With yesterday afternoon’s loss, the Pirates’ main task in the season’s final 28 games is to get Gerrit Cole back on track and to ensure that he’s lined up to pitch the Wild Card Game. Cole’s more or less on line already if they keep him pitching every fifth day, so what’s left is straighten out his slider and make him a decent opponent for Jake Arrieta.
This is the issue with Cole lately is, I think:
His slider lost a bunch of vertical break around the All-Star Game and while it’s trending back down, it’s not nearly as sharp as it was in the first half. That’s the pitch to watch tonight.
He’ll face John Lackey. First pitch is at 8:05.
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