Boston Red Sox vs Pittsburgh Pirates Picks and Prediction for Sunday, August 16, 2026

The Boston Red Sox visit the Pittsburgh Pirates at PNC Park in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, on Sunday, August 16, 2026. First pitch is scheduled for 1:35 PM ET, with MLB.TV providing television coverage. Boston enters the matchup at 65-57 overall and 36-26 on the road, while Pittsburgh is 60-64 overall and 31-30 at home. At the time of this writing, the odds were not released. Before making your selections for Sunday’s matchup, check out our free MLB picks for more baseball predictions and analysis.

Starting Pitchers

Patrick Sandoval is scheduled to start for Boston and enters at 1-1 with a 3.30 ERA and 1.70 WHIP through 30.0 innings. He has allowed 38 hits and three home runs while recording 29 strikeouts against 13 walks. Pittsburgh counters with Paul Skenes, who is 9-11 with a 3.88 ERA and 1.12 WHIP across 134.2 innings. He has surrendered 114 hits and 14 home runs while striking out 166 and walking 37. Boston's starter owns the lower ERA, but Pittsburgh has a sizable advantage in WHIP, while its starter has also demonstrated considerably greater strikeout production over a much larger workload.

Boston Trying to Reverse Its Recent Slide

Boston enters Sunday at 65-57 overall and has performed well away from home with a 36-26 road record. The Red Sox have struggled recently, however, going just 1-4 over their last five completed games. Their lone victory during that stretch was a 7-0 road win over Toronto. Boston lost the other three games against Toronto by scores of 6-4, 5-3, and 2-1 before falling 8-4 at Pittsburgh on Friday.

The Red Sox are batting .248 this season with a .321 on-base percentage and .400 slugging percentage. Boston has scored 542 runs on 1,012 hits while hitting 122 home runs. Pitching has been the team's stronger statistical area, with a 3.51 ERA and 1.22 WHIP. Opponents are batting .240 against Boston pitching, which has accumulated 1,042 strikeouts against 343 walks.

Boston's biggest strength is its season-long run prevention. Its 3.51 ERA is substantially better than Pittsburgh's 4.32 mark, and the Red Sox have also issued 109 fewer walks. The concern is an offense that has produced fewer runs, hits, and home runs than Pittsburgh, combined with a 1-4 record over the last five games.

Pittsburgh Has the Offensive Edge

Pittsburgh enters this matchup at 60-64 overall with a 31-30 record at PNC Park. The Pirates have gone 2-3 across their last five completed games, but both victories have come in their last two contests. Pittsburgh defeated Miami 13-1 before opening this series with an 8-4 victory over Boston. Its three previous defeats came by scores of 8-2, 2-0, and 11-1.

The Pirates are batting .256 with a .334 on-base percentage and .413 slugging percentage. Pittsburgh has scored 625 runs on 1,099 hits while hitting 151 home runs. The pitching staff owns a 4.32 ERA and 1.32 WHIP, with opponents batting .241. Pittsburgh has recorded 1,147 strikeouts while issuing 452 walks.

Pittsburgh's offensive numbers create a meaningful advantage in this matchup. The Pirates have scored 83 more runs than Boston while producing 87 more hits and 29 more home runs. Their pitching has been less reliable over the full season, but the scheduled starter's 1.12 WHIP gives Pittsburgh a strong chance to limit Boston's opportunities while its offense attempts to continue its recent surge.

Boston Red Sox vs Pittsburgh Pirates Picks and Prediction

Pick: Pittsburgh Pirates Moneyline

Pittsburgh is the preferred side based on the combination of the starting matchup, recent results, and offensive production. The Pirates have won two straight while scoring 21 runs, whereas Boston has dropped four of its last five. Pittsburgh's scheduled starter carries a 1.12 WHIP with 166 strikeouts, and the Pirates hold significant season advantages in runs, home runs, batting average, OBP, and slugging percentage. Pittsburgh gets the call at home.

Pick: Under 8.5

Take the under if the total is set at 8.5. Despite Pittsburgh's recent offensive explosion, the scheduled pitching matchup offers reasons to expect scoring to settle down. Boston's starter owns a 3.30 ERA, while Pittsburgh's starter carries a 1.12 WHIP and 166 strikeouts. Boston also owns an excellent 3.51 team ERA, making the under attractive at 8.5 despite the Pirates' stronger offensive profile.

Preview was completed prior to game play on Saturday.