Pittsburgh Pirates (10-7) vs. Colorado Rockies (5-12)
April 18, 2023 8:40 pm EDT
The Line: Colorado Rockies -120 / Pittsburgh Pirates -105; Over/Under: +12.5
(Get latest betting odds)
The Pittsburgh Pirates and Colorado Rockies meet Tuesday in MLB action at Coors Field. Let’s preview this game and give out a pick and prediction.
The Pittsburgh Pirates have scored 24 runs in their last 3 games and 4 or more runs in 5 of their last 7 games. The Pirates are 9-2 this season when scoring 4 or more runs. Bryan Reynolds leads the Pirates with 22 hits and 17 RBI, while Andrew McCutchen and Carlos Santana have combined for 31 hits and 16 RBI. Vince Velasquez gets the ball, and he is 1-2 with a 5.40 ERA and 10 strikeouts this season. Velasquez is 2-1 with a 4.75 ERA and 44 strikeouts in his career against the Rockies.
The Colorado Rockies have scored 5 runs in their last 3 games and 3 or fewer runs in 4 straight games. The Rockies are 1-6 this season when scoring 3 or fewer runs. Kris Bryant leads the Rockies with 21 hits and 5 RBI, while Elias Diaz and Yonathan Daza have combined for 33 hits and 13 RBI. Jose Urena gets the ball, and he is 0-2 with a 9.90 ERA and 7 strikeouts this season. Urena is 2-3 with a 5.26 ERA and 19 strikeouts in his career against the Pirates.
The Pirates are 66-143 in their last 209 road games and 7-2 in their last 9 Tuesday games. The Rockies are 4-12 in their last 16 home games and 9-24 in their last 33 overall. The under is 3-1-1 in Pirates last 5 overall. The over is 5-2 in Rockies last 7 home games. The Pirates are 2-5 in the last 7 meetings in Colorado and 3-7 in the last 10 meetings.
I’m not thrilled to get behind Vince Velasquez, but the Rockies’ can’t scored runs these days, and backing Urena is a no-go for me. Jose Urena has had control issues his entire career and when he gets hit he gets hit hard. The Pirates have to like their chances in this contest, especially with the Rockies bats ice-cold. Give me the Pirates and the cheap price.
