Pirates hope to continue road success vs. Cubs (Aug 28, 2017)
CHICAGO -- Wrigley Field is serving as a home away from home for the Pittsburgh Pirates this season.
The Pirates are 5-1 at the Chicago Cubs' home park heading into a make-or-break three-game series that opens on Monday night.
Pittsburgh (63-68) trails the National League Central-leading Cubs (69-60) by seven games, and a sweep could propel the Pirates into the division race as the season moves into September.
Conversely, three losses would put Pittsburgh 10 games back with 28 to play.
"This is the big leagues," Pirates manager Clint Hurdle said recently. "You've got to get things done, find a way to make things happen, to beat other teams. ... We're in the hunt every game, but coming close doesn't work up here."
The Pirates lost six straight in mid-August but are 5-4 over their last nine games, including a 5-2 victory over Cincinnati on Sunday that gave them a series win over the Reds.
The Pirates send right-hander Trevor Williams (5-6, 4.40 ERA) against Cubs left-hander Mike Montgomery (4-6, 3.43 ERA) on Monday in the series opener.
Williams took two consecutive losses before getting a no-decision while pitching eight scoreless innings in his latest outing, a 1-0 Pirates victory over the Los Angeles Dodgers on Wednesday at PNC Park. That was the game Pittsburgh won on Josh Harrison's walk-off homer in the 10th inning that broke up Rich Hill's no-hit bid.
Williams is 1-1 with a 5.25 ERA in four career appearances (two starts) against Chicago, all this season. He started and took the loss in a 3 2/3-inning outing on July 7 as the Cubs claimed a 6-1 victory.
Montgomery has worked much of the season out of the bullpen, but he landed in the Cubs' rotation on Aug. 18 after left-hander Jon Lester went on the disabled list with left lat tightness and general shoulder fatigue.
"If me starting makes us better in their mind, then that's what I want ideally. But I've realized I can't always control that, I can go out there and pitch well," Montgomery said. "If I pitch well, they're probably going to give me more opportunities, which is probably going to lead to starting."
In his most recent outing, Wednesday at Cincinnati, Montgomery tossed six scoreless innings in a 9-3 Cubs victory. As a starter, he has a 4.47 ERA over 46 1/3 innings.
Montgomery is 2-0 with a 0.75 ERA in his past two starts.
The Monday start will be the first of his career against the Pirates and his sixth appearance against them overall. Montgomery did not give up a run in his first four outings against Pittsburgh before allowing a pair in three innings on July 9.
Lester is scheduled to pitch a simulated game on Monday, and he could rejoin the Cubs this weekend for a series against the Atlanta Braves. The veteran's return is among the factors manager Joe Maddon is pondering as he considers whether to employ a six-man rotation in September.
"It's going to be a combination of evaluating each guy at that point, and then making our best call," he said. "The position we're in might determine all that. As of right now, we have not had that conversation."
