Minnesota Twins vs Pittsburgh Pirates Predictions, MLB Picks, Betting Tips 8/6/2020

Game: Minnesota Twins vs Pittsburgh Pirates

Date: Thursday, August 6, 2020

Location: PNC Park in Pittsburgh, PA

TV: FSN/ATPT

Odds/Point Spread: Twins (-180) Pirates (+166)

PNC Park is the venue where Colin Moran and the Pittsburgh Pirates (2-9, 5th in NL Central) will take on the Minnesota Twins (9-2, 1st in AL Central) on Thursday. The odds on this matchup have the Twins coming in at -180 and the Pirates are at +166. The O/U opens at 9. The pitchers taking the mound will be Kenta Maeda and JT Brubaker.

Key Minnesota Twins Injuries

8/4/2020 Rich Hill SP Shoulder Expected to be out until at least Aug 14
8/4/2020 Jake Odorizzi SP Back Expected to be out until at least Aug 7
8/3/2020 Josh Donaldson 3B Calf Probable for Aug 5
8/2/2020 Homer Bailey SP Biceps Expected to be out until at least Aug 10
8/1/2020 Zack Littell RP Hamstring Expected to be out until at least Aug 11

Key Pittsburgh Pirates Injuries

8/4/2020 Michael Feliz RP Forearm Expected to be out until at least Sep 15
8/3/2020 JT Riddle SS Abdomen Expected to be out until at least Aug 7
8/2/2020 Mitch Keller SP Oblique Expected to be out until at least Aug 12
8/2/2020 Keone Kela RP Undisclosed Expected to be out until at least Aug 7
7/28/2020 Clay Holmes RP Forearm Expected to be out until at least Aug 10
7/28/2020 Kyle Crick RP Shoulder Expected to be out until at least Aug 10
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 Twins have a 9-2 overall record this season. Maeda (49-35 career mark) has a FIP of 3.72 while facing 2,469 opposing batters in the major leagues. His ERA is 3.83 (255 earned runs allowed) and he has a career WHIP of 1.142. He has given up 505 hits (7.6 hits per 9 innings) and has had 180 walks. Maeda has pitched in 600 innings and has racked up 653 punchouts during his career. The bullpen has an earned run average of 2.68 and they have given up 36 base hits on the year. Teams are hitting .189 against the bullpen and they've struck out 57 hitters and walked 18 batters. As a team, Minnesota allows 6.7 hits per nine innings while striking out 9.1 batters per nine innings. They are 4th in the league in team earned run average at 2.76. The Twins pitchers collectively have given up 73 base hits and 30 earned runs. They have allowed 11 home runs this season, ranking them 19th in the league. Minnesota as a pitching staff has walked 37 batters and struck out 99. They have walked 3.4 men per 9 innings while striking out 9.1 per 9. They have a team WHIP of 1.12 and their FIP as a unit is 3.63.

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

Hitting Statistics

As a team Minnesota is hitting .237, good for 15th in the league. The Twins hold a .410 team slugging percentage and an on-base percentage of .317, which is good for 14th in baseball. They rank 20th in MLB with 7.5 hits per game. Nelson Cruz is hitting .395 with an on-base percentage of .435. He has 17 hits this season in 43 at bats with 15 runs batted in. He has a slugging percentage of .674 and an OPS+ of 214. Jorge Polanco is hitting .268 this year and he has an on-base percentage of .318. He has totaled 11 hits and he has driven in 5 men in 41 at bats. His OPS+ is 97 while his slugging percentage is at .366. The Twins have 82 hits, including 12 doubles and 16 home runs. Minnesota has walked 37 times so far this season and they have struck out 92 times as a unit. They have left 59 men on base and have a team OPS of .728. They score 5.27 runs per contest and have scored a total of 58 runs this year.

Useful Pitching Statistics

Pittsburgh has a 2-9 overall mark this year. Brubaker (0-0) has given up 7.2 hits per 9 innings. His strikeout to walk ratio is 7.00 and he has faced 20 opposing batters. Brubaker has allowed 4 hits while tallying 7 punchouts in 5 frames. He has earned a WHIP of 1.000 and is the owner of a FIP of 1.6. The bullpen has an earned run average of 3.99 and they have given up 46 base hits on the year. Teams are hitting .207 against the Pirates bullpen. Their relievers have struck out 50 batters and walked 32 opposing hitters. As a team, Pittsburgh allows 7.8 hits per nine innings while striking out 8.8 batters per nine innings. They are 19th in the league in team earned run average at 4.38. The Pirates pitchers as a team have surrendered 84 base knocks and 47 earned runs this season. They have given up 11 home runs this year, which ranks 20th in Major League Baseball. Pittsburgh as a staff has walked 58 hitters and struck out 94 batters. They give up a walk 5.4 times per 9 innings while they strike out 8.8 per 9. Their team WHIP is 1.47 while their FIP as a staff is 4.55.

Hitting Statistics

As a team, they are batting .194, good for 27th in the league. The Pirates hold a .313 team slugging percentage and an on-base percentage of .262, which is good for 30th in baseball. They rank 26th in MLB with 6.4 hits per contest. Colin Moran comes into this matchup batting .243 with an OBP of .300. He has 9 hits this year along with 7 RBI in 37 AB's. He maintains a slugging percentage of .676 with an OPS+ of 162. Phillip Evans is hitting .393 this season and he has an OBP of .485. He has collected 11 hits in 28 at bats while driving in 4 runs. He has an OPS+ of 168 and a slugging percentage of .464. The Pirates as a unit have 70 base hits, including 11 doubles and 10 homers. Pittsburgh has walked 32 times this year and they have struck out on 99 occasions. They have had 57 men left on base and have an OPS of .575. They have scored 3.36 runs per game and totaled 37 runs this season.

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

Guy's Pick: Take the Pirates (+166)

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