Pittsburgh Pirates vs Philadelphia Phillies Prediction, Preview and Odds - 07/01/2026

Game Time: 6:40 pm ET, Wednesday, July 1, 2026

Venue:  Citizens Bank Park, Philadelphia, PA 

Where to Watch:  MLB TV

DraftKings:  Moneyline odds:  Pirates +113, Phillies -136; Over/Under:  8 runs

Bet365:  Moneyline odds:  Pirates +115, Phillies -135; Over/Under:  8 runs

BetMGM:  Moneyline odds:  Pirates +115, Phillies -135; Over/Under:  8 runs

Pittsburgh Pirates:  43-42 (4th place, NL Central)

Philadelphia Phillies:  47-38 (2nd place, NL East)

Do not miss out on our expert handicapper analysis! ASA, Inc. is on a HOT STREAK in MLB on a 22-10 MLB RUN for +$11,070 PROFIT! Make sure you check out his picks and many more from the expert handicappers featured in the Shop Picks section.

Pittsburgh Pirates:  5-5 last 10

Philadelphia Phillies:  7-3 last 10

The Pirates are entering this series off a win and lost their 3-game series against the Cincinnati Reds 2-1 in their last series. They enter this game with a 43-42 record overall and have a road record of 20-20. This is the 3rd game of a 4-game series with the Phillies on Wednesday with the 2nd game still to be played on Tuesday. The Pirates won the series opener on Monday. Their offense ranks 2nd in the MLB with a .757 OPS. Bubba Chandler is their starting pitcher on Tuesday while Paul Skenes is making his start in this game on Wednesday. He is 6-7 with a 3.10 ERA this season. His team lost their last 8 straight games this season with him making an appearance. In his last MLB regular season appearance, he allowed 4 ER, 0 HR, and 2 BB with 7 SO on 6 hits through 5 IP against the Cincinnati Reds.

The Phillies are entering this series off a win and won their 3-game series against the New York Mets 2-1 in their last series. They enter this game with a 47-38 record overall and have a home record of 23-20. This is the 3rd game of a 4-game series with the Pirates on Wednesday with the 2nd game of this series still to be played on Tuesday. The Phillies lost the 1st game of this series on Monday. Their offense ranks 22nd in the MLB with a .704 OPS. Cristopher Sánchez is their starting pitcher on Tuesday while Zack Wheeler is making his start in this game on Wednesday. He is 8-1 with a 2.03 ERA this season. His team won their last 3 straight games this season with him making an appearance. In his last MLB regular season start, he allowed 1 earned run, 0 homers, and 1 walk with 5 strikeouts on 4 hits through 7 innings pitched against the New York Mets.

The current betting odds have the Phillies listed as a favorite in this game according to Draftkings Sportsbook. The Phillies have looked good in their games this season with their 47-38 record overall which has them right near the top of the NL East. They have looked good in their own ballpark too with their 23-20 home record this season. Meanwhile, the Pirates have looked good in their games this season with their 43-42 record overall, but that record has them right near the bottom of the NL Central. They haven't been a great road team either with their 20-20 road record this year. The Pirates have one of the best offenses in MLB this season, but they haven't looked great lately. They are 5-5 in their last 10 games and have had a lot of issues with their pitching. The Phillies don't have one of the best offenses to lean on here, but they have been getting really hot lately and have been starting to roll now, going 7-3 in their last 10 games. The Phillies are going with Wheeler in this one and he has looked great this season. He is 8-1 with a 2.03 ERA and he has been one of their best starters all year. He is coming off another great start in which he gave up 1 earned run which has been a common theme for him this season, and the team has been having a lot of success with him lately too, winning 3 games in a row now with him starting. The Pirates are going with Skenes in this one and he has looked good this season. He is 6-7 with a 3.10 ERA and hasn't been giving up many runs, but the team hasn't been having a lot of success with him this year. They have lost 8 games in a row now with him starting and he is coming off a bad start in which he gave up 4 earned runs. The Pirates don't have a great bullpen to help out either, so look for the Phillies to take advantage of this pitching matchup. The best way to place a bet here is on the Phillies to win this game. 

Pirates Phillies Prediction:  Our MLB Pick for Wednesday, July 1, 2026 (6:40 pm ET start time) is Phillies 4 Pirates 3.

Don't miss our champion handicappers free picks, best bets, and expert baseball picks today.  And if you enjoyed this Pittsburgh Pirates Philadelphia Phillies prediction, be sure to drop by every day for our daily MLB projections and previews.

 

Pittsburgh Pirates: 191-218 (-20.2 units) on the moneyline in all games. 84-117 (-17.2 units) on the moneyline in road games. 147-159 (-5.4 units) on the moneyline against right-handed starters. 45-25 UNDER as a road underdog of +125 to +175.

Philadelphia Phillies: 241-177 (+11.2 units) on the moneyline in all games. 134-76 (+21.3 units) on the moneyline in home games. 200-117 (+23.4 units) on the moneyline as a favorite of -110 or higher. 44-28 UNDER against NL Central opponents.

Pittsburgh Pirates:  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.

Philadelphia Phillies:  J. Rojas (CF) Sixty Day IL - Elbow. B. Keller (RP) Fifteen Day IL - Forearm. A. Garcia (RF) Sixty Day IL - Lat.

"A lot of times you get down five on the road like that, you can get down. There’s a lot of fight in this team. The way we’ve gone through this season, the ups and downs ... the game [Monday] was a microcosm of that." - Don Kelly after his team’s win against the Phillies in their game on Monday. 

"We have been in (the bullpen) there more than you want to be. So probably, we've had to use them more than we wanted to. It just felt like we had to not chase it tonight, and we needed guys to get their outs." - Don Mattingly after his team’s loss against the Pirates in their game on Monday. 

Konnor Griffin (R) DH

Brandon Lowe (L) 2B

Bryan Reynolds (S) LF

Ryan O'Hearn (L) 1B

Esmerlyn Valdez (R) RF

Endy Rodríguez (S) C

Tyler Callihan (L) 3B

Jared Triolo (R) SS

Jake Mangum (S) CF

Trea Turner (R) SS

Kyle Schwarber (L) DH

Bryce Harper (L) 1B

Brandon Marsh (L) LF

Alec Bohm (R) 3B

Bryson Stott (L) 2B

J.T. Realmuto (R) C

Gabriel Rincones Jr. (L) RF

Justin Crawford (L) CF

Batting Average:  Rafael Flores (.667)

Hits:  Bryan Reynolds (87)

Home Runs:  Brandon Lowe (20)

RBI:  Brandon Lowe (57)

Stolen Bases:  Oneil Cruz (21)

Wins:  Braxton Ashcraft (8)

Saves:  Gregory Soto (11)

ERA:  Evan Sisk (2.23)

Batting Average:  Brandon Marsh (.322)

Hits:  Brandon Marsh (95)

Home Runs:  Kyle Schwarber (30)

RBI:  Kyle Schwarber (55)

Stolen Bases:  Trea Turner (16)

Wins:  Cristopher Sánchez (9)

Saves:  Jhoan Duran (21)

ERA:  Bryse Wilson (0.00)

Managers:

Pittsburgh Pirates: Don Kelly (2nd season)

Philadelphia Phillies: Don Mattingly (Interim)