The Pirates face the Giants. Our MLB odds series has our Pirates Giants prediction, odds and pick for Friday.
The Pittsburgh Pirates take on the San Francisco Giants. Our MLB odds series has our Pirates Giants prediction and pick. Find out how to watch Pirates Giants.
The Pittsburgh Pirates started the 2023 season by winning 20 of their first 29 games. They were 20-9 at the end of April. Then they lost 18 of their next 26 games to fall back to the .500 mark. They never really regained the winning edge they displayed at the start of the season and finished the season under .500, not particularly close to a playoff berth.
That larger pattern is repeating itself right now, with the Bucs losing steam sooner — not later — in the season. Pittsburgh began the 2024 campaign with a white-hot 9-2 start. However, in the next 15 games, the Pirates are 4-11. They are 13-13 through 26 games and once again look like a team which started quickly out of the gate but doesn’t have the offense needed to sustain a progression through six months and 162 games. How bad has the Pittsburgh offense been in this recent string of games? The Pirates scored five runs on Thursday against the Milwaukee Brewers. That marked the first time in over a week and a half that Pittsburgh scored more than four runs.
The Pirates still lost that game to the Brewers, 7-5, blowing an eighth-inning lead. The Bucs’ offense actually came to life — a rare event — but the bullpen, which has already blown several saves this season, couldn’t make the lead stand up. For most of the past two weeks, the Pirates have scored fewer than three runs in a game. They need to find a way to give their offense a jolt and also not allow late leads to slip away.
Here are the Pirates-Giants MLB odds, courtesy of FanDuel.Â
MLB Odds: Pirates-Giants Odds
Pittsburgh Pirates: +1.5 (-170)
San Francisco Giants: -1.5 (+140)
Over: 8 (-115)
Under: 8 (-105)
How To Watch Pirates vs. Giants
TV: SportsNet Pittsburgh (Pirates) / NBC Sports Bay Area (Giants) / MLB Extra Innings
Stream: MLB.tv
Time: 10:15 p.m. ET/7:15 p.m. PT
*Watch Pirates-Giants LIVE on fuboTV (click for a free trial)*
Why The Pirates Could Cover The Spread
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The Pirates have been really bad the past two weeks. That might seem to be a good reason to pick against them, not for them, but one has to remember that over 162 games, baseball seasons take all sorts of twists and turns. The Pirates might not be ready to go on a six-game winning streak, but they are in good position to win this one game. They’re going to be intent on turning things around. They’re going up against a Giant team which is just 12-14 through 26 games, one game worse than the Buccos themselves. San Francisco’s offense struggles a fair amount of the time, so the Bucs aren’t really playing this game at a disadvantage. The Pirates have a very good chance of covering the spread in this game.
Why The Giants Could Cover The Spread
The Giants just endured a rough blowout loss to the Mets. The chances of this team playing two really bad games in a row at home are not high. The chances of the Giants losing to the Pirates in a bounce-back spot are also not high. You should see this team perform better after the debacle versus New York.
Final Pirates-Giants Prediction & Pick
These two teams are both inconsistent and mediocre. Stay away from this one on your MLB betting Friday.
Final Pirates-Giants Prediction & Pick: Giants -1.5Â
