Keagan Smith gives you a preview, prediction and pick for today’s game between the Seattle Mariners and Pittsburgh Pirates on Wednesday’s MLB slate.

The Wednesday MLB slate includes some really fun contests, one of which is a date between the Seattle Mariners and Pittsburgh Pirates. These are both potential postseason clubs and there are some talented pitchers on the mound as well, with Bryan Woo dueling Braxton Ashcraft. First pitch is scheduled for 6:40 p.m. ET at PNC Park.

Here’s a betting prediction and pick for this Mariners vs. Pirates matchup courtesy of MLB odds and lines on DraftKings Sportsbook.

Mariners vs. Pirates prediction, preview

Seattle Mariners

The AL West is weak once again this year, with the Mariners at the top with a 41-39 record. They have a run differential of +18 — the only positive one among the division — and are 5-5 over their last 10 games while coming off back-to-back wins. The pitchers have been the key to success this year, especially with the bats underperforming. Seattle brings an OPS of .700 that ranks 24th in the MLB on a slash line of .232/.312/.388. While the club has a respectable .156 ISO with 100 homers, things are a little feast-or-famine with just 4.11 runs per game. They do face a right-hander tonight though, which is encouraging since the Mariners’ better results come in that split with a .733 OPS on a .241/.320/.413 slash line, plus 77 of their homers have been off a RHP. The bats also have an 8.9% BB% and a 22.6% K% for an 0.40 BB/K ratio.

RHP Bryan Woo is the starter tonight and brings a 6-5 record through 15 games. He has a 3.94 ERA and 1.00 WHIP with 88 strikeouts over 89.0 IP. The name behind him in the piggyback rotation is still TBD, but Seattle’s relievers do have an ERA of 3.39 that ranks sixth in baseball with a 1.31 WHIP and 14.0% K-BB%.

Pittsburgh Pirates

The Pirates are just below the .500 mark at 39-40, but they’re a legitimate contender to make their first postseason appearance in what feels like forever. They’re struggling a little at the moment at 4-6 over their last 10 games, but the club’s run differential is still positive at +13 and there’s plenty of upside with the offense. They average 4.97 runs per game — fifth most in the MLB — with a .742 OPS that also ranks fifth. The full slash line reads .255/.334/.408, but that moves to .259/.345/.421 for a .766 mark exclusively against right-handers. The Pirates also have a .153 ISO with 94 home runs, with 71 via a RHP. Their plate approach sees a slightly elevated K% at 23.6%, but a 9.6% BB% is solid and they have a BB/K ratio of 0.41.

RHP Braxton Ashcraft is 6-3 across his 15 starts. He brings a 3.18 ERA and 1.10 WHIP into tonight’s proceedings, also carrying 97 strikeouts in 90.2 IP. Pittsburgh’s bullpen behind him ranks 20th in ERA at 4.42 with a 1.39 WHIP and 12.4% K-BB%.

Mariners vs. Pirates pick, best bet

DraftKings Sportsbook lists the Pirates as -118 home favorites on the Moneyline tonight. The Mariners are -102 underdogs to win outright. The run total sits at eight combined runs this evening.

Best Bet: Under eight runs (-113)

Whew, we get a nice pitcher’s matchup between these respective starters tonight. With Woo and Ashcraft on the mound, it’s already looking like a lower-scoring night as these standouts go head-to-head. The former has been quite good on most nights, while the latter only has three games with more than two earned runs allowed. They also both keep free passes to a minimum with excellent walk rakes and bring some strikeout upside to the table. The Pirates’ bats are better than those of the Mariners, but even with that in mind, the status of these starters coupled with the run suppression of the Seattle bullpen means this under could comfortably cash tonight. I expect something like a 3-2 finish and don’t really think this’ll be particularly close to eight runs.