With the division on the line tonight, the Pirates will send Jeff Locke to the mound against the Cardinals' Adam Wainwright. That sounds like a horrible mismatch for the Pirates, given that Locke hasn't started since August 27th because of a brutal post-All-Star break slump, but Wainwright has given up 15 runs in eight innings in his last two starts, both of which came against the Reds.
The Pirates really need a strong effort after the pitching staff last night made a general farce of the idea of getting hitters out. A loss today would not only drop the Pirates a half-game behind the Cardinals in the NL Central, it would leave them only a half-game ahead of the Reds after the Reds' dramatic come-from-behind win against the Dodgers this afternoon. It really is going to be a three-game sprint down the stretch to avoid being one of the two teams that falls into that wild card playoff.
First pitch tonight is early; it's at 7:15.
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