Leake, Cards eye clean sweep of Pirates
The Pirates have endured some agonizing losses over the past week-plus. None of them, however, packed the sting of last night’s setback.
Clint Hurdle’s team yielded four ninth-inning runs to the Cardinals, ultimately falling 9-7. The loss was Pittsburgh’s eighth in a row. With just 20-odd contests remaining in the season, the Buccos now sit 5 ½ games behind St. Louis for the National League’s second wild-card spot.
Will the PNC Park faithful finally see a breakthrough this evening? Online sports book Bovada.lv actually predicts as much. The host squad enters the series finale as a 1.5-fun favorite, while the Redbirds represent +115 underdogs. As for the over/under run figure, it rests at eight.
Handicappers’ confidence in the Steel City crew has much to do with Jameson Taillon’s (3-4, 3.25 ERA) presence on the hill. The rookie draws his 15 start of the season, having already logged six innings on 11 occasions. Most recently, Taillon held Milwaukee to one hit across six frames.
Mike Matheny counters with Mike Leake, who returns from the disabled list after a bout with shingles. The sinkerballer’s been out of commission since Aug. 21, but he threw seven spotless innings and struck out eight in that affair. Leake carries a 9-5 record with a 3.28 ERA in 27 career meetings with the Pirates.
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Clearly, Taillon presents a daunting challenge for the visitors. Yet the Cardinals’ knack for late-stage dramatics could well resurface in a couple of hours. Meanwhile, Leake seems primed to neutralize Pittsburgh’s inconsistent offense before turning it over to Anthony Reyes and company.
WEDNESDAY MLB FREE PICK: CARDINALS +1.5