This Tuesday the (40-56) Pittsburgh Pirates and the (38-57) Chicago Cubs will play their final game of this short two-game series. The first pitch will be thrown out at 2:20 PM EST inside Wrigley Field. This is also the fifth series between these two teams this season, as they are very comfortable with one another. The Pirates won the last series, as they took three out of four games at home against the Cubs.
The Pittsburgh Pirates are coming into this one after losing their previous series to the struggling Miami Marlins. The Pirates looked shaky at the plate, as they only scored two combined runs in the first two games of the series. They will need their bats to heat up quickly if they want to challenge the Cubs on the road.
The Chicago Cubs are entering this one after sweeping the Philadelphia Phillies. They looked great on both sides of the field, as they scored 15 runs in game one and held the Phillies to just seven combined runs throughout the series.
This game was written/published before last night's results.
The Pittsburgh Pirates have not had the start to the season that they were hoping for, but they still have plenty of time to turn it around. They are (4-6) in their last 10 and searching for answers at the plate. They are also in third place in the NL Central, as they are only 13.0 games back from the Brewers in first place. At the plate, they are scoring 3.70 runs per game and hitting .221 as a team. This is the 28th least amount of runs scored per game and the second lowest overall team batting average. They have struggled to reach base consistently this season and they aren't stepping up to the challenge when they have men in scoring position. Luckily, the Pirates have multiple guys that can change the game with one swing of the bat. They have struggled to create offense all season, but the home run ball has continued to be their friend. They are averaging 1.06 bombs per game, which is the 15th most in the league. I also expect the Pirates to stay fairly conservative once they have reached base safely. They have only stolen 41 bases this season, which is the 20th least in the MLB. They have allowed their bats to move their base runners into scoring position, as they aren't the fastest overall team.
In the field, the Pirates have also had their issues. They are currently surrendering 5.21 runs per game and they have the lowest overall fielding percentage. They are making a ton of mistakes in the field, as they haven't been able to support their starting pitchers this season. They aren't making routine plays and they are allowing their opponents to take more bases than they should. Pittsburgh has also recorded 70 fielding errors, which is the most in the league. They can't continue to make mistakes in the field and still expect to win these games.
According to MLB.com, Bryse Wilson will get the start in this game. He is (1-5) this season with a 6.52 ERA and a 1.65 WHIP. He has allowed his opponents to reach base too easily, as he has had problems when opposing teams put pressure on him. He also struggled in his last start, as he pitched for 3.1 innings and allowed two earned runs and four hits to the Colorado Rockies. He has struggled on the road this season, as well. Wilson is (0-3) in his opponent's ballparks and he has a 5.52 ERA.