The St. Louis Cardinals (52-47) take on the Pittsburgh Pirates (50-49) Monday in the opener of a 3-game set at PNC Park at 6:40 p.m. ET. Let’s analyze BetMGM Sportsbook’s lines around the Cardinals vs. Pirates odds and make our expert MLB picks and predictions for the best bets.
Season series: Cardinals lead 4-2
With a 6-2 win Sunday, the Cards took 2 of 3 from the Atlanta Braves on the road. They could have easily swept the series, but the bullpen faltered in Game 1 of a doubleheader Saturday. The offense is clicking. They hit 4 homers Sunday and 7 in the 3-game series — including round-trippers from struggling 1B Paul Goldschmidt and 3B Nolan Arenado. Emerging OF Alec Burleson went 6-for-13 (.462) with 6 RBIs in the series.
The Pirates took 2 of 3 at home from the Philadelphia Phillies over the weekend. They dropped Sunday’s game 6-0, though, which snapped a 6-game winning streak. The Bucs are 8-2 over their last 10. OF Bryan Reynolds is 11-for-19 (.579) with 1 homer and 5 RBIs in his last 5 games.