Cincinnati Reds vs Pittsburgh Pirates Prediction, 9/5/2020 MLB Pick, Tips and Odds

Game: Cincinnati Reds vs Pittsburgh Pirates

Date: Saturday, September 5, 2020

Location: PNC Park in Pittsburgh, PA

TV: ATPT/FSOH

Odds/Point Spread: Reds (-144) Pirates (+133)

Joey Votto and the Cincinnati Reds (16-21, 4th in NL Central) go to PNC Park on Saturday where they'll take on the Pittsburgh Pirates (11-24, 5th in NL Central). The Pirates open this contest at +133 while the Reds are coming in at -144. The total has been set at 9. The pitchers taking the mound are Anthony DeSclafani and Trevor Williams.

Key Cincinnati Reds Injuries

9/4/2020 Wade Miley SP Shoulder Expected to be out until at least Sep 12
8/29/2020 Jesse Biddle RP Shoulder Expected to be out until at least Sep 8
8/28/2020 Nick Senzel CF Undisclosed Expected to be out until at least Sep 8
8/24/2020 Matt Bowman RP Elbow Expected to be out until at least Sep 6

Key Pittsburgh Pirates Injuries

9/3/2020 Austin Davis RP Not Injury Related Expected to be out until at least Sep 4
9/2/2020 Keone Kela RP Forearm Expected to be out until at least Sep 11
9/2/2020 Mitch Keller SP Oblique Expected to be out until at least Sep 14
8/25/2020 Yacksel Rios RP Shoulder Expected to be out until at least Sep 23
8/19/2020 Phillip Evans 3B Jaw Out for the season
8/11/2020 Clay Holmes RP Forearm Expected to be out until at least Sep 21
8/6/2020 Nick Burdi RP Elbow Out for the season
8/6/2020 Michael Feliz RP Forearm Out for the season
7/23/2020 Luke Maile C Finger Out for the season
6/30/2020 Kevin Kramer RF Hip Out for the season
6/30/2020 Chris Archer SP Shoulder Out for the season
2/13/2020 Jameson Taillon SP Elbow Out for the season

Useful Pitching Statistics

The Reds have a 16-21 overall record this season. DeSclafani has thrown 643 innings and has accounted for 571 punchouts during his career. His ERA is 4.25 (304 earned runs allowed) and his career WHIP is 1.286. He has surrendered 647 hits (9.1 hits per 9 innings) with 180 free passes. DeSclafani (37-39 win-loss mark in his career) sits with a FIP of 4.25 while he has gone up against 2,717 batters in the major leagues. The bullpen has an earned run average of 5.44 and they have given up 104 base hits on the year. Teams are hitting .192 against the bullpen and they've struck out 156 hitters and walked 65 batters. As a team, Cincinnati allows 7.5 hits per nine innings while striking out 11.1 batters per nine innings. They are 15th in the league in team earned run average at 4.47. The Reds pitchers collectively have given up 256 base hits and 153 earned runs. They have allowed 50 home runs this season, ranking them 12th in the league. Cincinnati as a pitching staff has walked 142 batters and struck out 381. They have walked 4.1 men per 9 innings while striking out 11.1 per 9. They have a team WHIP of 1.29 and their FIP as a unit is 4.35.

Related: Get MLB predictions on all of today's games

Hitting Statistics

As a team Cincinnati is hitting .215, good for 28th in the league. The Reds hold a .408 team slugging percentage and an on-base percentage of .316, which is good for 20th in baseball. They rank 30th in MLB with 6.6 hits per game. Joey Votto is hitting .239 with an on-base percentage of .352. He has 26 hits this season in 109 at bats with 12 runs batted in. He has a slugging percentage of .440 and an OPS+ of 107. Mike Moustakas is hitting .214 this year and he has an on-base percentage of .333. He has totaled 15 hits and he has driven in 10 men in 70 at bats. His OPS+ is 72 while his slugging percentage is at .314. The Reds have 245 hits, including 48 doubles and 56 home runs. Cincinnati has walked 146 times so far this season and they have struck out 308 times as a unit. They have left 235 men on base and have a team OPS of .723. They score 3.95 runs per contest and have scored a total of 146 runs this year.

Useful Pitching Statistics

Pittsburgh has a 11-24 overall mark this year. Williams (30-34 record in his career) holds a 4.31 earned run average and has conceded 9.0 hits per nine innings. He has a strikeout to walk ratio of 2.38 and he has faced 2,195 opposing hitters so far in his pro baseball career. In his career, Williams has given up 513 base hits while he has totaled 399 punchouts in 513 frames. He has given up 246 earned runs while holding a WHIP of 1.327 and a FIP of 4.5. The bullpen has an earned run average of 4.88 and they have given up 142 base hits on the year. Teams are hitting .205 against the Pirates bullpen. Their relievers have struck out 166 batters and walked 82 opposing hitters. As a team, Pittsburgh allows 8.5 hits per nine innings while striking out 8.9 batters per nine innings. They are 21st in the league in team earned run average at 4.93. The Pirates pitchers as a team have surrendered 291 base knocks and 169 earned runs this season. They have given up 50 home runs this year, which ranks 13th in Major League Baseball. Pittsburgh as a staff has walked 153 hitters and struck out 305 batters. They give up a walk 4.5 times per 9 innings while they strike out 8.9 per 9. Their team WHIP is 1.44 while their FIP as a staff is 4.98.

Hitting Statistics

As a team, they are batting .220, good for 27th in the league. The Pirates hold a .350 team slugging percentage and an on-base percentage of .282, which is good for 30th in baseball. They rank 26th in MLB with 7.4 hits per contest. Adam Frazier comes into this matchup batting .215 with an OBP of .282. He has 28 hits this year along with 15 RBI in 130 AB's. He maintains a slugging percentage of .331 with an OPS+ of 66. Colin Moran is hitting .266 this season and he has an OBP of .349. He has collected 25 hits in 94 at bats while driving in 12 runs. He has an OPS+ of 140 and a slugging percentage of .553. The Pirates as a unit have 258 base hits, including 44 doubles and 34 homers. Pittsburgh has walked 99 times this year and they have struck out on 312 occasions. They have had 200 men left on base and have an OPS of .632. They have scored 4.09 runs per game and totaled 143 runs this season.

Who will win tonight's Reds/Pirates MLB game against the spread?

Tony's Pick: Take the Reds (-144)

Get $60 worth of FREE premium member picks. No Obligation. No Salesman. No Credit Card. Fast Sign up with Instant Access Click Here