Toronto Blue Jays vs Pittsburgh Pirates Prediction, 5/7/2023 MLB Picks, Best Bets & Odds

Game: Toronto Blue Jays vs Pittsburgh Pirates

Date: Sunday, May 7, 2023

Location: PNC Park in Pittsburgh, PA

TV: AT&T SportsNet Pittsburgh

Odds/Point Spread: Toronto (-140) Pittsburgh (+120)

The Toronto Blue Jays (19-14) are headed to PNC Park on Sunday where they will meet the Pittsburgh Pirates (20-13). The odds on this game have the Blue Jays at -140 while the Pirates are sitting at +120. The over/under comes in at 9. The pitchers who are expected to start are Yusei Kikuchi and Roansy Contreras.

As a team, the Toronto Blue Jays are scoring 4.7 runs per game, which has them sitting at 11th in MLB. They have 155 runs scored while having a team on-base percentage of .329. The Blue Jays have accumulated 59 two-baggers as a team and have hit 37 balls out of the park. They have recorded 146 RBI's in addition to 288 base knocks on the campaign, and their average at the plate comes in at .254. Toronto has a slugging rate of .408 and have struck out 266 times, while drawing a walk on 116 occasions.

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They have accumulated a K/BB ratio of 3.17 and their pitching staff sits with a WHIP of 1.27. Blue Jays pitchers have given up 44 home runs and 150 runs in total (19th in baseball). Toronto has conceded 273 hits (8.5 per 9 innings) in addition to 136 earned runs. The Blue Jays have a team earned run average of 4.22 over the course of the season (13th in the league), and the staff has rung up 304 hitters. Their pitching staff has walked 96 opposing hitters and their FIP is 4.37 as a unit this season.

The Blue Jays have sent 113 relief pitchers to the mound this year. The relievers have inherited 51 runners on the season with 25.5% of those runners crossed the plate. They have compiled 11 saves this year and have missed out on 3 of their 14 chances to save the game. The Blue Jays relief pitchers have recorded a save rate of 78.6% and has entered the game in 34 save situations. The bullpen are sitting with 20 holds this year (10th in baseball). Blue Jays bullpen pitchers have entered the contest with runners on 35 times in addition to having 33 appearances in high leverage situations.

The Blue Jays have converted 68.7% of balls in play into outs out of 2,610 innings on the diamond, which has them ranked 17th in MLB. The Toronto Blue Jays have earned a total of 870 putouts this season, as well as 261 assists and 18 errors. Their fielding rate is holding at .984 which puts them in 20th in pro baseball, and they have twisted 25 double plays.

Kikuchi has taken the ball for 497 innings and has accumulated 480 strikeouts in his career. Kikuchi (25-31 career win-loss mark) sits with a FIP of 5.10 and he has faced 2,163 hitters in the major leagues. His earned run average is 4.96 (274 ER's allowed) and his career WHIP is 1.413. He has surrendered 507 base knocks (9.2 hits per nine innings) and has 196 walks.

The Pirates hold a team slugging % of .428 and they tally 4.85 runs per contest (10th in the league). They have hit 69 doubles, while taking a walk 126 times as well as scoring 160 runs. Pittsburgh has accounted for 35 HRs for the season and 152 runs batted in. They have struck out on 268 instances (22nd in the league) and have notched a total of 276 base knocks. The Pittsburgh Pirates have earned a team OBP of .333 as well as a team batting average of .252 for the year.

The Pirates hold a team WHIP of 1.312 with a FIP of 3.97 as a pitching staff so far this year. They currently have a strikeout to walk ratio of 8.90 (287 strikeouts vs 115 free passes). They come in at 14th in the league as a pitching staff in total hits surrendered with 267. They have allowed 30 homers and they yield 3.93 runs per 9 innings (6th in the league). The Pittsburgh pitching staff have allowed 127 runs this season while holding a team ERA of 3.62 (117 earned runs conceded).

With 42 save situations, the Pirates have amassed 25 holds and also 3 blown saves. Pittsburgh has had relievers step onto the hill in 16 save chances and they have walked away with 13 saves. Their relievers have stepped onto the mound 29 times in high leverage situations and also on 19 occasions with runners on base. Pittsburgh relief pitchers hold an inherited score percentage of 20.0% out of 30 inherited base runners. They are ranked 2nd in the league holding a save percentage of 81.3%, and they have dispatched 98 relief pitchers to the mound so far this year.

The Pittsburgh Pirates have turned 25 double plays and have a fielding percentage of .982 (26th in the majors). The Pirates have 259 assists, 21 errors and have 875 putouts this year. In 2,625 innings on the field, the Pirates hold a defensive efficiency of 69.0% (16th in MLB).

Thus far in his career, Contreras has given up 116 base knocks while he has accumulated 117 K's in 131 innings. He has given up 55 earned runs while holding a WHIP of 1.313 and a FIP of 4.1. His K/BB ratio is 2.09 and he has faced 560 hitters in his MLB career. Contreras (8-7 win-loss mark in his career) is the owner of a 3.78 ERA while conceding 8.0 hits per nine innings.

Who will win tonight's MLB game against the spread or moneyline?

Josh Schonwald's Pick: Take Toronto (-140)

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