Pirates

Pirates Daily: Keller on the Bump, Can the Offense Provide Support?

Published

2 years ago

August 16, 2022

Tuesday, Aug. 16, the Pittsburgh Pirates (45-70) return home and have a rare opportunity to play the Boston Red Sox (57-59) in the opener of a three-game interleague series.

The weather at PNC Park for first pitch (7:05 p.m.) looks to be a cloudy with the temperature around 72 degrees. Wind will blow around 7 mph and come from the northeast.

The game will air on AT&T Sportsnet Pittsburgh and 93.7 The Fan

Starters

Mitch Keller (4-8, 4.25 ERA) returns to the mound after picking up a victory last Wednesday at Arizona, where he pitched 5.1 innings and gave up three earned runs. Keller’s last outing stopped a streak of six straight games of six innings pitched or more.

Nick Pivetta (8-9, 4.51 ERA) is set to go for the Red Sox after a similar outing last Wednesday against Atlanta. Pivetta pitched six innings and gave up three earned runs in a losing effort.

Betting Odds

The Pittsburgh Pirates open as +115 underdogs on the moneyline, whereas the Red Sox are listed as -135 favorites. Pittsburgh’s run line of +1.5 can be had at -145 odds, while Boston’s -1.5 can be had at +125. The over/under currently sits at 8.5 runs.

Who’s Hot/Who’s Not

Who’s Hot: Manny Bañuelos has now gone 12 innings while only giving up one run. In that span, Bañuelos has struck out 13, walked four, and gave up seven hits.

Who’s Not: Bligh Madris continues to struggle after going hitless over the weekend when the Giants swept a three-game series from the Pirates in San Francisco. He had just two hits on the nine-game road trip.

Tidbits:

During August, the Pirates lead the major leagues with 12 stolen bases, ahead of the Diamondbacks (10), Royals (10), and Marlins (10). The Pirates have also swiped 17 bags since the start of the second half of the season, tied with the D-backs for the second-highest total in the NL behind the Marlins (18) and tied for the third-most, including the Cleveland Guardians, in the major leagues behind only Kansas City (18).
Pivetta is 0-4 with a 7.97 ERA in eight starts since the beginning of July. This will be Pivetta’s first career appearance against the Pirates.
Keller is 1-2 in his last five starts despite a 2.45 ERA. Keller has never faced the Red Sox