It's time for the Battle of Pennsylvania as the Pittsburgh Pirates face the Philadelphia Phillies on Thursday for the first of a four-game series at Citizens Bank Park. We're here to share our MLB odds series, make a Pirates-Phillies prediction, and pick while showing you how to watch.

The Pirates are coming off an up-and-down series with the Detroit Tigers. Now, they hope to stop the inconsistency and start building up wins as they head to Philadelphia for a showdown with the Phillies.

The Phillies also had an inconsistent series with the St. Louis Cardinals. Thus, they hope having four home games against the Pirates might help them gain some leverage in the standings.

The teams split the season series 3-3 last season. Overall, these teams always play tight games, and it should make this first series very interesting as the teams square off in Philadelphia.

The Pirates will turn to Jared Jones, who is 1-1 with a 3.86 ERA to start the season. Recently, he pitched six innings while allowing two earned runs on six hits while striking out seven, with the only mistakes being two solo home runs.

The Phillies have not yet announced a starting pitcher. However, there is a good chance we will see Ranger Suarez pitch in this game. Suarez is 1-0 with a 4.09 ERA. Significantly, he pitched six innings while allowing two earned runs on four hits in his last outing, a win against the Washington Nationals.

Here are the MLB Odds, courtesy of FanDuel. 

MLB Odds: Pirates-Phillies Odds

Pittsburgh Pirates: +1.5 (-146)

Moneyline: +132

Philadelphia Phillies: -1.5 (+122)

Moneyline: -156

Over: 9 (-110)

Under: 9 (-110)

How to Watch Pirates vs. Phillies

Time: 6:40 PM ET/3:40 PM PT

TV: MLB Network

Stream: fuboTV (Click for free trial)

Why The Pirates Will Cover The Spread/Win

The Pirates have been amazing at the start of the season. While the series with the Tigers was largely inconsistent, they were 9-3 over their first 12 games and look to keep the momentum going.

Oneil Cruz is the guy at the top of the lineup. However, his numbers against the Phillies have not been good. Cruz is batting just .130 with one RBI and two runs over seven games against the Phillies. Meanwhile, Bryan Reynolds has also struggled against the Phillies. Reynolds is hitting just .240 with four home runs, nine RBIs, and 14 runs over 23 games against the Phillies.

But the Pirates also expect a lot out of Ke'Bryan Hayes. Unfortunately, he, too, has struggled against Philadelphia. Hayes is batting just .184 with one home run, five RBIs, and four runs over the last 10 games against the Phillies. However, the Pirates may have a secret weapon. Andrew McCutchen is hitting just .287 with 79 hits, 13 home runs, 42 RBIs, and 37 runs over 74 career games against the Phillies. Therefore, look for him to be a force at the plate.

The Pirates need their hitters to swing the baseball to give Jones a chance. Significantly, he will have a tough time facing a lineup that can go from cold to hot at any given moment.

The Pirates will cover the spread if they can jump out to an early lead and rattle Suarez. Then, they need at least six innings from Jones, and for him to avoid making mistakes down the heart of the plate.

Why The Phillies Will Cover The Spread/Win

The Phillies have a lineup that is loaded but also can go cold. Ultimately, this is the perfect mix of inconsistency that the Phillies are attempting to eradicate. It starts at the top of the order.

Kyle Schwarber is hitting just .245 with 18 home runs, 44 RBIs, and 45 runs over 80 career games against the Pirates. Ultimately, he is a power hitter who either hits a home run or goes 0 for 4. There does not seem to be a middle with him. Meanwhile, Trea Turner can always get better. Turner has done well against the Pirates, hitting .287 with 47 hits, including three home runs, 14 RBIs, and 19 runs over 38 career games.

Bryce Harper is still one of the best players in the game. Yet, he has struggled with inconsistency in his career against the Pirates. Harper is batting .259 with 57 hits, which also include 10 home runs, 31 RBIs, and 40 runs over 61 career showdowns with the Bucs. But Nick Castellanos has been solid. Currently, he has a line of .296 with 16 home runs, 61 RBIs, and 43 runs over 77 career games against Pittsburgh.

If Suarez is the starter, he needs to work on his command. There are times when he can be the best pitcher in baseball, and he sometimes has dominant stuff. Then, there are times when he cannot get out of the third inning.

The Phillies will cover the spread if their bats can get going and drive in runs to create big innings. Next, Suarez needs to have a quality start.

Final Pirates-Phillies Prediction & Pick

Do you trust Suarez? That is the question you should ask yourself when making a bet on this game. Here are the numbers you need to know. Suarez is 2-0 with a 2.25 ERA and 23 strikeouts over six appearances (three starts) against the Pirates. Yes, those Pittsburgh teams were much worse. But six appearances is a lot to test out someone's ability against one team. While the Pirates seem to be much better this season, this feels like a dominant win for the Phillies. Expect them to cover the spread.

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Final Pirates-Phillies Prediction & Pick: Philadelphia Phillies -1.5 (+122)