Starling Marte and the Pittsburgh Pirates are ready to do battle against the San Francisco Giants at Oracle Park in a Thursday showdown. This NL matchup starts at 3:45 p.m. ET and you can watch the game on both ATPT and NSBA.
Pittsburgh Pirates at San Francisco Giants Odds
The Giants are 74-71 against the spread (ATS)despite being only 70-76 straight up (SU). They’ve gained 10.4 units for moneyline bettors while earning 14.4 units ATS. The Pirates are 64-82 SU and have gone 71-74 against the spread. Overall, the club has lost 8.7 units for moneyline bettors and 19.4 units ATS.
Giants games have an over/under record of 71-66-8 in 2019. The Pirates have been a strong over bet with a total record of 83-55-7.
Joe Musgrove is getting the nod for Pittsburgh. The right-handed Musgrove is 9-12 with a 4.67 ERA and 136 strikeouts. He has yet to face the Giants this year and only made one start against them in 2018 (0-1, 4.50 ERA and six strikeouts across six innings).
The Giants are turning to righty Jeff Samardzija (10-11, 3.64 ERA), who’s got 131 strikeouts and 43 walks as well as a 1.10 WHIP. Samardzija only made one start against the Pirates in 2018 (0-0, 7.94 ERA and five strikeouts across 5.2 innings).
Pittsburgh’s pitching staff allowed 5.5 runs per game and its starters own a 5.26 ERA, 1.43 WHIP and 8.23 K/9. The bullpen has an ERA of 4.76, along with a WHIP of 1.43 and a K/9 of 9.93.
Pirates hitters have slashed .266/.327/.428 on their way to 4.8 runs scored per game in 2019, including 4.9 runs per game over the team’s last 10 games and 3.4 per game over the team’s last five outings (2-3 SU).
Outfielders Starling Marte and Bryan Reynolds continue to lead Pittsburgh’s hitters. Marte is slashing .295/.342/.503 with 23 home runs, 82 RBIs, 97 runs and 25 stolen bases, while Reynolds (.326/.388/.523) has produced 16 homers, 66 RBIs and 80 runs scored.
In the other dugout, San Francisco’s pitchers have yielded 4.8 runs per game overall this season. Its starters have a 4.79 ERA, 1.35 WHIP and 8.1 strikeouts per nine innings. The bullpen has a 3.94 ERA, 1.26 WHIP and 8.7 K/9.
The San Francisco hitters have put up 4.3 runs per contest, including 2.8 per game over its last 10 games and 2.6 per game over their last five. The team has slashed .189/.263/.239 over its last five contests and is 2-3 SU during that span.
The Giants’ offense has been led by Kevin Pillar and Brandon Belt. Pillar is hitting .268/.295/.461 with 21 home runs, 79 RBIs and 75 runs scored, while Belt’s line is .230/.338/.395 with 16 homers, 56 RBIs and 71 runs scored.
Pirates vs. Giants MLB Pick
Predictions: SU Winner – Giants, ATS Winner – Pirates, O/U – UNDER
Betting Notes
- Pittsburgh has logged 12 extra-base hits over its last five outings. San Francisco has six XBH over its last five.
- The Pittsburgh defense has permitted 12 errors over the last 10 games, compared to only six errors for San Francisco over its last 10.
- The Pirates have hit nine home runs in their last 10 games. The Giants have hit six over their last 10.
- The Pirates have an OPS of .755 this season and an OPS of .774 against right-handed pitchers. The Giants’ OPS stands at .703 overall and .692 against righties.
