Brewers vs Pirates Moneyline Analysis
The Pittsburgh Pirates (38-42) are more than ready to put themselves fully back in the race for the NL Central Division as they host the Milwaukee Brewers (43-38) in a three-game series today on Friday. The Pirates were four games over .500% going into the middle of June but then experienced a nine-game losing streak. They have four of their last six games, including the three-game series sweep at home versus the San Diego Padres. Like the Pirates, the Brewers also had a tough session in the middle of June. By the time they reached 34-34, the Brewers swept the Pirates at home two weeks prior and won nine of their last 13 games.
The Pirates have not been a lucky team at the plate this season as they rank 12th in the NL in runs accounted for (334), 13th in hits accounted for (634), ninth in double-base hits (140), 13th in home runs (73), third in stolen bases (79), seventh in strikeouts encountered (674), fifth in walks (281), 11th in batting average (.241) and 12th in on-base percentage (.318).
One of the biggest reasons for Pittsburgh’s success was the return of Pirates’ great Andrew McCutchen, who last played for Pittsburgh in 2017 and played for five different teams, including the Brewers last season. Through 69 games, McCutchen accounted for 36 runs, 67 hits, nine home runs, 25 RBIs, nine stolen bases, 57 strikeouts, a batting average of .280, an on-base percentage of .395 and a slugging percentage of .435.
The Pirates are experiencing bad luck when it comes to the health and availability of their other two batters going into this series versus Milwaukee. Pittsburgh recently put third baseman Ke’Bryan Hayes (.254 BA and 34 runs) on the 10-day DL for low back inflammation. The status of leftfielder Bryan Reynolds (.279 BA, .350 OBP and 38 runs) is unknown as they are hoping he is ready to return to the plate.
The Brewers do not fair any batters at the plate this season as they might be the worst batting team in the NL and the MLB. Milwaukee ranks 15th (last) in the NL in runs accounted for (324), hits accounted for (601), 14th in double-base hits (107), eighth in home runs (87), fifth in stolen bases (63), seventh in walks (278), 14th in strikeouts encountered (770), 15th in batting average (.226), 15th in on-base percentage (.305) and 15th in slugging percentage (.370).
Leftfielder Christian Yelich remains as the best batter for the Brewers as the team lost three of their best batters from last season, including McCutchen. Through 78 games this season, Yelich has accounted for a team-high 54 runs, a team-high 79 hits, a team-high 16 double-base hits, nine home runs, 36 RBIs, a team-high 18 stolen bases, a team-high 41 walks, 77 strikeouts, a batting average of .273, an on-base percentage of .369 and a slugging percentage of .429.
Infielder Owen Miller (.286 BA and 24 runs) and catcher William Contreras (.248 BA and 31 runs) are the other two batters that have been reliable at the plate. The rest of the batters for the Brewers have a batting average of .281 or worst this season.
Brewers vs Pirates Over/Under Analysis
The over/under of the Saturday game of the weekend is set at 7.5 run, which is one of the three-lowest scored games set to play. There is not much faith that either team is going to have an impressive batting performance in this three-game series this weekend.
In the previous series two weeks ago, the Brewers scored a total of 15 runs and scored five runs each, while the Pirates scored four runs, no runs and two runs. The good news for both teams is that they are a much more efficient pitching team this season than they are at the plate.
The Pirates are ranked eighth in the NL in ERA (4.32) as well as hits allowed (688), eighth in runs allowed (366), first in home runs allowed (78) and 10th in strikeouts accounted for (671). Four of their starting pitchers have an ERA better than 4.15, including one pitcher that will make the start this weekend. Pittsburgh also has a dangerous closing pitcher in David Bednar (1.44 ERA in 31.1 innings pitched) they can rely on.
The Brewers rank sixth in the NL in ERA (3.99) as well as hits allowed (647), fifth in runs allowed (345), 11th in home runs allowed (104), eight in walks allowed (260) and 13th in strikeouts accounted for (640). Like the Pirates, the Brewers have three pitchers that have an ERA less than 4.15, with one of them starting this weekend.
On Saturday, the Pirates will be starting Johan Oviedo (4.06 ERA in 88.2 innings pitched) at the mound, while the Brewers will be starting Freddy Peralta (4.65 ERA in 81.1 innings pitched). On the following day, the Pirates will be starting Rich Hill (4.45 ERA in 89 innings pitched), while the Brewers will be starting their ace pitcher Corbin Burnes (4.10 ERA in 94.1 innings pitched).
Head-to-Head: Milwaukee Brewers vs Pittsburgh Pirates
Milwaukee Brewers | Head-to-Head | Pittsburgh Pirates |
Craig Counsell | Managers | Derek Shelton |
| Leaders |
|
Owen Miller (.286) | Batting Avg | Andrew McCutchen (.280) |
Rowdy Tellez & Willy Adames (12) | Home Runs | Jack Suwinski (16) |
Brian Anderson (37) | RBIs | Carlos Santana (41) |
Christian Yelich (.369) | OBP | Andrew McCutchen (.395) |
Christian Yelich (79) | Hits | Ke’Bryan Hayes (73) |
Corbin Burnes & Freddy Peralta (5) | Wins | Mitch Keller (9) |
Devin Williams (1.57) | ERA | David Bednar (1.44) |
Corbin Burnes & Freddy Peralta (89) | Strikeouts | Mitch Keller (118) |
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