{"id":612970,"date":"2026-04-17T13:18:09","date_gmt":"2026-04-17T13:18:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/612970\/"},"modified":"2026-04-17T13:18:09","modified_gmt":"2026-04-17T13:18:09","slug":"rays-vs-pirates-prediction-picks-odds-for-tonights-mlb-game","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/612970\/","title":{"rendered":"Rays vs Pirates Prediction, Picks & Odds for Tonight’s MLB Game"},"content":{"rendered":"

Want to get more Covers content? Add us as a preferred source on your Google account here<\/a>.<\/p>\n

The Tampa Bay Rays<\/a> will look to build on their six-game winning streak as they visit the Pittsburgh Pirates<\/a> on Friday night.<\/p>\n

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Tampa Bay<\/a> has been crushing opposing pitchers so far this season, and I\u2019m picking it to win again tonight in my Rays vs. Pirates predictions.<\/p>\n

Let\u2019s take a deeper look at this matchup in my free MLB picks<\/a> for Friday, April 17.<\/p>\n

Who will win Rays vs Pirates tonight: Rays moneyline (+120)<\/p>\n

The Tampa Bay Rays<\/a> are averaging 5.06 runs per game so far this season, and have put up at least five runs in every game of their current winning streak. They\u2019ll have a great chance to keep that going tonight against Pittsburgh Pirates<\/a> starter Bubba Chandler<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Chandler has allowed three earned runs in each of his last two starts without going more than 5 1\/3 innings in either game.<\/p>\n

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Tampa Bay starter Nick Martinez<\/a> has looked sharp to start the season, throwing to a 2.16 ERA and 0.96 WHIP over his first three starts.<\/p>\n

With the Rays coming in this hot, I\u2019m jumping on these odds tonight.<\/p>\n

\"Covers\"<\/p>\n

Covers<\/p>\n

COVERS INTEL:<\/p>\n

Tampa Bay is hitting .267 and averaging 5.5 runs per nine innings against right-handed pitching this season.<\/p>\n

Rays vs Pirates Over\/Under pick: Over 8.5 (-102)<\/p>\n

Pittsburgh is hitting well too, averaging five runs per game off a .734 OPS this year. Brandon Lowe<\/a> has seven homers in his first 17 games, while Oneil Cruz<\/a> and Ryan O\u2019Hearn<\/a> are also off to fast starts.<\/p>\n

Neither starter is likely to give their team much length tonight. There are soft spots that these lineups can take advantage of if it takes several arms to get through this game, especially on Tampa Bay\u2019s side.<\/p>\n

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With both lineups in peak form, I\u2019m backing the Over.<\/p>\n

Ed Scimia’s 2026 Transparency Record<\/p>\n

ML\/RL bets: 3-4, -1.03 units<\/p>\n

Over\/Under bets: 1-4, -2.96 units<\/p>\n

Rays vs Pirates odds<\/p>\n

Moneyline: Rays +116 | Pirates -136<\/p>\n

Run line: Rays +1.5 | Pirates -1.5<\/p>\n

Over\/Under: Over 8.5 | Under 8.5<\/p>\n

Rays vs Pirates trend<\/p>\n

The Rays are 6-0 straight up in their last six games overall. Find more\u00a0MLB betting trends<\/a> for Rays vs. Pirates.<\/p>\n

How to watch Rays vs Pirates and game info<\/p>\n

Location<\/p>\n

PNC Park, Pittsburgh<\/a>, PA<\/p>\n

Date<\/p>\n

Friday, April 17, 2026<\/p>\n

First pitch<\/p>\n

6:45 p.m. ET<\/p>\n

TV<\/p>\n

Apple TV<\/p>\n

Rays starting pitcher<\/p>\n

Nick Martinez
(0-0, 2.16 ERA)<\/p>\n

Pirates starting pitcher<\/p>\n

Bubba Chandler
(0-1, 3.86 ERA)<\/p>\n

Rays vs Pirates latest injuriesRays vs Pirates weather<\/p>\n

Odds are correct at the time of publishing and are subject to change.
Not intended for use in MA.
Affiliate Disclosure: Our team of experts has thoroughly researched and handpicked each product that appears on our website. We may receive compensation if you sign up through our links.<\/p>\n

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This article originally appeared on Covers.com<\/a>, read the full article here<\/a> and view our best betting sites<\/a> or check out our top sportsbook promos<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Want to get more Covers content? Add us as a preferred source on your Google account here. The…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":612971,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[558],"tags":[64,63,24617,66395,591,178750,44462,5132,5160,28674,85,5881,1190,34471],"class_list":{"0":"post-612970","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-mlb","8":"tag-au","9":"tag-australia","10":"tag-brandon-lowe","11":"tag-bubba-chandler","12":"tag-mlb","13":"tag-nick-martinez","14":"tag-oneil-cruz","15":"tag-pittsburgh","16":"tag-pittsburgh-pirates","17":"tag-ryan-ohearn","18":"tag-sports","19":"tag-tampa-bay","20":"tag-tampa-bay-rays","21":"tag-the-rays"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/612970","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=612970"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/612970\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/612971"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=612970"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=612970"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=612970"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}