St. Louis @ Pittsburgh preview

Last Meeting ( Sep 6, 2015 ) Pittsburgh 7, St. Louis 1

If the Pittsburgh Pirates hope to overtake the St. Louis Cardinals for the National League Central title, sweeping the three-game series that begins Monday at PNC Park is imperative. The Pirates enter the showdown, which kicks off their season-ending six-game homestand, three games behind the Cardinals after suffering a 4-0 loss to the Chicago Cubs on Sunday night that halted their eight-game winning streak.

Pittsburgh still has a firm hold on the top NL wild card as it sits 4 1/2 games ahead of Chicago for the spot. The Cardinals' magic number to claim their third straight division crown was reduced to four by virtue of Pittsburgh's loss, but it could have been three had they not blown a ninth-inning lead against Milwaukee and dropped an 8-4 decision in their home finale Sunday. They can slice the number in half with a win in the opener at PNC Park, where the Pirates are 31-10 when playing in front of a crowd of 33,000 or more. St. Louis still owns the best record in the major leagues and is two victories away from reaching the century mark.

TV: 7:05 p.m. ET, ESPN2, FSN Midwest (St. Louis), ROOT (Pittsburgh)

PITCHING MATCHUP: Cardinals RH Lance Lynn (12-10, 3.16 ERA) vs. Pirates LH J.A. Happ (10-8, 3.88)

Lynn halted his three-game winless streak in strong fashion Wednesday, scattering three hits over six scoreless innings against Cincinnati. The 28-year-old native of Indiana went 0-2 during his skid, yielding a total of 12 runs while failing to last four frames on two occasions. Lynn fell to 5-5 lifetime against Pittsburgh on Aug. 13, when he was tagged for seven runs — three earned — and six hits while retiring only two batters.

Happ is coming off a victory at Colorado on Tuesday in which he struck out eight while allowing three runs in 5 1/3 innings. The 32-year-old from Illinois is 6-2 in nine outings since being acquired from Seattle, winning six of his last seven turns while giving up more than two runs only once in that span. Happ's only loss in that stretch came against Chicago on Sept. 15, when he yielded two runs and eight hits over 5 2/3 frames to fall to 1-4 in six career starts versus the Cubs.

WALK-OFFS

1. The Cardinals are 86-1 when leading after eight innings.

2. Pittsburgh RF Gregory Blanco recorded his team's lone hit Sunday, giving him at least one in six of his last seven games.

3. St. Louis RHP Trevor Rosenthal needs one save to eclipse the franchise single-season record of 47 he currently shares with Lee Smith (1991) and Jason Isringhausen (2004).

PREDICTION: Cardinals 4, Pirates 1