Updated July 11, 2026
Game 1 of Saturday's doubleheader is barely in the books before the Milwaukee Brewers and Pittsburgh Pirates run it back at PNC Park for Game 2. Pittsburgh turns to rookie right-hander Bubba Chandler, a talented arm who has been undone by the walk column all season. Milwaukee counters with lefty Shane Drohan, who has quietly turned into one of the best arms in the Brewers' rotation since taking over a starting job in June. With the NL Central race all but decided and the All-Star break one weekend away, continue reading for our Brewers vs Pirates Game 2 prediction.
The gap between these two starters is the whole story here. Drohan has been outstanding in his first extended big-league run, sitting at 4-2 with a 2.97 ERA and a 3.21 FIP across nine starts, and he's given Milwaukee at least six innings in each of his last two turns. Chandler, on the other hand, has 52 walks issued and has been roughed up in back-to-back outings, allowing nine runs across his last two starts against Philadelphia and Washington combined. Pittsburgh's lineup has genuinely outproduced Milwaukee's this year, but asking an offense to erase a run-and-a-half of starting pitching quality in a doubleheader game, with both bullpens already taxed from the first game, is a lot to ask.
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Total Parlay Odds: +405
The moneyline anchors the card given Drohan's clear edge over Chandler, whose 5.2 walks per nine innings is the worst mark among MLB starters. The total lets both offenses stay live even in a Brewers win, since Pittsburgh ranks near the top in the National League in OPS and has scored the third-most runs in baseball. Turang has been a table-setter all year and gets a favorable look against a Chandler fastball that has been hit hard when he misses over the plate, making the total-bases prop a reasonable final leg.
Jackson Chourio Over 0.5 Home Runs (+480 on DraftKings) stands out as the play here. Chourio is hitting .284/.338/.504 with 13 homers in 59 games and has been locked in against right-handed pitching, which is exactly what Chandler brings to the mound. Chandler's biggest issue this season has been leaving pitches in hittable locations after falling behind in counts, and Chourio is the type of aggressive, pull-oriented hitter built to punish that tendency at a park that, while not the friendliest for right-handed power, still yields plenty of homers to bat-speed producers like him.
Category | Brewers | Pirates |
|---|---|---|
Batting Average | .255 | .262 |
OPS | .735 | .763 |
wOBA | .324 | .336 |
wRC+ | 104 | 110 |
Team ERA | 3.33 | 4.32 |
xFIP | 3.76 | 4.15 |
So far this year, the Pirates have had the upper hand offensively, while the Brewers have had the edge on the mound. Milwaukee has the advantage in the starting pitching department again here, and their bullpen should be better suited to handle the demands of a doubleheader. We'll go with the Brew Crew to win Game 2, though a lot can change based on what happens in the opener on Saturday afternoon.
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