Phillies vs. Pirates: Picks, predictions, how to watch Saturday’s game

The Philadelphia Phillies and Pittsburgh Pirates square off on Saturday with first pitch set for 7:15 p.m. ET. The game takes place at PNC Park in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania and will be available to watch on Fox. Ranger Suárez (7-5, 3.84 ERA) gets the start for the Phillies and the Pirates will send Mitch Keller (3-7, 4.55 ERA) to the mound.

Philadelphia (53-47) took the first two games of this series with the Pirates which has them riding a four-game winning streak heading into Saturday. The Phillies are third in the NL East but find themselves tied for the final wild-card spot in the National League, sitting neck-and-neck with the St. Louis Cardinals with the same record. Slugger Rhys Hoskins put the Phillies on his back Friday night as his four hits and a homer sent the Pirates home with the loss. Hoskins is slashing .417/.462/.583 over his last six games.

Pittsburgh (40-60) has lost five straight heading into Saturday including their last two games with the Phillies. The Pirates clearly have their sights set on the future as the roster will begin to re-shape itself and skew younger, per the words of General Manager Ben Cherington. Fourth overall pick of the 2022 MLB Draft Termarr Johnson officially signed to give the Pirates a theoretical “victory” off the field on Friday. Meanwhile, with the trade deadline around the corner on August 2 expect that to be the linchpin for Pittsburgh to make moves with the 2023 season in mind for the organization.

Phillies vs. Pirates

Pitchers: Ranger Suárez vs. Mitch Keller
First pitch: 7:15 p.m. ET
Phillies local broadcast: WCAU
Pirates local broadcast: AT&T SportsNet Pittsburgh
Live stream: Fox Live, Fox Sports App

Odds, picks & predictions

Run Line: Phillies -1.5 (+110)
Run total: 7.5
Moneyline odds: Phillies -150, Pirates +130

Moneyline pick: Phillies -150

Pittsburgh is a noted ballclub that struggles to generate offense as they rank 29th in batting average (.220) and 28th in runs. The Phillies have the advantage on offense in this one, and coupled with Suárez’s improvement, the Pirates should continue to struggle to match Phillies’ bats.

Player prop pick: Rhys Hoskins over 1.5 total bases (+120)

Hoskins is slashing .417/.462/.583 over his last six games including a four-hit and three RBI performance on Friday, alongside going the distance for a homer. He’s riding a five-game hitting streak and make it six with Hoskins hitting the over on total bases for Saturday.

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