Pirates look to break 7-game skid against Brewers
Pittsburgh Pirates (65-89, fifth in the NL Central) vs. Milwaukee Brewers (84-70, second in the NL Central)
Milwaukee; Saturday, 7 p.m. EDT
PITCHING PROBABLES: Pirates: James Marvel (0-2, 9.00 ERA) Brewers: Zach Davies (10-7, 3.70 ERA)
LINE: Brewers -216; over/under is 9 runs
BOTTOM LINE: Pittsburgh enters the game as losers of their last seven games.
The Brewers are 40-31 against NL Central teams. Milwaukee has hit 237 home runs this season, eighth in the majors. Christian Yelich leads the club with 44, averaging one every 11.1 at-bats.
The Pirates have gone 25-43 against division opponents. The Pittsburgh offense has compiled a .266 batting average as a team this season, good for sixth in the National League. Bryan Reynolds leads the team with an average of .323. The Brewers won the last meeting 10-1. Chase Anderson earned his seventh victory and Trent Grisham went 1-for-1 with a triple and three RBIs for Milwaukee. Steven Brault took his sixth loss for Pittsburgh.
TOP PERFORMERS: Yelich leads the Brewers with 97 RBIs and is batting .329. Mike Moustakas is 9-for-35 with four home runs and 10 RBIs over the last 10 games for Milwaukee.
Josh Bell leads the Pirates with 77 extra base hits and has 116 RBIs. Cole Tucker is 5-for-18 with a double, three triples and an RBI over the last 10 games for Pittsburgh.
LAST 10 GAMES: Brewers: 8-2, .213 batting average, 3.03 ERA, outscored opponents by 15 runs
Pirates: 2-8, .256 batting average, 7.86 ERA, outscored by 47 runs
Brewers Injuries: Bobby Wahl: (knee), Corey Knebel: (elbow), Christian Yelich: (knee).
Pirates Injuries: Jameson Taillon: (elbow), Edgar Santana: (elbow), Chad Kuhl: (elbow), Kyle Crick: (finger), Nick Burdi: (biceps), Chris Archer: (shoulder), Gregory Polanco: (shoulder), Jason Martin: (shoulder), Starling Marte: (wrist), Lonnie Chisenhall: (finger), Josh Bell: (hamstring).
