New York Mets vs. Pittsburgh Pirates MLB Picks, Odds, Predictions 7/18/2021

The New York Mets and Pittsburgh Pirates meet Sunday in MLB action at PNC Park. The Mets need a win after losing five of their last seven games. The Pirates look for a win after winning seven of their last 10 games.

The New York Mets have scored 13 runs in their last three games and four or more runs in six of their last nine games. The Mets have won six of their last eight games when scoring four or more runs. Francisco Lindor leads the Mets with 71 hits and 36 RBI while Dominic Smith and Pete Alonso have combined for 139 hits and 86 RBI. Taijuan Walker gets the ball, and he is 7-3 with a 2.50 ERA and 89 strikeouts this season. Walker is 0-1 with a 4.09 ERA and five strikeouts in his career against the Pirates.

The Pittsburgh Pirates have scored 19 runs in their last three games and four or more runs in six of their last nine games. The Pirates have won five of their last six games when scoring four or more runs. Adam Frazier leads the Pirates with 117 hits and 31 RBI while Bryan Reynolds and Kevin Newman have combined for 162 hits and 66 RBI. JT Brubaker gets the ball, and he is 4-9 with a 4.47 ERA and 88 strikeouts this season. This will be Brubaker’s second career game against the Mets.

The Mets are 1-5 in their last 6 Sunday games and 3-7 in their last 10 road games. The Pirates are 4-1 in their last 5 home games. The under is 17-5-4 in Pirates last 26 Sunday games. The over is 7-3-2 in the last 12 meetings in Pittsburgh and 7-2 in the last 9 meetings.

The Mets should probably be favored here with Walker on the mound, a pitcher who has allowed five runs in his last 15.2 innings. Brubaker has been on the struggle bus lately and has allowed 11 runs in his last 11 innings. However, the Mets aren’t finishing games right now and the Pirates offense has caught fire lately. I’m not sure how long it lasts, but there’s reason to back the Pirates in their current form. I’ll take a shot.