MLB picks: Cardinals vs. Pirates, A's vs. Indians

MLB bettors are once again presented with a slew of intriguing options this Wednesday night. We crunched the numbers and came up with our two best bets of the evening!

Leading off is our look at an NL Central clash between the St. Louis Cardinals and the Pittsburgh Pirates. Then we’ll preview a meeting between the Oakland A’s and the Cleveland Indians.

St. Louis Cardinals (56-56) at Pittsburgh Pirates (41-72), 7:05 p.m. ET

Adam Wainwright and the Cardinals should make light work of the Pirates at PNC Park on Wednesday night.

Wainwright has been on a roll over his last four starts, going 3-0 with a 2.57 ERA. He’s struck out 24 batters and walked only five in that span. Wainwright allowed only one run over six innings of work against Pittsburgh in his lone start against them this year, and did the same exact thing last season too.

Once Wainwright exits, the Redbirds’ 12th-ranked bullpen by ERA over the last two weeks (3.05) will take over.

Wil Crowe counters for the Pirates, and he’s struggled to pitch deep into games of late, partially because he’s offered 15 walks over his last 30 innings. He has an inflated 6.30 ERA in two starts against St. Louis this season.

If Crowe doesn’t crack, the Bucs’ blundering bullpen almost surely will – this unit is 29th by ERA over the last two weeks (7.71). Dylan Carlson – who has a .979 OPS to begin August for the Cards – should be a difference-maker in this one.

MLB pick: Cardinals -1.5 runs (-106)

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Oakland A’s (65-48) at Cleveland Indians (55-56), 7:10 p.m. ET

Frankie Montas and Cal Quantrill should combine for plenty of zeroes on the scoreboard at Progressive Field this Wednesday night.

Montas had a rock-solid July for Oakland, going 2-1 with a 2.30 ERA and 1.021 WHIP, and he began August with a quality start against the San Diego Padres in which he struck out eight. Montas pitched six strong innings against Cleveland on July 12, allowing only two earned runs.

Meanwhile, Quantrill is becoming more unhittable with every start for the Tribe. After closing out July with three straight outings allowing one earned run or fewer (17 innings), Quantrill has put up 13 scoreless innings to begin the month of August. He was particularly sharp against Detroit last time out, as he fanned 10 batters.

These bullpens both rank in the top five by ERA over the last two weeks, so don’t look for any late collapses. The Under is 12-2 in the A’s last 14 games as a road favorite, and 7-3 in the Indians’ last 10 games as a home underdog.

MLB pick: Under