In our daily Wake-Up Call, we get you ready for the day with a complete look at all things Pittsburgh Pirates.
Stretch Run Begins Tonight
After dropping the final two games in Toronto, the Pittsburgh Pirates find themselves 4.5 games behind the Chicago Cubs in the National League Central heading into play Tuesday night.
The good news for the Bucs is that they control their own fate in terms of winning a division or sitting home for the postseason.
That’s because beginning with their two-game set in Milwaukee that begins tonight, the Pirates play 34 of their next 38 games inside the division. On the season the Pirates have gone 21-21 against National League Central opponents so that number will have to improve over the next month-plus.
The opportunity is there to make up ground.
You hate to use the term “must win” in mid-August, but it is getting close to that point. The Pirates need to win almost every series they have remaining inside the division.
Their remaining schedule breaks down as follows:
- 10 games remaining vs Cardinals- season record 4-5
- 9 games remaining vs. Reds- season record 2-8
- 8 games remaining vs. Brewers- season record 8-3
- 7 games remaining vs. Cubs- season record 7-5
The opportunity will be there for the Pirates to make a run, but they have to start now.
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Depth will be tested
One thing to keep an eye on this week is the health of a few of the Pirates key players.
Andrew McCutchen, Gregory Polanco and Francisco Cervelli were all banged up over the weekend.
McCutchen returned to the lineup, but you have to wonder if his knee will slow down a bat that has been simply on fire since Memorial Day. I have no doubts that he will be in the lineup in this pivotal upcoming stretch.
The cases of Polanco and Cervelli are different as who knows if the often injured duo will be healthy enough to start the next couple of days.
That alone could test the Pirates depth as normal bench guys may get regular at bats and they will need to produce.
It also leaves the team in a pickle as you don’t want to have a short bench when you need to win games and make up ground. If neither can go the next couple of days, you would hope the decision is made for a quick DL trip to prevent the Bucs from having to go at it short handed.
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