Pittsburgh Pirates vs Texas Rangers Prediction, Odds and Picks for Today, 04/22/26

The Texas Rangers got back above .500 with a 5-1 win over the Pittsburgh Pirates, backed by a strong outing from Kumar Rocker and another solid performance from their bullpen that has been one of the best in baseball, posting a 2.81 ERA this season. In today’s matchup, the big difference comes down to starting pitching, and if the Pirates can’t score early in this one, it’s going to be tough to generate runs late in the game. 

Taking the mound for the Rangers will be Jack Leiter, who enters at 1-1 with a 4.87 ERA. Leiter has struggled in his last 2 starts, giving up eight runs on 12 hits in 9.1 innings. For the Pirates, Braxton Ashcraft will get the nod. He is 1-1 with a 2.38 ERA. Offensively, these teams are fairly even. Over the last 10 games, Texas owns a .750 OPS with 10 home runs while averaging 4.6 runs per game. For the Pirates, they have a .772 OPS with 13 home runs and 5.8 runs per game in that same span. Brandon Lowe has been a big piece of the Pirates’ offense this season, but he’s listed as questionable heading into tonight’s game with a knee issue. At the end of the day, the Pirates have the better starter on the mound, plus their bullpen has been decent this year, holding a 3.55 ERA. This should be a close battle, but Pittsburgh will be in a good spot to bounce back and steal one on the road as a slight favorite. 

Pirates vs Rangers prediction: Pittsburgh ML (-115) available at time of publishing. Playable at that number.

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