Cincinnati Reds vs. Pittsburgh Pirates, 4/04/2019 Predictions & Odds

Reds vs. Pirates Thursday Prediction

National League Central rivals the Reds and Pirates will open a new series at PNC Park Thursday night in a game that is even when it comes the odds. What’s the best play on the board for bettors?

Game Snapshot & Odds

955 Cincinnati Reds (-105) at 956 Pittsburgh Pirates (-115); 8 runs

7:05 p.m. ET, Thursday, April 4, 2019

PNC Park, Pittsburgh, PA

Compare odds and from multiple different online sportsbooks and shop for the best lines at our new Baseball Odds & Betting Page.

Public Betting Trends

According to oddsmakers from online sports book BetNow.eu, the Pirates are -115 favorites to beat the Reds, who are -105 underdogs. As of this writing, 59% of the betting tickets wagered at online sportsbooks are on the Pirates to win outright.

The above information is subject to change, so be sure to check out our MLB Public Betting Page for updated figures on this game.

Cincinnati Reds Fantasy Spin

Matt Kemp is out of the Reds' starting lineup on Thursday against the Pirates. Jesse Winker will play left field and bat leadoff versus right-hander Jordan Lyles. Kemp is 1-for-12 (.083) with five strikeouts to open the 2019 regular season and might only play against left-handed opponents moving forward. At least, that's how it should be.

Pittsburgh Pirates Fantasy Spin

Adam Frazier went 3-for-5 with a stolen base and drove in a run during a loss to the Cardinals on Wednesday. Two of his hits were doubles but it was an infield single that generated the RBI. Frazier is getting a chance to start every day at second base and bat in the leadoff slot for the Pirates this year. He owns a .333 batting average with no homers and one RBI after four games. He doesn't steal bases so he is not a typical leadoff batter, although he does have a career .346 on-base percentage. The base he stole today matches his total from 113 games last year.

MLB Betting Trends

Cincinnati

The Reds have dropped nine of their last 11 meetings with the Pirates, are 1-6 in their last seven games played at PNC Park and have lost all four of the last four games started by Tyler Mahle versus Pittsburgh.

Pittsburgh

The Pirates have won seven of their last nine games following a loss but are just 1-4 in their last five home games.

Prediction:

Jordan Lyles will start for the Pirates and has been up-and-down throughout his career. Yasiel Puig and Eugenio Suarez could do some damage, as could left-handers Jesse Winker, Joey Votto and Scott Schebler given Lyles’ reverse-splits. Meanwhile, Mahle has struggled against left-handers, which means Frazier and Josh Bell could stay hot. Given that the over is 5-0 in Mahle’s last five starts and is 4-1 in the Pirates’ last five home games, I’ll back both offenses tonight.

The Pick: Reds/Pirates over 8