Pirates vs Cardinals Prediction, Odds, Moneyline, Spread & Over/Under for May 21

Odds updated as of 9:12 p.m.

The Pittsburgh Pirates are among the MLB squads playing on Thursday, versus the St. Louis Cardinals.

We've got you covered, in terms of the vital info about this game before you take a look at the MLB odds and spreads on FanDuel Sportsbook.

Pirates vs Cardinals Game Info

• Pittsburgh Pirates (24-24) vs. St. Louis Cardinals (28-19)
• Date: Thursday, May 21, 2026
• Time: 1:15 p.m. ET
• Venue: Busch Stadium -- St. Louis, Missouri
• Coverage: Cardinals.TV and SportsNet PT

Pirates vs Cardinals Odds & Moneyline

• All MLB odds, betting lines and prop bets are available on FanDuel Sportsbook.
• Moneyline: PIT: (-126) | STL: (+108)
• Spread: PIT: -1.5 (+130) | STL: +1.5 (-156)
• Total: 7.5 -- Over: (-124) | Under: (+102)

Pirates vs Cardinals Probable Starting Pitchers

Probable Pitchers: Braxton Ashcraft (Pirates) - 2-2, 3.09 ERA vs Dustin May (Cardinals) - 3-4, 4.81 ERA

The probable pitchers are Braxton Ashcraft (2-2) for the Pirates and Dustin May (3-4) for the Cardinals. When Ashcraft starts, his team is 4-5-0 against the spread this season. Ashcraft's team has a record of 4-3 this season when he starts and they are the favorite on the moneyline. The Cardinals have a 5-4-0 ATS record in May's nine starts that had a set spread. The Cardinals have a 3-4 record in May's seven starts this season when they were the moneyline underdog.

Pirates vs Cardinals Prediction & Pick

All MLB win probability predictions and picks are according to numberFire.
Prediction: Pirates win (54.6%)

Pirates vs Cardinals Moneyline

• Looking at the moneyline for Cardinals-Pirates, St. Louis is the underdog at +108, and Pittsburgh is -126 playing on the road.

Pirates vs Cardinals Spread

• The Cardinals are +1.5 on the spread (-156 to cover), and Pittsburgh is +130 to cover the runline.

Pirates vs Cardinals Over/Under

• The over/under for the Pirates versus Cardinals game on May 21 has been set at 7.5, with -124 odds on the over and +102 odds on the under.

Bet on Pittsburgh Pirates vs. St. Louis Cardinals on FanDuel today!

Pirates vs Cardinals Betting Trends

• The Pirates have come away with 17 wins in the 28 contests they have been listed as the favorites in this season.
• Pittsburgh has a record of 9-10 in contests when oddsmakers favor them by -126 or more on the moneyline.
• The Pirates and their opponents have gone over the total this season in 25 of their 47 opportunities.
• The Pirates are 23-24-0 against the spread in their 47 games that had a posted line this season.
• The Cardinals are 23-16 in games they were listed as the moneyline underdog (winning 59% of those games).
• St. Louis is 16-13 (winning 55.2% of its games) when it has played as a moneyline underdog of +108 or longer.
• The Cardinals have played in 46 games with an over/under set, and have combined with opponents to go over the total 20 times (20-22-4).
• The Cardinals have put together a 29-17-0 record against the spread this season (covering 63% of the time).

Pirates Player Leaders

• Brandon Lowe has 41 hits, which leads Pittsburgh hitters this season, while batting .252 with 23 extra-base hits. He has an on-base percentage of .346 and a slugging percentage of .546.
• Among qualified hitters, he is 86th in batting average, his on-base percentage ranks 66th, and he is 12th in slugging.
• Lowe has recorded a base hit in two straight games. In his last five games he is hitting .227 with a double, two home runs and three RBIs.
• Oneil Cruz has an OPS of .797, fueled by an OBP of .330 and a team-best slugging percentage of .466 this season. He's batting .264.
• Among qualifying hitters, his batting average places him 62nd, his on-base percentage 85th, and his slugging percentage 47th.
• Cruz has picked up at least one hit in two games in a row. During his last five outings he is hitting .286 with a double, two walks and four RBIs.
• Bryan Reynolds has collected 43 base hits, an OBP of .385 and a slugging percentage of .388 this season.
• Spencer Horwitz has 36 hits this season and a team-best OBP of .387.
• Horwitz brings a four-game hitting streak into this game. In his last five games he is hitting .333 with a double and an RBI.

Cardinals Player Leaders

• Jordan Walker has a team-best slugging percentage (.576) and leads the Cardinals in hits (53). He's batting .299 and with an on-base percentage of .369.
• Including all the qualifying hitters in MLB, his batting average ranks 16th, his on-base percentage ranks 30th, and he is eighth in slugging.
• Alec Burleson has 11 doubles, seven home runs and 18 walks while batting .283. He's slugging .461 with an on-base percentage of .348.
• He is currently 35th in batting average, 63rd in on-base percentage and 50th in slugging percentage among all qualified hitters.
• JJ Wetherholt has five doubles, nine home runs and 25 walks while batting .239.
• Ivan Herrera's .391 on-base percentage paces his team.

Pirates vs Cardinals Head to Head

• 5/19/2026: 9-6 STL (Favorite: Cardinals, Spread: -1.5, Total: 8, Favorite Moneyline: -116, Underdog Moneyline: -102)
• 4/30/2026: 10-5 STL (Favorite: Pirates, Spread: -1.5, Total: 7, Favorite Moneyline: -245, Underdog Moneyline: +200)
• 4/29/2026: 5-4 STL (Favorite: Pirates, Spread: -1.5, Total: 8.5, Favorite Moneyline: -132, Underdog Moneyline: +112)
• 4/28/2026: 11-7 STL (Favorite: Pirates, Spread: -1.5, Total: 8.5, Favorite Moneyline: -162, Underdog Moneyline: +136)
• 4/27/2026: 4-2 STL (Favorite: Pirates, Spread: -1.5, Total: 8, Favorite Moneyline: -122, Underdog Moneyline: +104)
• 8/28/2025: 4-1 STL (Favorite: Cardinals, Spread: -1.5, Total: 8, Favorite Moneyline: -120, Underdog Moneyline: +102)
• 8/27/2025: 2-1 PIT (Favorite: Cardinals, Spread: -1.5, Total: 7.5, Favorite Moneyline: -174, Underdog Moneyline: +146)
• 8/26/2025: 8-3 PIT (Favorite: Cardinals, Spread: -1.5, Total: 8, Favorite Moneyline: -126, Underdog Moneyline: +108)
• 8/25/2025: 7-6 STL (Favorite: Cardinals, Spread: -1.5, Total: 7.5, Favorite Moneyline: -130, Underdog Moneyline: +110)
• 7/2/2025: 5-0 PIT (Favorite: Cardinals, Spread: -1.5, Total: 7.5, Favorite Moneyline: -126, Underdog Moneyline: +108)

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