Cardinals vs. Pirates Prediction, Odds & Best Bets: It's Skenes Day

If you're a Pirates fan, this is likely the only game you look forward to every week (sometimes twice if you're lucky). It's Paul Skenes Day.

Shane Thurston

Last Updated: July 1, 2025 5:20 PM EDT • 2 minute read

Cardinals vs. Pirates Prediction, Odds & Best Bets: Tuesday, July 1 — Pictured: Pittsburgh Pirates starting pitcher Paul Skenes headlines our Cardinals vs. Pirates prediction today. Photo by Benny Sieu via Imagn Images.

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Our Cardinals vs. Pirates prediction looks at whether right-hander Paul Skenes, the National League Cy Young odds favorite, will keep his team's win streak alive when it hosts St. Louis at 6:40 p.m. ET on Tuesday at PNC Park.

Pittsburgh’s 7-0 victory over St. Louis last night marked the team’s fourth win in a row. Andrew Heaney had a no-hitter broken up in the sixth before finishing with 6 2/3 shutout innings. Will Skenes keep things going for the Pirates?

Cardinals vs. Pirates prediction: Pirates ML (-165 via Caesars) ⭐⭐⭐
Over/Under prediction: Under 7.5 (-120 via Caesars) ⭐⭐
Best player prop pick: Paul Skenes Under 1.5 runs allowed (-105 via DraftKings) ⭐⭐⭐

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✅ Best bet: Paul Skenes Under 1.5 runs allowed (-105 via DraftKings)

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Skenes hopes to shake off his last start, in which he allowed four runs on as many hits across four frames in a loss to the Milwaukee Brewers. This comes after he gave up two runs in six innings against the Detroit Tigers.

Before that recent stretch, Skenes had allowed one earned run or fewer in eight straight starts. I expect him to return to that form against an opponent he’s familiar with, having faced the Cardinals twice this season.

I like the Pirates’ chances of winning on Tuesday, particularly if Skenes returns to dominance.

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Written by:
Shane Thurston

Shane Thurston has been writing for Sportsbook Review since 2022, though his passion for sports, writing, and betting runs much longer than that. He graduated from the University of Kansas with a journalism degree in 2017 and has been covering sports ever since, working for MLB.com, Manhattan Mercury, Lawrence Journal-World, WynnBET, Bet Chicago Sports, BetNOLA, and BetMGM. Thurston cares about creating quality sports betting content above all else. He uses NFL experience, a mixture of models, information, film, analysis, and a top-down approach to locate every best bet shared for SBR. He never gives out a pick that he wouldn’t be willing to spend his own money on. Thurston is focused on finding +EV bets on a daily basis for a variety of sports such as NCAAF, NCAAB, NFL, NBA, WNBA, and MLB. He usually bets on props but is willing to wager on a spread or total when there is an edge. Don’t ask him how many bets he has placed on a typical college football Saturday. Thurston doesn’t care if you follow him on social media, but his Twitter account has info on how you can follow his bets through multiple third-party platforms. He just wants you to read all the great work from the SBR team.