Chicago @ Pittsburgh preview
PNC Park
Last Meeting ( Jul 31, 2018 ) Chi. Cubs 4, Pittsburgh 5
The Pittsburgh Pirates made a big splash at the trading deadline in hopes of making more waves in the National League Central race. The Pirates will try to trim another game off their deficit when they wrap up a brief two-game set against the visiting Chicago Cubs on Wednesday.
Pittsburgh held on for a 5-4 win in the series opener Tuesday, as Francisco Cervelli and Gregory Polanco homered and Chicago’s Addison Russell was thrown out trying to stretch a double into a triple with no outs in the ninth. The Pirates, who have won 16 of their last 20 to get within six games of the first-place Cubs, were active in the trade market, landing a potential ace in Chris Archer from Tampa Bay and adding reliever Keone Kela from Texas. Veteran left-hander Cole Hamels will make his Cubs debut and look to build on a solid record at PNC Park, where he is 1-1 with a 1.22 ERA in five career starts. Hamels is one of three additions to the pitching staff ahead of the non-waiver trade deadline for the Cubs, who also picked up reliever Brandon Kintzler from Washington on Tuesday.
TV: 7:05 p.m. ET, MLB Network, WGN (Chicago), AT&T SportsNet Pittsburgh
PITCHING MATCHUP: Cubs LH Cole Hamels (5-9, 4.72 ERA) vs. Pirates RH Nick Kingham (5-5, 4.80)
Hamels gets a chance to hit the reset button on his 2018 campaign with his trade to the Cubs. The 34-year-old has not recorded a quality start in his last five outings, posting a whopping 10.23 ERA over that span, but that followed a stretch in which he had six quality starts in eight outings. Hamels is 3-3 with a 2.93 ERA in 10 starts against the Pirates, but he hasn’t faced them since 2016.
Kingham had his three-start winning streak snapped Thursday against the New York Mets, who tagged him for six runs over three-plus innings. The 26-year-old rookie struggled with his command last time out, issuing a season-high four walks and working behind in the count throughout the brief outing. Kingham is 0-1 against the Cubs despite limiting them to five runs over 12 innings across two starts.
WALK-OFFS
1. Cubs 2B Javier Baez has recorded at least three hits in a game 10 times this season.
2. Pirates SS Jordy Mercer is 10-for-28 during a nine-game hitting streak.
3. Pittsburgh 3B David Freese is 16-for-41 with 12 RBIs over his past 15 games (11 starts).
PREDICTION: Cubs 6, Pirates 5