The Pittsburgh Pirates have lost six straight games, putting them 3.5 games behind the St. Louis Cardinals for second wild card spot.
After an abysmal series against the Milwaukee Brewers in which the Pittsburgh Pirates were swept at home, playoff hopes are dwindling. The Pirates are 8-8 against the Brewers this season which at this point, may be overachieving.
With 28 games left to play, the Pirates (67-67) sit 3.5 games back of the St. Louis Cardinals (71-64) and 2.5 of the New York Mets (71-66). The Pirates and Cardinals begin a three game series this afternoon.
St. Louis hasn’t exactly been lighting the world on fire. They have lost eight of their last 14 to the likes of the Phillies, A’s, Mets, Brewers, and Reds. With the exception of the Mets, those teams are all out of playoff contention and under .500.
This afternoon begins a crucial series in which the Cardinals have the opportunity to put the Pirates away for good. The Pirates could be anywhere from 0.5 to 6.5 games back of the Cardinals at the end of this series. Let’s hope it’s the former and not the latter. Here are some key matchups to watch in this series.
3.) Pirates Offense vs Adam Wainwright
Adam Wainwright hasn’t been the Adam Wainwright we are used to seeing in the past. His 4.53 ERA is much higher than his career mark of 3.13. In general, he is giving up more hits than he usually does.
In three starts against the Pirates this season, Wainwright has been good but not great giving up seven runs in 20.1 innings. He is 1-1 against the Pirates, and the Cardinals won two of his three starts. The last time he faced the Pirates, Wainwright was dominant tossing seven innings of one run ball.
Some Pirate hitters have had success off of Wainwright. Andrew McCutchen is 14-51 (.275) with six doubles and a home run. Jordy Mercer is 6-21 (.286) with two home runs and Josh Harrison is 7-21 (.333) with two doubles.
Overall the Pirates’ offense has been lousy lately. They have been shutout in three of their last five. The Pirates’ offense needs to be aggressive today, swinging at early fastballs. If they get behind in the count, Wainwright still has that nasty curveball in his back pocket.
2.) Jameson Taillon vs Cardinals Offense
Jameson Taillon will face the Cardinals for the first time in career Wednesday night. Depending on how the first two games go, this start will be huge for Taillon and will give him a little taste of what playoff baseball might be like.
Taillon is 3-4 this year with a respectable 3.25 ERA. He has had a tendency to give up the long ball, which could be a problem considering the Cardinals lead the NL in home runs. Outfielder Randal Grichuk has been on a home run tear lately, hitting nine in his last 21 games.
It will be interesting to see how Taillon fairs against Matt Carpenter and Brandon Moss, two left handed boppers with 17 and 25 home runs respectively. Taillon’s batting average against lefties is .270 compared to .224 against righties. That being said, of his ten home runs given up, six have been to right handed hitters.
The key for Taillon will be to continue pounding the fastball for strikes and working the curveball and changeup off of that. On the flip side, he can’t get too much of the plate because the Cardinal hitters will take you deep.
3.)Pirates Offense vs Cardinals Offense
When looking at the pitching matchups for this series, there are no aces. Adam Wainwright is the closest thing but as we said, he has struggled this year. Jameson Taillon may very well be an ace, but it is too early to tell.
The key to this series may just come down to who can outscore one another. This may not bode well for the Pirates. Over their six game losing streak, the Pirates are averaging 2.66 runs per game. Since the All-Star break, the Pirates are only averaging 3.86 runs per game, opposed to scoring 4.75 a game pre All-Star break.
The Cardinals on the other hand are averaging 4.32 runs per game since the break. They lead the National League in home runs. They can flat out pound the ball this year.
Meanwhile, Gregory Polanco is hitting .224 since the All-Star break. The power is nice but he needs to be better. David Freese is hitting .216 since the All-Star break. He needs to be better. Sean Rodriguez is hitting .220 since the break, while Matt Joyce is hitting .186.
As we know, baseball is a weird game. Anything can happen at any given moment. Right now, it doesn’t look good for our Buccos. The season is hanging in the balance. Tonight the offense needs to show up.
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