Matthew Liberatore is set to make his 31st start of the season for the St. Louis Cardinals on Wednesday. Liberatore and the Cardinals will take on the Pittsburgh Pirates. This will be Liberatore’s 3rd time facing this Pirates lineup in 2026, and neither of the first 2 outings went well for the southpaw. Despite recording 9 Ks in both outings, Liberatore has allowed 13 hits and 4 walks, resulting in 8 runs across his 10.1 innings against Pittsburgh. The most recent matchup was his final start of August. So far in September, Liberatore has issued 8 walks with just 7 strikeouts recorded. His 14.2 September innings have resulted in 8 earned runs allowed, and Pittsburgh sits 5th in wOBA with a 115 wRC+ against lefties in the last 30 days.
Lake Bacher is scheduled to open the game for Pittsburgh on Wednesday. Bacher continues to be used in this opener role, pitching 1-2 innings to get things rolling for the Pirates. Pittsburgh has yet to announce their pitching plan for when Bacher exits this game, but the good news is the Cardinals are in poor offensive form regardless of handedness faced. Against lefties in the last 30 days, their wRC+ sits at 97 while sitting 18th in wOBA. When facing righties in that span, they sit 28th in wOBA with an 85 wRC+. I expect the Pirates to perform well offensively in this spot and provide their pitching staff with enough run support to grab a win at home.
Cardinals vs Pirates prediction: Pirates ML (-113) available at time of publishing. Playable to -120 odds.
