St. Louis Cardinals vs Pittsburgh Pirates Prediction, Odds and Picks for Today, 04/30/26

The Pirates are looking to avoid a 4-game sweep at the hands of the Cardinals when they meet in the series finale on Thursday afternoon at PNC Park. The Pirates should feel good about their chances, as they will send reigning Cy Young winner Paul Skenes to the mound. It’s safe to say that the former LSU Tiger and No. 1 overall pick has righted the ship following his rough Opening Day outing against the Mets. In 5 starts in April, Skenes owns a stellar 0.95 ERA and is holding opposing hitters to a measly .106 batting average. He’s also racked up 29 strikeouts with just 5 walks over 28.1 innings of work. With the way he is rolling right now, the Cardinals will have their hands full with Skenes in this one.

On the other side, right-hander Hunter Dobbins will toe the rubber for the visitors. Dobbins will be making his first MLB appearance of the season after starting the season on the IL. He pitched to a 4.13 ERA and 1.28 WHIP in 13 appearances with Boston last season. The Pittsburgh offense isn’t exactly setting the world on fire right now, but they’ve still managed to score 13 total runs in the first 3 games of this series. Pittsburgh is 4-2 this season when Skenes pitches, and those 4 wins have come by differences of 6, 11, 6, and 5 runs. Look for Skenes to lead the Pirates to a multi-run victory in this one.

Cardinals vs Pirates prediction: Pirates -1.5 (+105) available at time of publishing. Playable at that number.