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Pirates vs Braves - 5/23/21

Looking for a split.

By BrettBarnett
MLB: Cincinnati Reds at Pittsburgh Pirates Charles LeClaire-USA TODAY Sports

Pittsburgh Pirates (18-27) at Atlanta Braves (22-24) – Sun, May 23 @ 1:20 pm

Stadium: Truist Park, Atlanta, Georgia

TV: AT&T SportsNet

Radio: KDKA

Starting Pitchers

Pirates: JT Brubaker – RHP – (3-3) – 3.27 ERA – 44 total Ks

Braves: Max Fried – LHP – (1-2) – 5.46 ERA – 32 total Ks

Probable Starting Lineups (subject to last-minute changes)

Pirates

  1. Adam Frazier — 2B
  2. Kevin Newman — SS
  3. Bryan Reynolds — CF
  4. Jacob Stallings — C
  5. Erik Gonzalez — 3B
  6. Gregory Polanco — RF
  7. Will Craig — 1B
  8. Ildemaro Vargas — LF
  9. JT Brubaker — P

Braves

  1. Ronald Acuna, Jr. — RF
  2. Freddie Freeman — 1B
  3. Marcell Ozuna — LF
  4. Ozzie Albies — 2B
  5. Austin Riley — 3B
  6. Dansby Swanson — SS
  7. William Contreras — C
  8. Guillermo Heredia — CF
  9. Max Fried — P

The Pirates are 3-7 over their last 10 and losers of two consecutive ballgames. They’ll look to turn the tide in this series after being outscored 26-2 over the last two days. They’ll do so hoping JT Brubaker can propel them to victory. Brubaker had his worst start of the season his last time out, going 5.2 innings, allowing five runs on eight hits and and three walks. He also struck out three.

Offense continues to be the massive achilles heel for the Pirates. in the month of May, the Pirates carry a 74 wRC+, second-worst in baseball. This development can be partially explained by the absences of Ke’Bryan Hayes and Colin Moran, but it was clear from the outset that Pittsburgh would struggle to plate runs this season. While Bryan Reynolds (.855 OPS, 137 wRC+) and Adam Frazier (.865 OPS, 140 wRC+) continue to do their jobs admirably, the rest of the lineup isn’t picking up the pace.

At the conclusion of this afternoon’s game, the Pirates will spend next week at home, hosting the Chicago Cubs (23-22) for three games before the Colorado Rockies (17-29) come to town for a weekend series. May closes out while the Pirates are roadtripping in Kansas City for two games next week before returning home.

If you’ve got a thought or comment about the game, be sure to drop it in the comments below.

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