St. Louis Cardinals vs Pittsburgh Pirates Prediction, 4/30/2026 MLB Picks, Best Bets & Odds

Game: St. Louis Cardinals vs Pittsburgh Pirates

Date: Thursday, April 30, 2026

Location: PNC Park in Pittsburgh, PA

TV: SportsNet Pittsburgh

Odds/Point Spread: St. Louis (+132) Pittsburgh (-160)

The St. Louis Cardinals (16-13) are hitting the road to PNC Park on Thursday where they will compete against the Pittsburgh Pirates (16-14). The odds on this game have St. Louis at +132 and Pittsburgh is coming in at -160. The betting total is set at 8. The pitchers who are expected to start are Hunter Dobbins and Paul Skenes.

As a unit, the St. Louis Cardinals are earning 4.8 runs per contest, which has them at 8th in MLB. They are sitting with 140 runs while holding a team OBP of .324. The Cardinals have earned 40 two-baggers as a unit and have hit 38 baseballs out of the stadium. They have recorded 137 runs batted in and 230 base knocks this year, while their batting average is sitting at .237. St. Louis is slugging .398 and have struck out 242 times, while taking a walk on 108 occasions.

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The Cardinals have an ERA of 4.81 over the course of the season (26th in the league), and the staff has rung up 200 batters. Cardinals pitchers have conceded 35 home runs and also 149 runs in total (24th in the league). Their pitching staff has walked 108 batters and their FIP sits at 4.74 as a unit on the year. St. Louis has yielded 265 hits (9.1 per 9 innings) and 140 earned runs. Their strikeout to walk ratio sits at 1.85 and their pitching staff has earned a collective WHIP of 1.42.

The Cardinals relievers have recorded a save rate of 62.5% and have entered the game in 39 save situations. They have tallied 10 saves for the year and have blown 6 of 16 save chances. The relief pitchers have inherited 49 runners so far this season and 36.7% of them crossing home plate. Cardinals relief pitchers have gone to the mound with opponents on base 34 times and also have had 39 appearances in high leverage situations. The Cardinals have sent 107 relief pitchers to the hill on the year. The bullpen have notched 22 holds for the season (7th in MLB).

The Cardinals have converted 69.5% of baseballs in play into outs out of their 2,358 innings, which has them sitting 18th in pro baseball. The St. Louis Cardinals have notched a total of 786 putouts at this point in the season, in addition to 295 assists and 14 errors. Their fielding rate sits at .987 which ranks 10th in MLB, and have accumulated 25 double plays.

Dobbins has taken the hill for 61 innings and has 45 K's during his career. His ERA is 4.13 (28 earned runs allowed) and he has a WHIP of 1.279. He has conceded 61 base hits (9.0 hits per 9 innings) and has 17 walks. Dobbins (4-1 career win-loss record) has earned a FIP of 4.07 while he has gone up against 256 opposing batters in the major leagues.

The Pittsburgh Pirates have tallied an OBP of .326 in addition to a batting average of .245 on the year. They have struck out on 289 occasions (2nd in the league) and are sitting with 255 hits. Pittsburgh has a total of 32 long balls on the campaign to go along with 139 runs batted in. The Pirates hold a team slugging % of .378 and they are scoring 4.80 runs per game (10th in the league). They have notched 38 doubles, while getting a free base 111 times as well as scoring 144 runs.

The Pirates are sitting with a team WHIP of 1.248 in addition to having a FIP of 3.63 as a squad on the campaign. They have earned a strikeout to walk ratio of 9.10 (278 strikeouts against 117 free passes). They come in at 8th in MLB as a staff in total hits given up with 225. They have surrendered 23 homers and they concede 4.14 runs per 9 innings (7th in baseball). The Pittsburgh pitching staff have relinquished 126 runs on the year and come in with a team ERA of 3.61 (110 earned runs relinquished).

Sitting with 37 save situations, the Pirates have amassed 24 holds in addition to 8 blown saves. Pittsburgh has had relief pitchers step onto the hill in 13 save chances and they have come away with 5 saves. Pittsburgh relievers hold an inherited score percentage of 29.0% of 31 inherited base runners. Their bullpen pitchers have stepped onto the hill 40 times in high leverage situations and also on 28 occasions with runners on. They are ranked 27th in baseball holding a save percentage of 38.5%, and they have dispatched 106 relief pitchers to the hill so far this season.

The Pittsburgh Pirates have gotten 21 double plays and hold a fielding percentage of .983 (24th in MLB). The Pirates have recorded 241 assists, 18 errors and have earned a total of 823 putouts this year. In 2,469 innings played, the Pirates hold a efficiency on defense of 70.7% (10th in MLB).

So far in his pro baseball career, Skenes has allowed 244 base knocks and he has 416 strikeouts in 349 frames. Skenes (25-14 record in his career) has a 2.01 earned run average and has given up 6.3 hits per 9 innings. He has surrendered 78 ER's while earning a WHIP of 0.931 and being the owner of a FIP of 2.0. His strikeout to walk ratio is 5.14 and he has gone up against 1,357 hitters so far in his career.

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

Josh Schonwald's Pick: Take St. Louis (+132)

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