Thursday’s matchup between the Nationals and Pirates has a first pitch set for 6:40 PM ET from PNC Park in Pittsburgh. The money line odds have the Pirates as the slight favorite, with the Nationals at +102. The over/under line is currently 8.5 runs.
Washington comes into the game with a record of 62-77, while the Pirates are 65-74 overall. Jake Irvin is starting for the Nationals, and he is facing off against Bailey Falter. MASN will be televising this NL matchup.
Nationals Look to Improve Road Record Against Pirates as Irvin Seeks Redemption
The Nationals are 62-77 overall, and they are 21 games behind the Phillies for the NL East lead. In divisional games, they are 19-21. Today, they will be on the road vs. the Pirates, and they are 30-40 on the road this year. Their road record as the underdog is 26-36, and they are 50-65 overall as the underdog. Washington is 32-37 at home this year. Their series record is 18-23-4, and they are 4-6 in their last 10 games, including splitting their most recent series vs. the Marlins.
Jake Irvin is 9-11 this season, with a 4.08 ERA. He will be looking to bounce back from a rough outing vs. the Cubs, where he gave up seven earned runs in 4 2/3 innings. Overall, he has allowed 26 homers and is averaging 7.6 strikeouts per nine innings. Washington’s offense has been led by Luis García Jr., who is hitting .290 with 15 homers. Jacob Young is hitting .394 over his last 10 games. The Nationals are 21st in scoring, at 4.2 runs per game, and 22nd in homers, with 116. The over/under line for today’s game is set at 8.5 runs, and the Nationals are 18-21 in games with an over/under line of 8.5 runs.
Pirates Look to Climb NL Central Standings in Home Clash Against Nationals
The Pirates are 65-74 this season and trail the Reds by 1.5 games for 4th place in the NL Central. Overall, they are 15.5 games behind the Brewers for the division lead. Pittsburgh is 32-36 at home and 33-38 on the road. They are 37-50 as the underdog and 28-24 as the favorite. The Pirates have gone 22-20 against other teams in the NL Central this year.
Today, the Pirates are at home against the Nationals, and the over/under line is set at 8.5 runs. This season, the Pirates have an over/under record of 68-69, and when the line is set at 8.5 runs, they are 28-21. Bailey Falter is starting for the Pirates and is 6-7 with a 4.41 ERA. He is coming off a rough outing against the Guardians and has a no-decision in three of his last four starts. The Pirates are hitting .260 off him this season. Offensively, the Pirates are in the bottom third of the league in most categories, and their average run margin is -0.4 runs per game. Bryan Reynolds and Bryan De La Cruz have been the team’s top hitters this year.
Underdog Nationals Poised for 5-4 Victory Over Pirates: Bet on the Money Line
Our predicted final score for the Nationals vs. Pirates matchup is 5-4 in favor of the Nationals. With the Nationals being the underdog, you can get them at +102 on the money line, and that is our recommended bet for this game.
If you’re looking for a potential parlay, you could also look to take the under at 8.5 runs. However, we see this game being decided by just one run, so we will be sticking with the Nationals on the money line.
