Pittsburgh Pirates vs Washington Nationals Prediction, Odds and Picks for Today, 09/12/25

Friday’s matchup between the Pittsburgh Pirates and Washington Nationals is not my favorite game on the board from a betting perspective, but I lean towards a win for the road Pirates. Mitch Keller has had an up-and-down season, but he enters this matchup as my preferred starting option. After a rough stretch at the front end of August, Keller has had a few respectable starts since, and he now faces an inconsistent Nationals offense. Keller is known for blow up starts where he allows 5 or 6 earned runs, but he is also known to pitch absolute gems and rack up consecutive strong outings. While a streaky arm, I expect a decent outing from Keller in this spot.

Brad Lord is set to start this game for the Nationals. Lord has made 44 appearances so far for the Nationals with 15 coming as starts. His 4.20 ERA across 109.1 innings is a respectable mark and he did toss 5.2 innings of 1-run ball against the Cubs in his last start. That being said, Lord struggled mightily leading up to that last start, allowing 14 runs in a 2-start stretch to the Yankees and Rays. He is not a massive strikeout arm and the Pirates should be able to put the ball in play in this matchup.

Pittsburgh Pirates vs Washington Nationals prediction: Pirates ML (-110) available at time of publishing. Playable at that price.

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