Pittsburgh Pirates vs Washington Nationals Prediction, 6/16/2021 MLB Pick, Tips and Odds

Game: Pittsburgh Pirates vs Washington Nationals

Date: Wednesday, June 16, 2021

Location: Nationals Park in Washington, D.C.

TV: MASN/MASN2

Odds/Point Spread: Pittsburgh (+125) Washington (-156)

Chase De Jong and the Pittsburgh Pirates (23-42, 5th in NL Central) go to Nationals Park on Wednesday where they'll meet the Washington Nationals (28-35, 4th in NL East). The Pirates open this contest at +125 while the Nationals are coming in at -156. The total is set at 9. The expected starting pitchers will be Chase De Jong and Paolo Espino.

Pittsburgh has a slugging % of .353 and have been called out on strikes 546 times, while drawing a walk on 198 occasions. They have tallied 211 runs batted in in addition to 489 base knocks on the season, while their average at the plate is at .228. The Pirates have earned 104 doubles as a squad and have hit 47 balls out of the stadium. They are sitting with 225 runs scored while holding a team on-base percentage of .298. As a unit, the Pittsburgh Pirates are scoring 3.5 runs per game, which has them at 30th in the league.

The Pirates hold a team earned run average of 4.76 over the course of the season (24th in baseball), and they have struck out 534 batters. Their K/BB ratio is 2.32 and the pitching staff has a collective WHIP of 1.34. Pirates pitchers have yielded 78 home runs and 316 runs in total (21st in MLB). They have walked 230 opposing players and their FIP comes in at 4.44 as a unit this season.

Pirates relief pitchers have gone to the mound with runners on 56 times in addition to having 52 appearances in high leverage situations. The relief pitchers have a total of 26 holds so far this season (25th in MLB). The Pirates bullpen have a save percentage of 66.7% and stepped onto the hill in 40 save situations. They have compiled 8 saves on the season and have blown 4 out of their 12 save opportunities. The bullpen pitchers have inherited 89 runners for the season and 27.0% of them crossed the plate. The Pirates have sent 226 relief pitchers to the mound on the season.

The Pirates have turned 69.9% of baseballs in play into outs in their 5,043 innings, which ranks them 11th in pro baseball. The Pittsburgh Pirates have 1,681 putouts this year, as well as 584 assists and 37 errors. Their fielding percentage is currently at .984 which is 10th in professional baseball, and they have turned 460 double plays.

De Jong has taken the ball for 69 innings and has racked up 47 K's in his career. His ERA is 6.62 (51 ER's allowed) and he has a WHIP of 1.601. He has conceded 78 hits (10.1 hits per nine innings) with 33 walks. De Jong (1-5 career mark) has a FIP of 5.90 while going up against 311 opposing batters in the major leagues.

The Nationals have a team slugging percentage of .382 and they score 3.75 runs per game (29th in the league). They have 91 two-baggers, while taking a walk 186 times and earning 236 runs. Washington has tallied 62 home runs on the season to go along with 227 RBIs. They have struck out on 534 occasions (26th in baseball) and have 500 hits. The Washington Nationals have an on-base percentage of .314 in addition to a batting average of .243 this year.

The Nationals have a WHIP of 1.229 and have a FIP of 4.33 as a unit on the year. They rank 2nd in the league as a staff in total hits allowed with 454. The Washington pitching staff have surrendered 261 runs for the year and come in with a team ERA of 3.88 (234 earned runs yielded). They currently have a strikeout to walk ratio of 2.58 (547 strikeouts against 212 bases on balls). They have allowed 79 long balls and they relinquish 4.33 runs per 9 innings (13th in the league).

Sitting with 50 save situations, the Nationals have accrued 28 holds in addition to 8 blown saves. Washington has called on bullpen pitchers to enter the contest in 21 save chances and they have earned 13 saves. Their relief pitchers have stepped onto the mound 55 times in high leverage situations and also on 48 occasions with runners on. Washington relievers have an inherited score percentage of 28.8% of 73 inherited runners. They are ranked 13th in MLB holding a save rate of 61.9%, and they have dispatched 215 relief pitchers to the mound so far this season.

In their 4,881 innings on the field, the Nationals have a defensive efficiency of 71.9% (4th in pro baseball). The Washington Nationals have twisted 47 double plays and have a fielding rate of .985 (9th in the majors). The Nationals have racked up 527 assists, 33 errors and have a tally of 1,627 putouts on the campaign.

Thus far in his career, Espino has allowed 47 base hits and he has 46 strikeouts in 52 innings pitched. Espino (0-2 win-loss mark in his career) holds a 4.44 ERA while allowing 8.0 hits per nine innings. He has allowed 26 ER's while holding a WHIP of 1.177 and a FIP of 5.4. He has a strikeout to walk ratio of 3.07 and he has gone up against 222 hitters thus far in his career.

Who will win tonight's MLB game against the spread?

Guy Bruhn's Pick: Take Pittsburgh (+125)

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