Pittsburgh Pirates vs Minnesota Twins Prediction 6-9-24 Picks

In this article we will formulate a Pittsburgh Pirates vs Minnesota Twins prediction for this MLB game on Sunday, June 9th at PNC Park in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Let’s take a look at the prediction for game three in the series. 

Pirates Going for Third Straight Shutout

The Pittsburgh Pirates are 31-33 this year and they have won four of their last five games. Pittsburgh has won the first two games in this series by scores of 3-0 and 4-0. Prior to this series, the Pirates won two out of three against the Dodgers, lost two out of three against the Blue Jays, and split two games with the Tigers. Pittsburgh is 6-3 in their last nine games and they are third in the NL Central behind Milwaukee and Cincinnati. 

The Pittsburgh pitching staff has a 3.86 ERA, a 1.27 WHIP, and a .240 opponent batting average. The Pirates offense has scored 264 runs with a .231 batting average and a .301 on base percentage. Oneil Cruz is batting .243 with nine home runs and 24 RBI’s for the Pirates this season. Pittsburgh is 12th in team ERA this season and they have allowed one run or fewer in four of their last seven games. 

Twins are on a Losing Streak 

The Minnesota Twins are 33-31 this season and they have lost five games in a row. Minnesota has dropped the first two games in this series and they are still looking for their first run of the series. Prior to this series, the Twins were swept by the Yankees in three games, won two out of three against the Astros, and won three out of four against the Royals. Minnesota is 3-7 in their last ten games and they are third in the AL Central behind Cleveland and Kansas City. 

The Minnesota pitching staff has a 4.26 ERA, a 1.22 WHIP, and a .242 opponent batting average. The Twins offense has scored 271 runs with a .229 batting average and a .301 on base percentage. Willi Castro is batting .252 with four home runs and 16 RBI’s for the Twins this season. Minnesota is 18th in runs scored this season and they have scored two runs or fewer in four of their last seven games. 

Starting Pitchers

The projected starting pitcher for Pittsburgh is Jared Jones, who is 4-5 with a 3.25 ERA and a 1.01 WHIP over 69.1 innings pitched this year. Jones has allowed three earned runs or fewer in four of his last five starts, but did allow five earned runs against the Tigers two starts ago. The projected starting pitcher for Minnesota is Bailey Ober, who is 5-4 with a 4.94 ERA and a 1.13 WHIP over 62.0 innings pitched this season. Ober has allowed five earned runs or more in two of his last four starts and has not gone more than five innings in his last four. 

Why the Pittsburgh Pirates will win

The Pirates have won each of their last four games as home underdogs against American League opponents.
The Twins have lost four of their last five games as road favorites following a loss.
The Twins have failed to cover the run line in each of their last six games as favorites.
The underdogs have covered the run line in seven of the Twins’ last eight games at PNC Park.
The Twins have trailed after 5 innings in three of their last four games as favorites.
The Twins have trailed after 3 innings in three of their last four games as favorites.

Total Runs Facts

Seven of the Twins’ last eight day games against National League opponents have gone UNDER the total runs line.
Five of the Pirates’ last six games as underdogs against the Twins have gone UNDER the total runs line.
The ‘Inning 1 UNDER 0.5 runs’ market has hit in each of the Twins’ last nine road games against National League opponents.
The ‘Inning 1 UNDER 0.5 runs’ market has hit in each of the Pirates’ last six games as home underdogs against American League opponents.

Pittsburgh Pirates vs Minnesota Twins Prediction 

Minnesota comes into this game on a five game losing streak and they have been shutout in two straight games by the Pirates. Pittsburgh is starting to play some solid baseball, but they are just 16-16 at home this year. The Pirates are starting Jared Jones, who was roughed up by the Tigers in his last start, but has had a great season. The Twins are going with Bailey Ober, who has not pitched well recently. Minnesota has been a very streaky team so far this season and I can’t go with them until I see a better effort. My Pittsburgh Pirates vs Minnesota Twins prediction is for the Pirates to get the win.