Pirates bring 4-game losing streak into matchup against the Guardians
Pittsburgh Pirates (62-72, fifth in the NL Central) vs. Cleveland Guardians (77-58, first in the AL Central)
Cleveland; Saturday, 6:10 p.m. EDT
PITCHING PROBABLES: Pirates: Luis Ortiz (5-4, 3.36 ERA, 1.12 WHIP, 83 strikeouts); Guardians: Matthew Boyd (1-0, 2.70 ERA, 0.90 WHIP, 12 strikeouts)
BETMGM SPORTSBOOK: LINE Guardians -164, Pirates +138; over/under is 8 1/2 runs
BOTTOM LINE: The Pittsburgh Pirates aim to stop their four-game skid with a victory over the Cleveland Guardians.
Cleveland has a 42-24 record at home and a 77-58 record overall. The Guardians have gone 35-10 in games when they hit at least two home runs.
Pittsburgh is 62-72 overall and 30-36 in road games. The Pirates have a 32-17 record in games when they did not give up a home run.
The teams play Saturday for the second time this season.
TOP PERFORMERS: Jose Ramirez leads Cleveland with 33 home runs while slugging .531. Jhonkensy Noel is 11-for-35 with four home runs and nine RBI over the last 10 games.
Bryan Reynolds has 24 doubles, three triples, 21 home runs and 74 RBI for the Pirates. Yasmani Grandal is 10-for-30 with a double, three home runs and four RBI over the past 10 games.
LAST 10 GAMES: Guardians: 4-6, .242 batting average, 5.73 ERA, outscored by 12 runs
Pirates: 4-6, .269 batting average, 6.43 ERA, outscored by 16 runs
INJURIES: Guardians: Alex Cobb: 15-Day IL (hand), Sam Hentges: 60-Day IL (shoulder), Carlos Carrasco: 15-Day IL (hip), Shane Bieber: 60-Day IL (elbow), Trevor Stephan: 60-Day IL (elbow), James Karinchak: 60-Day IL (shoulder)
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), Colin Holderman: 15-Day IL (undisclosed), Daulton Jefferies: 60-Day IL (elbow), Ryan Borucki: 60-Day IL (tricep), Dauri Moreta: 60-Day IL (elbow), Endy Rodriguez: 60-Day IL (elbow), Johan Oviedo: 60-Day IL (elbow)
___
The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar.