Pittsburgh Pirates vs Cleveland Guardians Prediction MLB Picks 8/31/24

-Recent Betting trends and streaks involving Pittsburgh

-Recent Betting trends and streaks involving Cleveland

-Recent betting trends in games played between Pittsburgh and Cleveland

-A summary that ties it all together and produces a favorable betting outcome for Today’s Game between the Pirates and Guardians. 

Pirates Pitching Wasn’t Good Enough

The Pirates offense scored eight runs on Friday, but it wasn’t enough, as the pitching gave up ten runs. Andrew McCutchen hit a home run and drove in three RBIs. The Pirates are averaging 4.21 runs per game, while their defense is giving up 4.56 runs per game. The offense is ranked 21st in the league, and the defense is also ranked 21st in the league. 

Getting the start for the Pirates will be Luis Ortiz who sits with a 5-4 record and an ERA 3.34. In his last start against the Cincinnati Reds, he went six innings giving up four hits and zero runs. 

Why the Pirates Will Beat the Guardians

• The Guardians have lost five of their last six night games after playing the previous day.
• The Pirates have covered the run line in 11 of their last 12 road games against American League opponents.
• The Guardians have failed to cover the run line in 18 of their last 21 games as home favorites against National League opponents following a win.

Guardians Have Won Two in a Row 

After losing three in a row against the Royals, the Guardians have gotten back on the right track winning two straight games. Ben Lively went 4.1 innings and gave up six runs, but the offense gave him enough run support. The Guardians are averaging 4.54 runs while their pitching is giving up 4.03 runs per game. The offense is ranked 13th in the league while the pitching is ranked 5th. They have a run differential of 0.51 which is 9th in the league. 

Jose Ramirez has hit 33 home runs and driven in 104 RBIs so far. Getting the start for the Guardians will be Matthew Boyd who sits with a 1-0 record and an ERA of 2.70. In his last start against the Texas Rangers, he went six innings giving up three hits and one run. 

Why the Guardians Will Beat the Pirates

• The Guardians have won each of their last six home games against National League opponents that held a losing record.
• The Pirates have lost 10 of their last 11 road games.
• The Pirates have failed to cover the run line in six of their last seven games.
• The Guardians have covered the run line in five of their last six games at Progressive Field against NL Central opponents that held a losing record.

Pittsburgh Pirates vs Cleveland Guardians Prediction

The Pirates and Guardians are both going to really struggle to get the offense going here, and this will be a classic pitcher's duel. Boyd in his last start gave up only one run and he’s going to dominate here. Ortiz gave up zero runs in his last start and he’s going to dominate again here. Neither team is going to end up reaching three runs and this game is going to end up staying under the total.