surrendered 30 long balls and 147 total runs (22nd in MLB). Pittsburgh has surrendered 260 base knocks (8.2 per 9 innings) in addition to 135 earned runs. The Pirates have compiled a team earned run average of 4.23 so far this year (21st in the league), and they have rung up 237 hitters. Their pitching staff has walked 99 players from the other team and their FIP sits at 3.94 as a squad so far this season.

The Pirates have dispatched 107 relievers to the hill over the course of the season. The relief pitchers have inherited 50 runners over the course of the season with 34.0% of them crossed home plate. They have compiled 7 saves this season and have blown 5 of 12 chances to save the game. The Pirates relief pitchers have accumulated a save rate of 58.3% and have stepped onto the mound in 31 save situations. The bullpen are sitting with 19 holds on the season (17th in MLB). Pirates pitchers have entered the game with opponents on base 32 times and also have had 36 appearances in high leverage situations.

The Pittsburgh Pirates have earned 862 putouts thus far, in addition to 293 assists and 24 errors. Their fielding percentage sits at .980 which has them ranked 26th in baseball, and they have turned 28 double plays. The Pirates have converted 70.4% of balls hit into play into outs out of their 2,586 innings, ranking them 14th in professional baseball.

Mlodzinski has taken the hill for 112 frames and has earned 102 strikeouts during his career. His ERA is 3.77 (47 earned runs allowed) and he has a WHIP of 1.364. He has allowed 106 hits (8.5 hits per nine innings) and has 47 walks. Mlodzinski (9-11 career record) is the owner of a FIP of 3.71 and he has gone up against 483 batters in the majors.

The Cardinals have a team slugging % of .397 and they tally 4.59 runs per game (11th in the league). They have put up 63 two-baggers, while taking a walk 115 times and scoring 147 runs. St. Louis is sitting with 30 home runs on the year to go along with 139 RBIs. They have been rung up on 249 occasions (21st in the league) and have recorded 282 base knocks. The St. Louis Cardinals hold an on-base percentage of .330 and a batting average of .256 this year.

The Cardinals have a WHIP of 1.232 in addition to having a FIP of 3.79 as a unit this year. They come in at 18th in baseball as a pitching staff in total hits surrendered with 254. The St. Louis pitching staff have surrendered 145 runs on the year and come in with a team ERA of 4.23 (133 earned runs surrendered). Their K/BB ratio comes in at 7.00 (221 strikeouts against 95 free passes). They have conceded 26 home runs and they yield 4.61 runs per 9 innings (19th in baseball).

Sitting with 34 save situations, the Cardinals have 21 holds in addition to 7 blown saves. St. Louis has had relievers take the mound in 13 save opportunities and they have walked away with 6 saves. Their relief pitchers have come in 43 times in high leverage situations and also on 34 occasions with runners on. St. Louis bullpen pitchers have an inherited score rate of 45.0% out of their 40 inherited base runners. They rank 28th in baseball with a save rate of 46.2%, and they have sent 102 bullpen pitchers onto the field this season.

In 2,553 innings played, the Cardinals have earned a defensive efficiency of 71.8% (8th in the majors). The St. Louis Cardinals have gotten 20 double plays and have a fielding percentage of .990 (1st in the majors). The Cardinals have recorded 318 assists, 12 errors and have accounted for 851 putouts during this campaign.

During his career, Mikolas has allowed 1,138 hits and he has 812 strikeouts in 1,125 frames. Mikolas (65-66 career win-loss mark) has earned a 4.17 earned run average and has given up 9.1 hits per nine innings. He has allowed 521 earned runs while holding a WHIP of 1.205 and having a FIP of 4.1. He has a strikeout to walk ratio of 3.72 and he has faced 4,676 hitters during his MLB career.

Who will win tonight's MLB game against the spread or moneyline?

Parlay's Pundit's Pick: Take St. Louis (-210) and under 8 runs

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