Cincinnati Reds at Pittsburgh Pirates, MLB forecast
Win probability
Starts from the pregame forecast, then moves with the score and the time left after each inning. Above the line favors PIT.
Game center
From the ESPN box score.
Top performers
Reds- Elly De La CruzBatting3-4
- Carson SpiersPitching6.0 IP, 4 ER, 5 K
Pirates- Bryan ReynoldsBatting2-4, 1 RBI
- Paul SkenesPitching6.0 IP, 1 ER, 7 K
Scoring summary
- 2Reynolds doubled to left, McCutchen scored.1–4
- 2Pitch 5 : Ball In Play1–4
- 2Pitch 4 : Ball 21–3
- 2Pitch 3 : Ball 11–3
- 2Pitch 2 : Strike 2 Looking1–3
- 2Pitch 1 : Strike 1 Foul1–3
- 1Hayes grounded out to third, Cruz scored, Tellez to third.1–3
- 1Pitch 2 : Ball In Play1–3
- 1Pitch 1 : Strike 1 Looking1–2
- 1Cruz singled to left, McCutchen scored and Reynolds scored.1–2
- 1Pitch 4 : Ball In Play1–2
- 1Pitch 3 : Ball 11–0
- 1Pitch 2 : Strike 2 Swinging1–0
- 1Pitch 1 : Strike 1 Looking1–0
- 1Steer doubled to center, Candelario scored.1–0
- 1Pitch 4 : Ball In Play1–0
- 1Pitch 3 : Ball 10–0
- 1Pitch 2 : Strike 2 Looking0–0
- 1Pitch 1 : Strike 1 Looking0–0
The pick
Reconstructed from what was known before the game: the ratings at that point and the closing line.
Pirates 63%
Forecast Elo ratings alone
How often that comes true: MLB favorites the forecast gave 60–65% have won 61.6% of 1,194 graded games.
- Market
- PIT 63%
- ML CIN +160 / PIT -190
- Pre-line forecast
- PIT 57%
- Elo + market-implied
- Elo ratings
- PIT 54%
- Ratings vs. market
- −9.5 pts
- PIT: Elo 53.5%, market 63.0%
- Fair odds
- PIT -170
- CIN +170 · the forecast as odds, no margin
- Pregame projection
- CIN 3.7 – 4.8 PIT
- Margin from the forecast, posted total 8.5
How the number is built
Elo inputs in rating points (higher favors that team; 25–28 Elo is about a point of spread in football and basketball), then how the pieces combine.
| Factor | CIN | PIT | Why |
|---|---|---|---|
| Team rating | 1499 | 1478 | Elo entering the game; 1500 is league average |
| Home field | — | +18 | Worth 18 Elo in MLB |
| Starting pitchers | −27 | +1 | CIN: Carson Spiers: team allows 1.35 more runs than with its usual starter (≈2 weighted starts) · PIT: Paul Skenes: team allows 0.04 fewer runs than with its usual starter (≈5 weighted starts) |
| Elo ratings | PIT +25 Elo | PIT 53.5% | |
| Market-implied ratings | PIT 57.7% | Team strength as past closing lines priced it, same game context | |
| Pre-line forecast | PIT 57.1% | 15% Elo, 85% market-implied (log-odds blend) | |
| Forecast | PIT 63.0% | Follows the market (vig removed): in testing, adding the ratings made it less accurate | |
Tale of the tape
This season coming into the game, regular season, each number with its league rank (the longer the bar, the higher). Home and road: the host's record at home against the visitor's on the road.
| CIN | Stat | PIT |
|---|---|---|
| 16th of 304.3 | Runs scored | 4.122nd of 30 |
| 11th of 304.1 | Runs allowed | 4.521st of 30 |
| 12th of 30+0.2 | Margin | −0.422nd of 30 |
| 7th of 306–4 | Last 10 | 5–513th of 30 |
| 17th of 3016–18 | Road vs home | 16–1718th of 30 |
Rating history
Each team's Elo over the last two seasons. Hover or drag to compare on any date.
Recent form
Last five results, and whether the forecast hit.
Against the line
How each team has done against the closing spread and total, coming into this game.
| This season |  CIN |  PIT |
|---|---|---|
| Run line | 38–33 | 35–34 |
| Last 10 | 5–5 | 5–5 |
| Favorite | 16–19 | 8–20 |
| Underdog | 22–14 | 27–14 |
| Overs–unders | 32–38–1 | 36–33 |
| Overs–unders, last 10 | 3–7 | 3–7 |
Against each game's closing line. Books set every line knowing these records: across 3,901 past games, the team with the better record against the spread so far that season covered 51.2%, short of the 52.4% a standard −110 bet needs, and over/under streaks held 48.0% of the time. They describe the past.
Head to head
CIN 5–8 PIT in their last 13 meetings; the forecast called 8 of 13.