Lynn-Cole matchup makes Cards-Pirates must-see TV
Gerrit Cole has had one of the best first halves ever by a Pittsburgh pitcher, and he has one more opportunity to cement himself in the club's record books. The Pirates might need another stingy effort from Cole as they dig in Friday night against Lance Lynn, who has also been dominant for the St. Louis Cardinals.
Cole (12-3, 2.28 ERA) leads baseball in wins and is looking to become the second pitcher in team history to win 13 games before the All-Star break, joining Dock Ellis, who won 14 in 1971. Only five pitchers have won 13 before the break since 2009, with Tampa Bay's Matt Moore and Detroit's Max Scherzer doing so most recently in 2013.
The right-hander appears to be one of the front-runners to start for the NL in Tuesday's All-Star Game, vying for the spot with the likes of Scherzer and Zack Greinke.
Cole is 7-1 in his last nine starts, with all but one being a quality outing. He gave up three runs over eight innings in Sunday's 5-3 win against Cleveland, with all three runs coming in the first three innings. He retired the final 16 batters.
"He just never gives in," catcher Chris Stewart told MLB's official website. "He wants to win any given situation, no matter what the score is. He's not going to let it dictate what he does out there on the mound."
Cole improved to 12-0 in the 14 starts in which Pittsburgh has scored at least two runs.
He went 1-2 with a 3.42 ERA in four starts versus St. Louis last year.
Lynn (6-4, 2.53) is 3-0 with a 1.19 ERA in six games since his last defeat. He struck out a season-high 10 while allowing one run over seven innings in a 2-1, 10-inning victory over Pittsburgh on May 1.
He's 5-3 with a 4.50 ERA in 14 career starts against the Pirates, winning just once in the last eight.
Lynn won't have to deal with two players who have given him trouble historically, with Starling Marte (8 for 21) and Josh Harrison (7 for 19) both out. Marte looks likely to land on the disabled list after missing the last four games with a strained oblique, while Harrison is already there due to a torn thumb ligament.
The Cardinals (56-30) increased their NL Central lead to 5 1/2 games over Pittsburgh (50-35) with a 4-1 victory Thursday behind 7 1/3 scoreless innings from Carlos Martinez at PNC Park.
Kolten Wong had a pinch-hit single after being cleared by doctors earlier in the day. He had missed the last two games due to concussion concerns after hitting his head while making a catch in the first game of a doubleheader Tuesday against the Chicago Cubs.
Matt Holliday could be activated from the DL. Holliday, who is batting .303 with 26 RBIs in 52 games but hasn't played since June 8 due to a strained quadriceps, is 6 for 12 with two doubles against Cole.
The Pirates' loss was their first in six games. Andrew McCutchen extended his hitting streak to 11 games with his 11th homer, but he's 5 for 38 (.132) with 15 strikeouts off Lynn, the second-worst batting average among the 23 players with at least 20 plate appearances against the right-hander.
