Pittsburgh Pirates vs St. Louis Cardinals Prediction, 5/19/2026 MLB Picks, Best Bets & Odds

Game: Pittsburgh Pirates vs St. Louis Cardinals

Date: Tuesday, May 19, 2026

Location: Busch Stadium in St. Louis, MO

TV: Cardinals.TV

Odds/Point Spread: Pittsburgh (-196) St. Louis (+162)

The St. Louis Cardinals (27-18) welcome the Pittsburgh Pirates (24-22) at Busch Stadium on Tuesday. The odds on this game have the Pirates at -196 while the Cardinals are sitting at +162. The total is 9. The pitchers who are expected to start will be Mitch Keller and Matthew Liberatore.

As a team, the Pittsburgh Pirates are putting up 4.9 runs per game, which has them sitting at 7th in baseball. They have accounted for 229 runs while holding a team OBP of .332. The Pirates have tallied 68 two-baggers as a team and have hit 49 baseballs out of the stadium. They have earned 220 RBI's in addition to 404 base knocks on the campaign, while their batting average is .248. Pittsburgh is slugging .388 and have been called out on strikes 431 times, while drawing a walk on 187 occasions.

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Their strikeout to walk ratio sits at 2.51 and their pitching staff has earned a collective WHIP of 1.23. Pirates pitchers have conceded 39 home runs in addition to 211 total runs (18th in MLB). Pittsburgh has surrendered 360 base knocks (7.6 per 9 innings) and 185 earned runs. The Pirates hold a team ERA of 3.88 for the season (11th in baseball), and the staff has struck out 421 batters. Their pitching staff has walked 168 opposing players and their FIP sits at 3.69 as a unit over the course of the season.

Pirates pitchers have come into the game with players on base 46 times in addition to having 52 appearances in high leverage situations. The relief pitchers have a total of 27 holds on the season (12th in MLB). The Pirates relievers have a save rate of 42.1% and have come into the game in 47 save situations. They have recorded 8 saves for the year and have blown 11 of their 19 save opportunities. The relievers have inherited 56 runners on the season and 35.7% of those players earned a run for their team. The Pirates have dispatched 160 relief pitchers to the hill this year.

The Pirates have turned 70.8% of balls hit into play into outs out of their 3,858 innings, which has them ranked 9th in MLB. The Pittsburgh Pirates are sitting with 1,286 putouts so far this season, in addition to 392 assists and 25 errors. Their fielding percentage is currently at .985 which is 21st in the majors, and have a total of 34 double plays.

Keller (46-67 career mark) has earned a FIP of 4.39 and he has gone up against 4,028 hitters in the major leagues. He has given up 956 hits (9.2 hits per nine innings) with 314 free passes. His earned run average is 4.46 (461 ER's allowed) and he has a career WHIP of 1.365. Keller has taken the ball for 930 innings and has earned 875 punch outs during his MLB career.

The Cardinals hold a team slugging % of .388 and they tally 4.52 runs per contest (11th in the league). They have recorded 70 doubles, while walking 158 times and scoring 208 runs. St. Louis has accumulated 51 home runs this season as well as 202 runs batted in. They have struck out on 375 occasions (21st in baseball) and have totaled 373 base hits. The St. Louis Cardinals have accumulated an OBP of .321 and a batting average of .241 so far this year.

The St. Louis pitching staff have allowed 205 runs this season while having an ERA of 4.12 (190 earned runs allowed). They have conceded 49 home runs and they allow 4.44 runs per 9 innings (17th in baseball). The Cardinals have a WHIP of 1.368 with a FIP of 4.45 as a staff on the year. Their strikeout to walk ratio is 7.20 (330 strikeouts vs 173 free passes). They rank 22nd in the league as a pitching staff in total hits surrendered with 395.

St. Louis bullpen pitchers hold an inherited score percentage of 36.8% of 68 inherited base runners. Their relief pitchers have stepped onto the mound 59 times in high leverage situations and also on 49 occasions with runners on. Sitting with 68 save situations, the Cardinals have earned 41 holds in addition to 8 blown saves. They are ranked 11th in baseball holding a save rate of 68.0%, and they have sent 165 relievers to the mound on the campaign.

The St. Louis Cardinals have turned 48 double plays and have notched a fielding percentage of .988 (11th in the majors). The Cardinals have recorded 450 assists, 21 errors and have earned 1,246 putouts over the course of the season. In their 3,738 innings on the diamond, the Cardinals hold a defensive efficiency of 70.2% (16th in baseball).

Liberatore (18-26 career mark) holds a 4.61 ERA and has allowed 9.4 hits per 9 innings. His strikeout to walk ratio is 2.37 and he has faced 1,645 batters thus far in his career. He has given up a total of 195 ER's while holding a WHIP of 1.388 and being the owner of a FIP of 4.5. During his MLB career, Liberatore has given up 400 hits while he has accumulated 306 punch outs in 381 innings pitched.

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

Tony Sink's Pick: Take St. Louis (+162)

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