Atlanta Braves vs Pittsburgh Pirates Prediction, Preview and Odds - 07/07/2026

Game Time: 6:40 pm ET, Tuesday, July 7, 2026

Venue:  PNC Park, Pittsburgh, PA

Where to Watch:  MLB TV

DraftKings:  Moneyline odds:  Braves +144, Pirates -175; Over/Under:  8 runs

Bet365:  Moneyline odds:  Braves +140, Pirates -170; Over/Under:  8 runs

BetMGM:  Moneyline odds:  Braves +140, Pirates -165; Over/Under:  8 runs

Atlanta Braves:  52-36 (1st place, NL East)

Pittsburgh Pirates:  46-45 (4th place, NL Central)

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Atlanta Braves:  4-6 last 10

Pittsburgh Pirates:  5-5 last 10

The Braves lost their 3-game series against the St Louis Cardinals 2-1. They enter this game with a 52-36 record overall and have a road record of 25-19. This is the series opener of a 3-game series with the Pirates on Tuesday with the series finale of their series against the New York Mets still to be played on Monday. The Braves won the 1st game of that series on Friday, won the 2nd game on Saturday, and lost the 3rd game on Sunday. Their offense ranks 14th in the MLB with a .725 OPS. Reynaldo López is their starting pitcher on Monday while Hurston Waldrep is making his start in this game on Tuesday. He is 0-0 with a 3.68 ERA this season. His team lost their last game this season with him making an appearance. In his last MLB regular season appearance, he allowed 3 ER, 1 HR, and 1 BB with 4 SO on 5 hits through 5.1 IP against the St Louis Cardinals.

The Pirates are entering this series off a win and won their 3-game series against the Washington Nationals 2-1 in their last series. They enter this game with a 46-45 record overall and have a home record of 23-22. This is the 1st game of a 3-game series with the Braves on Tuesday and they have Monday off as a day of rest. Their offense ranks 2nd in the MLB with a .762 OPS. Bubba Chandler was their starting pitcher on Sunday while Paul Skenes is making his start in this game on Tuesday. He is 6-8 with a 3.62 ERA this season. His team lost their last 9 straight games this season with him making an appearance. In his last MLB regular season start, he allowed 7 earned runs, 2 homers, and 2 walks with 5 strikeouts on 6 hits through 4 innings pitched against the Philadelphia Phillies.

The current betting odds have the Pirates listed as a favorite in this game according to Draftkings Sportsbook. The Pirates have looked good in their games this season with their 46-45 record overall, but that record has them right near the bottom of the NL Central. They have looked good in their own ballpark though with their 23-22 home record this season. Meanwhile, the Braves have looked great in their games this season with their 52-36 record overall which has them right at the top of the NL East with one of the best records in MLB. They have been a good road team too with their 25-19 road record this year. The Braves were one of the best teams in the league to start the season, but lately they have been in a big slump and haven't looked great over the last month, now 4-6 in their last 10 games too. The Pirates have been really up and down all year and they are only 5-5 in their last 10 games, but they do have one of the best offenses in MLB and they are going to be able to take advantage of this better pitching matchup. Skenes is starting for the Pirates in this one and he hasn't looked bad this season. He is 6-8 with a 3.62 ERA and hasn't been giving up a lot of runs this year, but his team hasn't had much success with him either. They have lost 9 games in a row now with him starting and he is coming off a terrible start in which he gave up 7 earned runs, but that hasn't been the case for most of the season and he will be looking to bounce back with a better performance. The offense has also been putting up a ton of runs lately, so this is a good opportunity for them to stop the bleeding and help Skenes finally earn a win, especially with a slumping Braves team on the other side. The best way to place a bet here is on the Pirates to win this game. 

Braves Pirates Prediction:  Our MLB Pick for Tuesday, July 7, 2026 (6:40 pm ET start time) is Pirates 6 Braves 3.

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Atlanta Braves: 38-38 (-10.7 units) on the moneyline against NL Central opponents. 217-197 (-45.8 units) on the moneyline in all games. 105-103 (-17.8 units) on the moneyline in road games. 25-16 OVER in road games. 

Pittsburgh Pirates: 46-43 (+8.1 units) on the moneyline against NL East opponents. 115-111 (+7.4 units) on the moneyline vs. an NL team with a team batting average of .255 or worse. 58-60 (+5.8 units) on the moneyline with double revenge - 2 straight losses against the opponent. 30-15 OVER in home games.

Atlanta Braves:  M. Perez (SP) Day To Day - Forearm. H. Kim (SS) Ten Day IL - Finger. R. Suarez (RP) Fifteen Day IL - Elbow. S. Strider (SP) Sixty Day IL - Elbow. R. Acuna Jr. (RF) Ten Day IL - Hamstring. S. Murphy (C) Sixty Day IL - Finger. A. Smith-Shawver (SP) Sixty Day IL - Elbow. J. Wentz (RP) Sixty Day IL - Knee. J. Jimenez (RP) Sixty Day IL - Knee. S. Schwellenbach (SP) Sixty Day IL - Elbow.

Pittsburgh Pirates:  E. Sisk (RP) Fifteen Day IL - Elbow. S. Horwitz (1B) Ten Day IL - Hamstring. W. Dotel (RP) Fifteen Day IL - Lat. O. Cruz (CF) Ten Day IL - Hand. C. Devenski (RP) Sixty Day IL - Illness.

“Some days, you can keep chasing games and you're equipped to do that. Some days you're not. We could chase it for seven innings today. That's what we did, and they did a great job keeping it into a two-run game through seven. At that point, we were out of those high-leverage bullets.” - Walt Weiss after his team’s loss against the Mets in their game on Sunday. 

“What a great game by Konnor. The huge at-bat there to break the tie, and the plays that he made -- the diving plays -- were unbelievable.” - Don Kelly after his team’s win against the Nationals in their game on Sunday. 

Drake Baldwin (L) C

Ozzie Albies (S) 2B

Matt Olson (L) 1B

Michael Harris II (L) CF

Mauricio Dubón (R) LF

Dominic Smith (L) DH

Austin Riley (R) 3B

Mike Yastrzemski (L) RF

Jim Jarvis (L) SS

Konnor Griffin (R) SS

Brandon Lowe (L) 2B

Bryan Reynolds (S) DH

Esmerlyn Valdez (R) RF

Ryan O'Hearn (L) 1B

Nick Gonzales (R) 3B

Endy Rodríguez (S) C

Tyler Callihan (L) LF

Jake Mangum (S) CF

Batting Average:  Jair Camargo (.500)

Hits:  Matt Olson (93)

Home Runs:  Matt Olson (22)

RBI:  Matt Olson (54)

Stolen Bases:  Ronald Acuña (15)

Wins:  Chris Sale (9)

Saves:  Raisel Iglesias (17)

ERA:  Victor Mederos (0.00)

Batting Average:  Rafael Flores (.667)

Hits:  Nick Gonzales (99)

Home Runs:  Brandon Lowe (21)

RBI:  Brandon Lowe (63)

Stolen Bases:  Oneil Cruz (21)

Wins:  Braxton Ashcraft (9)

Saves:  Gregory Soto (11)

ERA:  Evan Sisk (2.23)

Managers:

Atlanta Braves: Walt Weiss (1st season)

Pittsburgh Pirates: Don Kelly (2nd season)