There is no way to put this other than bluntly: the Pirates need a huge start from Gerrit Cole tonight. Their rotation is in trouble, their division chances are shrinking, and they haven’t won in St. Louis in over a year. They need their ace to take the mound, put his foot down, and make a statement. This is actually something they’re going to need out of Cole in general if they want this season to go beyond last year or 2013. Cole has spent much of this year pitching like an ace, but this is the time of year that reputations are made.
First pitch tonight is at 8:15. He’ll face off against Michael Wacha.
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