Pittsburgh Pirates vs Cincinnati Reds Prediction & Picks - MLB

Prediction published on 6/26/26, 2:43 PM  by Lou Aguila in MLB Picks

The Pittsburgh Pirates, who have won 7 of their last 10 meetings with the Cincinnati Reds, will go for another convincing win over their NL Central rivals in Game 1 of their weekend series.

The Pirates are +105 to cover -1.5 runs.

Current Form:

The Pittsburgh Pirates will host the Cincinnati Reds, looking to extend their winning streak to three games. The Pirates won the last two games of their series against the Seattle Mariners behind back-to-back pitching dominance from Braxton Ashcraft and Bubba Chandler. Pittsburgh has pitched to a 2.45 ERA over its last five games.

The Cincinnati Reds lost all three games against the Milwaukee Brewers. The Reds only scored one run in the first two games before coming up with five runs in a 5-6 defeat in Game 3. Over the last five games, Cincinnati has averaged 3.9 runs on a .219 BA.

Starting Pitchers:

Reds LHP Andrew Abbott (5-4, 3.83 ERA) has sported a 3.54 ERA over the last five games. The lefty gave up one run over five innings in a 3-5 loss to Arizona on June 14 and again surrendered one run over the same number

of innings in a 2-10 win over the Yankees on June 20.

Pirates RHP Paul Skenes (6-7, 2.86 ERA) has not delivered a win for his team in his last 7 starts. However, the reigning NL CY Young Winner has maintained a terrific 2.57 ERA over these starts.

The Matchup: The Pirates have won their last five meetings against the Reds and 7 of their last 10 head-to-head matches.