The Pittsburgh Pirates take on the Milwaukee Brewers. Our MLB odds series has our Pirates Brewers prediction and pick. Find out how to watch Pirates Brewers.

The Milwaukee Brewers have had a mixed week. On one hand, they have struggled, losing two of three games to the lowly Washington Nationals. The Brewers were swept by the Atlanta Braves over the weekend, so when they stumbled in D.C., they continued to fail to build a lead over the Cincinnati Reds in the National League Central. That's bad news. The fact that the Chicago Cubs are surging — despite their loss to the Atlanta Braves on Friday afternoon — is also bad news. The Cubs are in the thick of the National League Central race. Milwaukee has a second legitimate competitor in the division chase, alongside the Reds. That's bad news as well. However, the Cubs' rise has coincided with a difficult week for the Reds. The Cubs beat the Reds three out of four times. This prevented Cincinnati from taking advantage of the Brewers' struggles.

As a result, Milwaukee — following a Thursday night romp over the Pittsburgh Pirates — is improbably half a game ahead of Cincinnati. The Brewers have lost five of seven and yet are in first place on Friday. The Brew Crew has a chance to beat up on a weak Pittsburgh team and add to its slim N.L. Central lead in Miller Park.

Here are the Pirates-Brewers MLB odds, courtesy of FanDuel. 

MLB Odds: Pirates-Brewers Odds

Pittsburgh Pirates: +1.5 (-138)

Milwaukee Brewers: -1.5 (+115)

Over: 9 (-102)

Under: 9 (-120)

How To Watch Pirates vs. Brewers

TV: AT&T SportsNet Pittsburgh (Pirates) / Bally Sports Wisconsin (Brewers) / MLB Extra Innings

Stream: MLB.tv

Time: 8:10 p.m. ET/5:10 p.m. PT

*Watch Pirates-Brewers LIVE on fuboTV (click for a free trial)*

Why The Pirates Could Cover The Spread

The Pirates played a terrible game on Thursday in Milwaukee in the first game of this series. They will not play as poorly here. They will be motivated to play well. That will help them. The bigger reason to think the Pirates will cover the spread is that the Brewers are maddeningly inconsistent. It's why they're just eight games over .500 in a weak and substandard National League Central Division. Milwaukee has weirdly had a lot of success against the Cincinnati Reds this year but has played roughly .500 baseball against nearly every other team. The Brewers do not inspire a lot of confidence and trust, and their offense comes and goes far too frequently. They don't have reliable hitters beyond Christian Yelich.

Why The Brewers Could Cover The Spread

The Brewers have done really well against the Cincinnati Reds this season. They have also done extremely well against the Pirates this year. Milwaukee is 6-1 in seven games versus Pittsburgh in 2023. The Brewers have a great comfort zone against this team. We saw this on Thursday night in the first game of this four-game series in Milwaukee. The Brewers hammered Pittsburgh ace Mitch Keller for eight runs in five innings. They won 14-1 against the Pirates' best starting pitcher. The Brewers own this matchup and deserve every last ounce of trust against Pittsburgh. The Brewers are a frustrating team to watch in general, but when Milwaukee plays either Cincinnati or Pittsburgh in 2023, it becomes the mature and responsible team it should be.

Final Pirates-Brewers Prediction & Pick

The Brewers regularly hammer the Pirates. Pittsburgh doesn't have its best pitcher on the mound. The Pirates traded away Carlos Santana, one of their better players. Milwaukee is the clear choice here.

Final Pirates-Brewers Prediction & Pick: Brewers -1.5