The Pirates and Cubs collide in a Saturday matinee at Wrigley as Pittsburgh sends Mike Burrows to the mound against Shota Imanaga for Chicago. Burrows helped snap a five‑game skid for his club with Friday’s 3‑2 win, but Pittsburgh has dropped four of five lately. Imanaga comes in with strong run prevention and a high strikeout ceiling, fresh off a productive stretch in which he’s posted sub‑3.20 ERAs and whiff totals that fantasy managers crave. The over/under sits at 8.5, and SportsLine’s model leans into Imanaga’s strikeout upside and Burrows’ mid‑rotation floor, while weekend props spotlight Kyle Tucker, Bryan Reynolds and Imanaga’s K pace.

For fantasy players, leverage Imanaga’s ceiling in this lefty‑duel setup and target Pirates bats with caution when Burrows is on the bump. The model’s three top bets—Tucker under 1.5 total bases, Reynolds over 0.5 hits, and Imanaga over 5.5 strikeouts—underscore the game’s mix of power, contact and strikeout potential. With Chicago’s offense scuffling and Pittsburgh’s bullpen depth a factor, daily lineups should tilt toward the talent edge and defensive settings at Wrigley.

Friday’s MLB HR props spotlight four strong value plays: Reynolds, Rodríguez, Stanton, and Rooker. Reynolds carries a +500 shot at OVER 0.5 HR in a day game at Wrigley against Colin Rea, riding a streak of multi-HR weeks and solid righty power metrics. Rodríguez offers a +380 line versus Manaea, backed by a hot week and elite exit velocity. Stanton is a primary favorite at +280 after a timely IL return and 1.107 OPS over 21 days, facing Pallante in hot Busch Stadium conditions. Rooker checks in at +260 against Kikuchi, benefiting from his solid 1.017 OPS vs lefties and strong home power. Odds areDraftKings snapshots, but value gaps exist across sportsbooks for round robins.

Strategy hinges on batted-ball data, splits, weather, and park factors. Reynolds leans on right-handed pitching with power upside; Rodríguez thrives against lefties and in Mariners lineups; Stanton’s power profile and opponent matchup elevate his ceiling; Rooker’s lefty-friendly splits and home advantage boost his HR probability. This quartet provides upside without overpaying, ideal for multi-leg bets and balanced round robins. Shop for best odds to maximize the upside of each call.

The Reds exploded for 14 runs, stamping a decisive road win at Pittsburgh as Elly De La Cruz kicked things off with an RBI single and Miguel Andujar followed with a three‑run homer. Cincinnati never let up, with Noelvi Marte and Spencer Steer padding the cushion and Steer delivering a two‑run double before later adding a two‑run homer for insurance. Pittsburgh battled back briefly, tying the game on timely hits and a Kasper-like run, but the Reds pulled away late with a multi‑run eighth. The slugfest underscored Cincinnati’s breakout push and highlighted several players fantasy managers will want to chase down the stretch.

Key contributors for Cincinnati: De La Cruz, Andujar, Marte, and Steer supplied the offense in waves, while Yohan Ramírez yielded early damage before the bullpen steadied. For Pittsburgh, Jack Suwinski and Bryan Reynolds contributed, Isiah Kiner-Falefa lined a two‑run double and Spencer Horwitz added a run‑scoring single, but the late surge by Cincinnati overwhelmed the Pirates. The final 14‑8 tilt leaves Cincinnati at 62‑57 and Pittsburgh at 51‑68, with the Reds asserting themselves as legitimate playoff hopefuls in this intraleague showdown.

Fantasy takeaway: buy into Reds bats now—De La Cruz, Marte, Andujar, and Steer have multi‑hitter upside, while the depth of Cincinnati’s lineup supports weekly streaming. For Pittsburgh, streaming opportunities are slimmer but situational plays like Suwinski and Reynolds can still help in deeper formats, especially when they face righty‑heavy matches. Target the Reds’ ongoing power surge and monitor bullpen usage as Cincinnati looks to push this run production trend forward.

Brent Rooker is the standout value Sunday, listed at +275 to homer against Cade Povich as the A’s slugger returns from an extended absence. Rooker excels against left-handed pitching (.319 average, 0.998 OPS) with five homers, making this a favorable midmarket prop in a divisional tilt against Baltimore. Kyle Schwarber brings serious power in a lefty-lefty matchup, sitting at +240 versus Patrick Corbin as he piles up homers against lefties (16 in 156 AB, 1.022 OPS). Bryan Reynolds taps a +600 homer prop as he faces Zack Littell, who has been homer-prone; Reynolds has heated up with a .304 clip and rising OPS over the last fortnight.

Sunday’s slate centers on three frontline bats with favorable matchups and clear splits advantages. The bets lean into pitcher weakness (Corbin’s HR rate, Littell’s homer propensity) and batter-hot zones (Rooker’s lefty split, Schwarber’s lefty power, Reynolds’ recent form). As with all MLB props, bankable upside exists, but variance remains high—these plays balance solid underlying data with price and matchup.

Paul Skenes delivered six scoreless innings with eight strikeouts as Pittsburgh blanked Cincinnati 7-0, dropping his ERA to 1.94 atop the NL. The rookie’s dominance, paired with a lineup that produced two-hit efforts from Reynolds, Triolo, and Davis, plus a homer by Reynolds and Peralta, fueled the win. Triolo’s first-inning RBI spree capped a multi-hit day for the Pirates trio. The performance reinforces Skenes as a frontline fantasy asset, especially with his season-long 162 Ks and sub-2.00 ERA.

Next up for Skenes is a likely start in Milwaukee or Chicago, as Pittsburgh eyes a three-game swing with the Brewers or Cubs. For fantasy managers, the line remains unchanged: elite ratios, heavy strikeouts, and innings already logged position him as a must-start. Reynolds, Davis, and Triolo each posted multi-hit outings, while Peralta joined the homer parade, underscoring a favorable offensive environment around Skenes in the near term.