The Pirates will try to prevent getting swept in St. Louis Wednesday at 1:15 p.m.. Jameson Taillon (12-9, 3.40) will go to the hill for the Bucs, facing Cardinals’ rookie Daniel Poncedeleon (0-1, 2.67).
Taillon has been on a roll since the calendar turned to August, posting a 5-1 record, a 2.31 ERA and 6 K/BB in his last six starts. He has gone 18 straight starts allowing three earned runs or fewer. Not surprisingly, he has a 12-1 record this year when the offense gives him at least three runs of support.
Poncedeleon is starting for the Cardinals, but if recent history is any indication, he may not be in the game for too long. With the exception of his major league debut- in which he threw seven no-hit innings- he has maxed out at 4.1 IP and 92 pitches in his last nine pitching appearances (including major and minors league outings), three of which were starts.
And if you want a really depressing stat, the Pirates have been swept in St. Louis at least once every year since 2013. They escaped with a win their first two times in Cardinal country earlier this season, so the streak is on the line today.
Lineups
Pirates
2B Adam Frazier
CF Starling Marte
1B Josh Bell
RF Jordan Luplow
3B Kevin Kramer
LF Pablo Reyes
SS Kevin Newman
C Jacob Stallings
P Jameson Taillon
Cardinals
3B Matt Carpenter
RF Tyler O’Neill
1B Matt Adams
LF Marcell Ozuna
SS Yairo Munoz
2B Kolten Wong
CF Harrison Bader
C Carson Kelly
P Daniel Poncedeleon