Minnesota Twins at Pittsburgh Pirates 3/28/23 - MLB Spring Training Picks & Predictions

The Pittsburgh Pirates host the Minnesota Twins for a Grapefruit League game at 1:05 p.m. Tuesday at LECOM Park in Bradenton, Florida. The scheduled starters at Johan Oviedo for the Pirates and Tyler Mahle for the Twins.

Oviedo has pitched in five games for Pittsburgh this spring with three starts. He is 1-1 with a 4.91 ERA and 1.50 WHIP over 14.2 innings. The 25-year-old right-hander has struck out 17 batters and walked seven. Oviedo began the 2022 season with the Cardinals before being traded to Pittsburgh along with infield prospect Malcom Nuñez for pitchers José Quintana and Chris Stratton. St. Louis mostly used him as a reliever, but Oviedo made seven starts for Pittsburgh after the trade. He was 4-3 overall with a 3.21 ERA and 1.29 WHIP over 56 innings.

Mahle has made five appearances this spring with four starts. He is 1-2 with a 5.93 ERA and 2.05 WHIP over 13.2 innings. Mahle has struck out 12 batters and walked five. Mahle was also traded last season, going from the Reds to the Twins for three prospects. The 28-year-old right-hander went 6-8 with a 4.40 ERA and 1.22 WHIP in 23 starts overall last season. He struck out 126 batters and walked 43 in 120.2 IP.

Travis Swaggerty, Drew Maggi and Ke’Bryan Hayes have all performed well this spring for Pittsburgh. Swaggerty leads the team with a 1.160 OPS followed by Maggi at 1.094 and Hayes at 1.092. Hayes leads the team with five home runs. Swaggerty and Maggie have each homered three times.

Trevor Larnach is the Twins OPS leader this spring at 1.241. He has played in 11 games and had 32 at bats. Jose Miranda has produced a 1.144 OPS in 13 games and 36 ABs. Miranda is the team leader with five home runs. Larnach and Kyle Farmer have each homered four times.