The Milwaukee Brewers play host to the Pittsburgh Pirates on Friday in the second game of a crucial weekend series from American Family Field. The Brewers are entrenched in a race atop the NL Central, while the Pirates continue to sit outside of playoff positioning. Across six games prior to this weekend, the Brewers had won five of six games meetings between these two this season. Being at home, they expect to dominate again, though the Pirates won’t back down against a divisional rival.
Pittsburgh started the season strong but a lull once summer hit has them continuing to sit near the basement of the NL Central. They sit 9.5 games back of the leaders and while the playoffs seem like a stretch, this team has the talent, as well as the time on their side, to make one final push towards the playoff race. With a 6-4 record over their last ten games, they’ve been playing better of late, but the road has been a challenge. With a 22-31 record in road games this season, they’ll need to find a way to flip the switch there over the last two months.
According to MLB.com, Quinn Priester will get the ball for the Pirates on Friday night. The youngster has struggled to limit damage this season and while he has a winning record at 2-1, his ERA of 9.19 leaves quite a bit to be desired. His last three starts have seen him allow 4, 5, and 7 runs respectively. Going on the road a nd having to slow down Milwaukee could be too much to ask of the youngster.
From a lineup standpoint, there isn’t a lot to separate these two teams, with both averaging 4.2 runs per game. The Pirates turned heads the first few months but with so much youth in the lineup, it’s a challenge to know what to expect on a given night. O’Neil Cruz continues to remain out, while some other members of the lineup continue to work their way back into the lineup themselves. Andrew McCutchen (.263 average) and Carlos Santana (53 RBI) continue to pace the offense but until the youngsters start finding more consistency, games against teams like the Brewers will be a challenge.