After an off-day Monday, the Pittsburgh Pirates open a three-game series with the San Diego Padres tonight at PNC Park. First pitch is 7:05pm. Pre-game on WISR begins at 6:40pm. Rich Hill will start tonight for the Pirates. Yu Darvish will start for the Padres.
The Bucs begin the night seven games under .500 after losing 13 of their last 15 games. They are now 5-1/2 games behind first-place Milwaukee, who arrive in Pittsburgh Friday. The Brewers took over first place in the N.L. Central last night after defeating the New York Mets, and Cincinnati lost to Baltimore. The Reds have lost three straight after tying a franchise record with 12-consecutive victories.
The Pirates have a six-game home-stand this week, then have a seven-game road trip prior to the MLB All-Star Break.