Pittsburgh Pirates vs. Philadelphia Phillies Prediction 7-29-23 MLB Picks

The Philadelphia Phillies and the Pittsburgh Pirates meet in game two of their three-game in-state rivalry series in MLB action from PNC Park on Saturday. The Phillies took game one, can the Pirates even up the set on Saturday? Let’s dive in and find out.

Phillies Sneak Out Win In Opener

The Philadelphia Phillies managed to sneak out a 2-1 win in Friday’s series opener as Kyle Schwarber’s two RBIs proved to be the difference for the Phillies in the win. It was Philadelphia’s 3rd straight win to improve to 56-47 on the year, still sitting 10 games back of the Braves in the NL East race while still leading the way in the NL Wild Card hunt. Bryson Stott leads the Phils with 115 hits and a .302 batting average this season while Kyle Schwarber is Philadelphia’s home run king with 27 homers in addition to a team-high 64 RBIs. Nick Castellanos is right behind with 60 RBIs along with a team-high 26 doubles while Schwarber has the dubious distinction of leading Philadelphia with 134 strikeouts this season. Aaron Nola will start this game for the Phillies and is 9-6 with a 4.25 ERA and 133 strikeouts this season.

Philadelphia Phillies Team Facts

- The Phillies have won each of their last eight night games against the Pirates following a win.

- The Phillies have failed to cover the run line in eight of their last nine games against National League opponents following a win.

- The Phillies have led after 5 innings in each of their last five road games against National League opponents that held a losing record.

- The Phillies have led after 7 innings in each of their last six road games against National League opponents that held a losing record.

- The 'Inning 1 UNDER 0.5 runs' market has hit in each of the Phillies' last five night games.

Philadelphia Phillies Player Prop Facts

- Kyle Schwarber ranks T5th in the league in Home Runs (27) this season.

Pirates Get Stifled Again

The Pittsburgh Pirates have had a lot of offensive struggles in the last few weeks, but the struggles reared their ugly head once again on Friday as the Pirates were held to just one run and took the loss. The loss sent the Pirates to 45-58 on the year and 10.5 games back in the NL Wild Card race. Bryan Reynolds leads the Pirates with 88 hits while Jack Suwinski has a team-high 21 home runs and Carlos Santana has a team-leading 53 RBIs this season. Andrew McCutchen also has a team-high .262 batting average and .381 OBP this season. Quinn Priester is tabbed to make his third MLB start here and is 1-1 with a 9.28 ERA and 6 strikeouts this season.

Pittsburgh Pirates Team Facts

- The Pirates have lost each of their last 11 Saturday games against National League opponents that held a winning record.

- The Pirates have failed to cover the run line in each of their last eight games against National League opponents following a home loss.

- The Pirates have trailed after 3 innings in each of their last seven night games against NL East opponents that held a winning record.

- The Pirates have trailed after 7 innings in each of their last four games against NL East opponents that held a winning record.

- The Pirates have trailed after 5 innings in each of their last five home games.

Matchup/League Facts

- The Pittsburgh Pirates ranks 27th in the league for hits this season (799).

- The Pittsburgh Pirates ranks 27th in the league for RBI's this season (402).

- The Philadelphia Phillies ranks T3rd in the league for triples this season (21).

- The Philadelphia Phillies are one of only 3 teams in the league to rank top 10 in both steals and batting average this season.

Chris’ Pick

I get the case to be made on either side in this game, but I’m sticking with the over. Neither offense really came to play on Friday, but Aaron Nola’s really had issues on the road this season and with giving up home runs, while Quinn Priester’s allowed 11 runs so far through two starts and 7 in his lone home outing. I’ll side with the over in this one.