Cardinals at Pirates 7/22/19 - MLB Picks & Predictions

NL Central Division foes will clash on Monday night, when the St. Louis Cardinals invade PNC Park to take on the Pittsburgh Pirates. On Sunday, five St. Louis pitchers combined to strike out 14 batters during a 3-1 road victory against Cincinnati. Yairo Munoz fell a double short of the cycle for the Cardinals, who are 2.5 games behind first place Chicago.

Twenty-seven year old righty Daniel Ponce de Leon (1-0 2.80 ERA) will make his sixth start of the season for the Cardinals. Through 35 plus innings, Ponce de Leon has fanned 41 batters and owns an impressive 1.02 WHIP. The Pittsburgh Pirates have lost seven of their previous nine games and will likely be forced into selling at the trade deadline. On Sunday, Chris Stratton served up an 11th inning home run to Rhys Hoskins during a 2-1 home loss versus Philadelphia. Bryan Reynolds went hitless in five at-bats and struck out four times for the Pirates, who fell to six games below .500 overall.

Pittsburgh manager Clint Hurdle has yet to name a starting pitcher for the series opener. The Pirates lack quality options on a staff that ranks 23rd in the majors with a 4.96 team ERA.