Game Thread: Pirates at Reds, 8/13/20

The Pirates may be the only team in Major League Baseball who could have actually appreciated a three-day COVID-19-induced layoff. We’ll find out this afternoon if the break did them any good, as they begin a four-game series against the Cincinnati Reds at Great American Ball Park. The first pitch will be at 5:10 p.m., and AT&T SportsNet Pittsburgh will be broadcasting the game.

Taking the mound for the Bucs tonight will be Trevor Williams (0-3, 3.52 ERA, 14 K), who despite losing his last start against the Minnesota Twins on August fifth had a fairly decent outing, going seven innings with only one run on three hits, a walk and five strikeouts. As I noted in the series preview, in his last five starts against the Reds Williams has a 3-1 record with a fairly spiffy 1.42 ERA. So he’s got that going for him, which is nice.

Contrast that with Reds starter Anthony DeSclafani (1-0, 0.00 ERA, 8 K), who’s 0-3 in his last five starts against the Pirates with a 5.54 ERA and 31 hits over 26 innings. The man they call Disco had a pretty game against the Milwaukee Brewers on August eighth, tossing six scoreless innings while giving up two hits, a walk and six strikeouts. May he follow his past rather than his present today.

Here are your lineups, and LET’S GO BUCS!

PIRATES

Adam Frazier, 2B

Kevin Newman, SS

Josh Bell, DH

Colin Moran, 1B

Bryan Reynolds, LF

Gregory Polanco, RF

Erik Gonzalez, 3B

Jarrod Dyson, CF

Jacob Stallings, C

REDS

Shogo Akiyama, LF

Nick Castellanos, RF

Joey Votto, 1B

Eugenio Suarez, 3B

Jesse Winker, DH

Nick Senzel, CF

Josh VanMeter, 2B

Freddy Galvis, SS

Tucker Barnhart, C