For much of the afternoon, it looked like the Pirates were going to have a chance to make up another game on the Cardinals tonight. Then, the Cardinals came back with a late rally to steal a win from the Cubs, and so the Pirates will play to maintain the status quo tonight.
The good news, I suppose, is that the Pirates will send JA Happ to the mound tonight to face Keyvius Sampson. Happ has been the Pirates most consistent starter of late (yes, that felt weird to type), while Sampson has been pretty decidedly not great. Sampson made a strong start against the Pirates in early August, but has gotten rocked pretty hard of late. He’s the sort of pitcher the Pirates should hit hard.
Clint Hurdle is again going Kang, Mercer, Walker, Ramirez around the horn from third to first, and my hunch is that he agrees with most fans that think that’s the lineup that gives the Pirates the best chance to win. First pitch tonight is at 7:10.
