The Pirates have spent so much time chasing the Cardinals in the first half of this 2015 season that it feels a little crazy to think that if there’s pressure on any team in this game tonight, it’s on the Cardinals. I think that’s true, though. Obviously all of the games between these two teams are big games and obviously no one is going to emerge from this series with a stranglehold on the division given the number of games left on the schedule, but the difference between 2 1/2 and 4 1/2 feels tangible once you’re over the halfway point of the season. Beyond that, though, the Pirates pulled off a signature win last night and if they can win again tonight, they more or less get to carry last night’s win into the All-Star Break with them. A Cardinal loss would stem that tide a bit.
Anyway, I’m excited for the Pirates to be on Sunday Night Baseball after last night’s incredible win. It feels pretty fitting that these two clubs should get the last game of the first-half. Francisco Liriano takes the ball for the Pirates. He’s turned in some excellent starts against the Cardinals in his Pirate career, and I’m sure he’d love to get in on the fun started by Gerrit Cole and AJ Burnett in this series (though I don’t suspect he’ll be hitting a home run). Tim Cooney starts for the Cards. He’s only made three big league starts and he’s looked mostly OK, though he’s had a bit of a home run problem. Certainly this is the game that looked the most favorable for the Pirates in terms of pitching matchups before the series started.
There’s one roster note for the Bucs tonight: Wilfredo Boscan is up in place of Steve Lombardozzi, presumably to give the bullpen some depth after the long outings of Deolis Guerra and Vance Worley last night. Hopefully Liriano will give the Pirates a strong enough start that the bullpen won’t matter much.
First pitch is at 8:05.
Photo by Jared Wickerham/Getty Images
