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Cincinnati Reds (62-65, fourth in the NL Central) vs. Pittsburgh Pirates (59-67, fifth in the NL Central)
Pittsburgh; Thursday, 6:40 p.m. EDT
LIKELY PITCHING PICKS: Reds: Nick Lodolo (9-5, 4.55 ERA, 1.20 WHIP, 113 strikeouts); Pirates: Paul Skenes (7-2, 2.30 ERA, 0.97 WHIP, 121 strikeouts)
BETMGM SPORTSBOOK: LINE Pirates -149, Reds +126; Over/Under is 7 1/2 runs
BOTTOM LINE: The Pittsburgh Pirates open a four-game home series against the Cincinnati Reds on Thursday.
Pittsburgh has a 59-67 overall record and a 29-32 home record. The Pirates have a 29-51 record in games in which they have allowed at least one home run.
Cincinnati has a 62-65 overall record and a 31-31 road record. The Reds are 45-8 in games in which they scored five or more runs.
Thursday’s matchup will be the seventh time this season that these teams have met. The Pirates hold a 4-2 lead in the season series.
TOP PERFORMERS: Bryan Reynolds has 19 home runs, 44 walks and 69 RBIs with a .280 batting average for the Pirates. Joey Bart has hit 12 for 38 with two doubles, two home runs and four RBIs in the last 10 games.
Elly De La Cruz leads the Reds with a .262 batting average and has 28 doubles, eight triples, 22 home runs, 55 walks and 56 RBIs. Tyler Stephenson has hit 11 for 40 with two home runs and six RBIs in the last 10 games.
LAST 10 GAMES: Pirates: 3-7, .227 batting average, 3.58 ERA, nine runs batted in
Reds: 6-4, .235 batting average, 5.36 ERA, nine runs less
INJURIES: Pirates: Ke’Bryan Hayes: 10-day IL (herniated disc), Andrew McCutchen: 10-day IL (knee), Marco Gonzales: 60-day IL (forearm), Colin Holderman: 15-day IL (unknown), Daulton Jefferies: 60-day IL (elbow), Carmen Mlodzinski: 15-day IL (unknown), Nick Gonzales: 10-day IL (unknown), Jared Jones: 15-day IL (lat), Ryan Borucki: 60-day IL (triceps), Dauri Moreta: 60-day IL (elbow), Endy Rodriguez: 60-day IL (elbow), Johan Oviedo: 60-day IL (elbow)
Reds: Jake Fraley: day-to-day (knee), Jeimer Candelario: 10-day IL (toe), Christian Roa: 60-day IL (shoulder), Hunter Greene: 15-day IL (elbow), Graham Ashcraft: 60-day IL (elbow), Austin Wynns: 10-day IL (tibialis), Brent Suter: 15-day IL (tibialis major), Nick Martini: 60-day IL (thumb), Christian Encarnacion-Beach: 60-day IL (hand), Brandon Williamson: 60-day IL (shoulder), Ian Gibaut: 60-day IL (forearm), Tejay Antone: 60-day IL (elbow), Matt McLain: 60-day IL (shoulder)
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The Associated Press produced this article using technology from Data Skrive and data from Sportradar.
