Washington Nationals (62-78, fourth in the NL East) vs. Pittsburgh Pirates (66-74, fifth in the NL Central)
Pittsburgh; Friday, 6:40 p.m. EDT
PITCHING PROBABLES: Nationals: DJ Herz (2-7, 4.09 ERA, 1.26 WHIP, 88 strikeouts); Pirates: Luis Ortiz (6-4, 3.19 ERA, 1.10 WHIP, 88 strikeouts)
BETMGM SPORTSBOOK: LINE Pirates -129, Nationals +109; over/under is 8 1/2 runs
BOTTOM LINE: The Pittsburgh Pirates take a 1-0 advantage into the next game of the series against the Washington Nationals.
Pittsburgh has a 66-74 record overall and a 33-36 record in home games. The Pirates are 42-17 in games when they scored five or more runs.
Washington has gone 30-41 in road games and 62-78 overall. The Nationals have gone 48-30 in games when they record at least eight hits.
The matchup Friday is the fifth time these teams square off this season. The Pirates have a 3-1 advantage in the season series.
TOP PERFORMERS: Bryan Reynolds leads Pittsburgh with 22 home runs while slugging .457. Yasmani Grandal is 9-for-24 with two home runs and four RBI over the last 10 games.
Jacob Young has 23 doubles, a triple, three home runs and 33 RBI for the Nationals. Andres Chaparro is 6-for-36 with two doubles and three home runs over the past 10 games.
LAST 10 GAMES: Pirates: 4-6, .249 batting average, 7.14 ERA, outscored by 22 runs
Nationals: 4-6, .237 batting average, 4.75 ERA, outscored by 12 runs
INJURIES: Pirates: Ben Heller: 15-Day IL (shoulder), Joey Bart: 10-Day IL (hamstring), Hunter Stratton: 60-Day IL (patella), Ke'Bryan Hayes: 10-Day IL (herniated disc), Marco Gonzales: 60-Day IL (forearm), Daulton Jefferies: 60-Day IL (elbow), Dauri Moreta: 60-Day IL (elbow), Endy Rodriguez: 60-Day IL (elbow), Johan Oviedo: 60-Day IL (elbow)
Nationals: Trevor Williams: 60-Day IL (shoulder), Alex Call: 10-Day IL (leg), Joan Adon: 15-Day IL (biceps), Josiah Gray: 60-Day IL (elbow), Cade Cavalli: 60-Day IL (elbow), Mason Thompson: 60-Day IL (elbow)
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The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar.
