Marlins vs. Pirates Prediction and Odds for Friday, July 22 (Miami is Better Than You Think)
The Miami Marlins are down, but not out.
They sit at 43-48 after the All-Star break, so they still have a shot at making a playoff push, but wins need to come in bunches as we enter the latter part of July.
They can get off to a good start on Friday then they begin a three-game series against the lowly Pittsburgh Pirates.
Let's take a look at the odds for the opening game of the series, set to begin at 7:05pm et at PNC Park.
Marlins vs. Pirates Odds, Run Line, and Total
Run line:
- Marlins -1.5 (+135)
- Pirates +1.5 (-155)
Moneyline:
- Marlins: -125
- Pirates: +105
Total:
- 8 (OVER -110 | UNDER -110)
Marlins vs. Pirates Prediction and Pick
Braxton Garrett is expected to get the start for the Marlins, and while he's certainly no Sandy Alcantara, the 24-year old is having a solid campaign since his first start back on June 5th. Through eight starts, he sports a solid 3.70 ERA, 3.45 FIP, and a 1.234 WHIP.
He now gets the benefit of facing a Pirates team that ranks 28th in batting average (.220) and 26th in OPS (.672) dating back to June 1st.
Despite the Marlins only recording four more wins than the Pirates so far this season, their run differential tells a truer story. The Marlins have a ruin differential this season of -12, while the Pirates have the second worst run differential at -134. I'm no math expert, but those are wildly different numbers.
I'll back the Marlins in this one.
Pick: Marlins ML
You can track Iain's bets on Betstamp here.