Pittsburgh Pirates vs Washington Nationals Prediction, 9/12/2025 MLB Picks, Best Bets & Odds

Game: Pittsburgh Pirates vs Washington Nationals

Date: Friday, September 12, 2025

Location: Nationals Park in Washington, D.C.

TV: MASN

Odds/Point Spread: Pittsburgh (-182) Washington (+150)

Nationals Park is the site where the Washington Nationals (60-85) will try to beat the Pittsburgh Pirates (64-82) on Friday. The odds on this game have the Pirates at -182 while the Nationals are at +150. The over/under is 8.5. The pitchers who are expected to start are Mitch Keller and Brad Lord.

As a unit, the Pittsburgh Pirates are putting up 3.6 runs per outing, which puts them at 30th in MLB. They have tallied 525 runs while holding a team OBP of .305. The Pirates have hit 219 doubles as a team and have knocked 104 baseballs out of the park. They have 505 runs batted in in addition to 1,118 hits over the course of the season, while their team batting average is sitting at .231. Pittsburgh owns a slugging percentage of .349 and have been called out on strikes 1,277 times, while drawing a walk on 478 occasions.

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Their K/BB ratio is 2.73 and the pitching staff has a team WHIP of 1.22. Pirates pitchers have surrendered 138 long balls and also 596 total runs (8th in the league). Pittsburgh has given up 1,152 base hits (8.0 per 9 innings) and also 555 earned runs. The Pirates have an earned run average of 3.87 for the season (12th in MLB), and the staff has rung up 1,165 batters. Their pitching staff has walked 427 opposing batters and their FIP is 3.88 as a team for the season.

The Pirates have dispatched 458 relievers to the mound over the course of the season. The bullpen pitchers have inherited 193 base runners on the campaign and 36.3% of them ended up crossing the plate. They have accumulated 33 saves for the season and have missed out on 23 of their 56 save opportunities. The Pirates relief pitchers have accumulated a save percentage of 58.9% and have entered the game in 123 save situations. The bullpen have recorded 65 holds over the course of the season (26th in MLB). Pirates relief pitchers have entered the game with runners on base 127 times as well as having 141 appearances in high leverage situations.

The Pittsburgh Pirates have amassed 3,869 putouts so far this season, as well as 1,217 assists and 70 errors. Their fielding percentage sits at .986 which has them sitting 14th in baseball, and they have turned 108 double plays. The Pirates have turned 70.7% of balls hit into play into outs out of 11,607 innings, which has them sitting 7th in professional baseball.

Keller has taken the mound for 863 innings and has racked up 823 strikeouts so far in his MLB career. Keller (42-64 career win-loss mark) sits with a FIP of 4.45 and he has faced 3,759 opposing batters during his time in the majors. His ERA is 4.51 (433 earned runs allowed) and his WHIP is 1.384. He has surrendered 903 hits (9.4 hits per nine innings) with 292 walks.

Washington has a total of 140 home runs so far this year to go along with 603 runs batted in. They have hit 240 doubles, while getting a free base 410 times and scoring 626 runs. The Washington Nationals have earned a team on-base percentage of .309 as well as a batting average of .245 for the year. The Nationals hold a team SLG% of .392 and they are scoring 4.32 runs per game (18th in MLB). They have struck out on 1,174 instances (23rd in baseball) and have earned a total of 1,190 hits.

The Nationals have a WHIP of 1.433 and have a FIP of 4.71 as a team so far this season. They are currently ranked 29th in the league as a pitching staff in total hits relinquished with 1,321. The Washington pitching staff have yielded 793 runs on the campaign while holding an ERA of 5.30 (749 earned runs surrendered). Their strikeout to walk ratio comes in at 7.80 (1,108 strikeouts against 500 free passes). They have allowed 190 HR's and they yield 5.61 runs per 9 innings (29th in baseball).

Sitting with 114 save situations, the Nationals have earned 66 holds and 16 blown saves. Washington has had relievers enter the contest in 47 save opportunities and they have walked away with 31 saves. Their relievers have stepped onto the mound 111 times in high leverage situations and on 144 occasions with runners on base. Washington relievers have an inherited score percentage of 39.2% of 245 inherited runners. They are ranked 8th in MLB with a save percentage of 66.0%, and they have dispatched 516 relief pitchers to the mound so far this year.

The Washington Nationals have turned 114 double plays and have a fielding percentage of .984 (21st in professional baseball). The Nationals have accrued 1,237 assists, 80 errors and have earned a total of 3,814 putouts so far this year. Out of their 11,442 innings played, the Nationals hold a defensive efficiency of 68.3% (28th in the majors).

Lord (5-8 win-loss record in his career) has a 4.21 earned run average while conceding 8.6 hits per 9 innings. His K/BB ratio is 2.36 and he has faced 457 hitters in his pro baseball career. He has allowed 51 ER's while earning a WHIP of 1.311 and a FIP of 4.1. So far in his career, Lord has conceded 104 hits while he has totaled 92 punch outs in 109 innings pitched.

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

Guy Bruhn's Pick: Take Pittsburgh (-182)

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