Preview: Braves at Pirates
GAME: Atlanta Braves (9-29) at Pittsburgh Pirates (21-17)
DATE/TIME: Wednesday, May 18 - 7:05 PM EST
WHERE: PNC Park, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
LINE: N/A TOTAL: N/A
The Braves are off to one of the worst starts in baseball history, entering Wednesday’s game against Pittsburgh looking for their 10th victory of the season and first under interim manager Brian Snitker. Atlanta fired Fredi Gonzalez Tuesday morning, the first time the franchise has dismissed a manager since 1990, but the Pirates scored seven first-inning runs and held off a spirited Braves' comeback in a 12-9 victory.
“Sometimes, changes is a good thing,” Atlanta right fielder Nick Markakis told reporters, hours after Gonzalez’s dismissal and before Tuesday's loss dropped the Braves to 9-29. “Sometimes, it’s a bad thing. You never know until you try.” Pittsburgh has won three in a row and coupled with the Chicago Cubs’ loss at Milwaukee has whittled Chicago’s lead in the National League Central to 6 ½ games. The Pirates finished with a season-high 21 hits, getting three-hit games from John Jaso, Andrew McCutchen, Gregory Polanco and Francisco Cervelli. Polanco is 9-for-17 in his past five games, and has scored nine runs in his past eight contests.
TV: 7:05 p.m., FSN Southeast (Atlanta), Root Sports (Pittsburgh)
PITCHING MATCHUP: Braves RH Julio Teheran (0-4, 3.17 ERA) vs. Pirates LH Francisco Liriano (3-2, 4.99)
The veteran of Atlanta's rotation at age 25, Teheran has pitched well while receiving little run support – the Braves have averaged 2.04 runs in his eight starts. He lost Friday at Kansas City despite allowing two runs (one earned) on four hits in seven innings, the fifth consecutive outing Teheran has given up two earned runs or less. He is 2-1 with a 4.32 ERA in six career appearances (five starts) against the Pirates.
Liriano was rocked by the Cubs for eight runs on nine hits – including three homers – in 4 2/3 innings Friday. It snapped a two-start winning streak during which the 32-year-old surrendered only three runs in 13 2/3 innings and featured 10 strikeouts May 6 against the Cardinals. Liriano makes his fifth career start against Atlanta, and is 2-1 with a 3.60 ERA.
WALK-OFFS
1. Pittsburgh signed Cervelli to a three-year contract extension through 2019; Cervelli has hit .294 in 164 games with the Pirates the past two seasons.
2. Atlanta CF Mallex Smith slugged two homers and drove in four runs Tuesday; the rookie is hitting .362 with three homers and nine RBIs in his past 16 games.
3. Highly touted Pirates INF Alen Hanson recorded his first major-league hit – an infield single – in the fifth inning Tuesday, one night after striking out in his big-league debut.
PREDICTION: Pirates 3, Braves 1
