Brewers vs Pirates Prediction and Betting Preview | June 24
Bullpen attrition is going to be the name of the game in this week’s Brewers vs Pirates series. With both bullpens seeing high-usage in recent days, the GoldSheet team is expecting to see some runs in the second half of Tuesday’s contest in Milwaukee.
Brewers vs Pirates Betting Preview
| Time | 7:40pm ET / 4:40pm PT |
| Stadium | American Family Field in Milwaukee |
| Weather | Dome |
| MoneyLine | Milwaukee -200 / Pittsburgh +175 |
| Total | 7.5 Runs (o -115 / u -105) |
| RunLine | Milwaukee -1.5 (-120) / Pittsburgh +1.5 (EV) |
Pittsburgh Pirates
Starting with a doubleheader against the Tigers last Thursday, Pittsburgh is in the midst of playing eight games in seven days. The Pirates essentially went with a bullpen game on Monday as Braxton Ashcraft went 3.0 innings to open the game, followed by a four-pack of relievers.
Hunter Stratton, Chase Shugart and Isaac Mattson each threw at least 23 pitches on Monday, so that trio is presumably unavailable on Tuesday. David Bednar has pitched on back-to-back days, so his status for this one is in doubt.
After a promising start to the season, the summer heat wave has caught up to Andrew Heaney. The Pirates’ lefty allowed a total of six runs in his first five starts this season, but it’s been tough sledding since then. In his last start against the Tigers, he allowed seven runs on eight hits with three walks in 4.0 innings.
Heaney enters Tuesday in the bottom-25th percentile among pitchers in expected ERA, expected batting average allowed, whiff rate and strikeout rate. His walk rate has climbed from 5.9-percent last year to 7.9-percent this year. His strikeout rate has dropped from 22.9-percent last year to 17.8-percent this year. His 4.61 expected ERA is the highest of his career since he became a full-time starter in 2018.
Milwaukee Brewers
The bullpen attrition will be an issue on Milwaukee’s side as well after the Brewers were involved in a slugfest with Minnesota over the weekend. The Brewers’ bullpen threw 116 pitches across seven relievers on Sunday. Aaron Ashby threw 52 pitches out of the bullpen on Monday and Nick Mears has pitched on back-to-back days, so that duo is likely unavailable for Milwaukee on Tuesday.
After a slow start to the season, Brewers’ catcher William Contreras is heating up with three multi-hit games in his last six starts. When he’s not generating hits, Contreras is still a threat to get on base and score runs via the walk. His 15.4-percent walk rate is one of the best in baseball and he’s generated a total of nine walks in his last eight games. In five previous plate appearances against Heaney, Contreras has gone 3-for-4 with two doubles and a walk.
Brewers vs Pirates Prediction
Peralta has pitched well for the Brewers this season, but the Pirates’ lineup just saw him a couple weeks ago and they knocked him out of the game in his shortest start of the year. Pittsburgh scored two runs on five hits with three walks in 4.1 innings against Peralta in late-May.
OVER 7.5 Runs (-115)
William Contreras (MIL) Over 1.5 Runs + Hits + RBI (-145)
Daily MLB Stat Sheet
GoldSheet’s daily MLB stat sheet provides marquee hitter vs pitcher matchup notes, one traditional free play, one prop play, batting stats in a variety of categories and Ralph Michaels’ first inning trends sheet each morning around 9am ET / 6am PT. Oh yeah, we forgot to mention the price…FREE! Download your copy and check out what’s inside.
WagerTalk Live Odds Screen
WagerTalk’s live odds screen features up-to-the-minute lines from a variety of offshore and domestic sports books. Track the moneylines, runlines, totals and betting percentages for every MLB game this summer, including tonight’s Brewers vs Pirates contest. Find free MLB picks every day through out the season on our free picks pages.
**************************************************
Looking for more free sports picks and sports betting tips? Go beyond the anytime touchdown scorer picks!
- Latest Betting Odds and Public Action: Vegas lines updated in real time, including who the public is betting on and anytime touchdown scorer odds.
- Last Minute Handicapping Advice: Check out our extensive library of handicapping tips and advice from professional Vegas handicappers (we also recommend taking the time to look over our sports betting tips video library)
- Want an expert opinion? Check out the latest Free Sports Picks and Best Bets from our team of expert sports handicappers.
Make sure to bookmark all the above!
