Pittsburgh @ San Francisco preview

Last Meeting ( Aug 16, 2016 ) Pittsburgh 4, San Francisco 3

The San Francisco Giants look to avoid a sweep and climb back into first place in the National League West when they host the Pittsburgh Pirates on Wednesday afternoon for the finale of their three-game set. San Francisco dropped to 1-4 on its 10-game homestand with Tuesday's 4-3 setback and fell one-half game behind the Los Angeles Dodgers for the top spot in the division.

Buster Posey recorded two hits and two RBIs while Denard Span notched a hit to improve to 7-for-25 on the homestand as the Giants fell out of first in the West for the first time since May 10. Pittsburgh aims to conclude its six-game road trip at 5-1 and possibly move into a postseason spot as it trails St. Louis by one game for the second NL wild card. Jung Ho Kang gave the Pirates their fifth win in six games Tuesday, belting a solo home run in the eighth inning to snap a 3-3 tie. Gregory Polanco drove in two runs without recording a hit, giving him six RBIs over the first two games of the series.

TV: 3:45 p.m. ET, MLB Network, ROOT (Pittsburgh), CSN Bay Area (San Francisco)

PITCHING MATCHUP: Pirates RH Ivan Nova (9-6, 4.68 ERA) vs. Giants RH Matt Cain (4-7, 5.47)

Nova looks to remain perfect since being acquired from the New York Yankees as he makes his third start for the Pirates. The 29-year-old Dominican allowed three runs over seven innings in a victory over Cincinnati in his debut for Pittsburgh on Aug. 6 and limited the Dodgers to one runs over 5 1/3 frames in a triumph at Los Angeles on Friday. Nova tossed a shutout in his first career start against San Francisco but settled for a no-decision July 23 after yielding just one run in seven innings while with the Yankees.

After two scoreless five-inning outings against Washington that resulted in victories, Cain was battered by Baltimore on Friday, surrendering five runs and 10 hits over four frames as his three-start winning streak came to an end. The 31-year-old native of Alabama has yet to work more than 5 1/3 innings since returning from the disabled list on July 20 and has yielded four or more runs in three of his five turns in that span. Cain is 3-2 with one shutout and a 3.04 ERA in 11 career starts versus Pittsburgh.

WALK-OFFS

1. Giants OF Angel Pagan is riding a 14-game hitting streak during which he is 19-for-58 (.328).

2. Kang has homered in three of his last four games after failing to go deep since June 24.

3. Veteran RHP Joe Nathan signed a minor-league contract with San Francisco, the team with which he began his major league career, and will pitch for Double-A Richmond while being evaluated.

PREDICTION: Pirates 6, Giants 4