Detroit Tigers vs Pittsburgh Pirates Prediction, 8/17/2026 MLB Picks, Best Bets & Odds

Game: Detroit Tigers vs Pittsburgh Pirates

Date: Monday, August 17, 2026

Location: PNC Park in Pittsburgh, PA

TV: SportsNet Pittsburgh

Odds/Point Spread: Detroit (-160) Pittsburgh (+132)

The Detroit Tigers (60-63) are traveling to PNC Park on Monday where they will meet the Pittsburgh Pirates (60-65). The moneyline on this contest has Detroit at -160 and Pittsburgh is priced at +132. The total comes in at 9. The pitchers who are expected to start are Framber Valdez and Carmen Mlodzinski.

The Tigers have hit 188 two-baggers as a team and have knocked 149 balls out of the stadium. Detroit has a slugging percentage of .408 and have struck out 1,059 times, while taking a walk on 434 occasions. As a squad, the Detroit Tigers are recording 4.6 runs/g, which puts them at 13th in the league. They have accounted for 533 RBI's and 1,008 base knocks for the season, and their team batting average sits at .243. They have 560 runs scored while holding a team OBP of .319.

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Their K/BB ratio is 2.69 and their pitching staff has a collective WHIP of 1.21. Tigers pitchers have given up 120 home runs in addition to 475 runs in total (5th in the league). Detroit has surrendered 945 hits (7.8 per 9 innings) and also 427 earned runs. The Tigers are sitting with a team earned run average of 3.52 on the campaign (4th in the league), and they have rung up 1,010 hitters. Their pitching staff has walked 375 opposing hitters and their FIP is 3.84 as a squad on the campaign.

The Tigers have dispatched 380 relievers to the mound on the year. The bullpen pitchers have inherited 198 runners on the season with 26.3% of them ended up crossing the plate. The relief pitchers have racked up 56 holds for the year (23rd in baseball). Tigers pitchers have entered the game with runners on 135 times in addition to having 99 appearances in high leverage situations. They have tallied 25 saves over the course of the season and have missed out on 26 out of their 51 chances to get a save. The Tigers relief pitchers have earned a save rate of 49.0% and stepped onto the hill in 109 save situations.

The Detroit Tigers have 3,272 putouts at this point in the season, in addition to 1,082 assists and 54 errors. Their fielding percentage is currently at .988 which ranks 7th in pro baseball, and they have turned 94 double plays. The Tigers have converted 71.3% of baseballs in play into outs out of their 9,816 innings on the field, ranking them 5th in baseball.

Valdez (88-60 win-loss mark in his career) has earned a FIP of 3.41 and he has gone up against 5,070 hitters during his time in the majors. He has surrendered 1,047 base hits (7.8 hits per 9 innings) and has 439 free passes. His ERA is 3.46 (467 earned runs allowed) and his WHIP is 1.225. Valdez has taken the ball for 1,213 innings and is sitting with 1,159 strikeouts in his MLB career.

The Pirates have a team SLG% of .411 and they average 5.00 runs per outing (3rd in baseball). They have 192 two-baggers, while getting a free base 446 times as well as notching 625 runs. Pittsburgh has 151 HRs over the course of the season as well as 596 runs batted in. They have struck out on 1,177 occasions (1st in the league) and have recorded 1,105 hits. The Pittsburgh Pirates are sitting with an OBP of .333 and a batting average of .256 for the year.

The Pirates have a WHIP of 1.326 in addition to having a FIP of 3.93 as a pitching staff over the course of the season. They have earned a K/BB ratio of 9.30 (1,158 strikeouts against 456 free passes). They have a ranking of 20th in baseball as a staff in total hits allowed with 1,021. They have surrendered 130 homers and they allow 4.85 runs per 9 innings (23rd in the league). The Pittsburgh pitching staff have allowed 600 runs this year while having a team ERA of 4.32 (535 earned runs relinquished).

Pittsburgh relief pitchers have an inherited score percentage of 34.2% of 149 inherited base runners. Their bullpen pitchers have stepped onto the hill 108 times in high leverage situations and on 105 occasions with base runners. Sitting with 95 save situations, the Pirates have accrued 50 holds and also 20 blown saves. They are currently ranked 27th in MLB holding a save percentage of 54.5%, and they have sent 395 relief pitchers onto the field for the year.

The Pittsburgh Pirates have gotten 100 double plays and have earned a fielding percentage of .983 (23rd in pro baseball). The Pirates have recorded 977 assists, 76 errors and have earned a total of 3,344 putouts over the course of the season. In 10,032 innings on the diamond, the Pirates hold a defensive efficiency of 68.6% (27th in pro baseball).

Thus far in his career, Mlodzinski has conceded 276 hits while he has tallied 247 strikeouts in 284 innings pitched. Mlodzinski (19-21 win-loss record in his career) has earned a 3.45 earned run average while giving up 8.7 hits per 9 innings. He has given up a total of 109 earned runs while holding a WHIP of 1.319 and having a FIP of 3.4. He has a strikeout to walk ratio of 2.49 and he has faced 1,213 hitters in his pro baseball career.

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

Parlay's Pundit's Pick: Take Pittsburgh (+132) and under 9 runs

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