Pirates at Cardinals
Andrew McCutchen is riding a nine-game hitting streak and is back in center field due to a serious misstep by teammate Starling Marte. McCutchen and the Pittsburgh Pirates attempt to prevent a three-game sweep in Wednesday's series finale against the host St. Louis Cardinals one day after Marte was suspended 80 games without pay for testing positive for the performance-enhancing substance Nandrolone.
McCutchen moved to right field due to the fielding prowess of two-time Gold Glove winner Marte, but he is back in familiar territory after Marte made what he termed an uneducated miscue. "Neglect and lack of knowledge have led me to this mistake and the high price to pay of being away from the field that I enjoy and love so much," Marte said in a statement. "With much embarrassment and helplessness, I ask for forgiveness for unintentionally disrespecting so many people who have trusted in my work and have supported me so much." Pittsburgh has scored just two runs in the series as St. Louis posted back-to-back 2-1 victories after opening the campaign with nine losses in 12 games. Yadier Molina is one of the Cardinals who is off to a slow start and is just 1-for-16 over his last five games while batting .211 on the season.
TV: 1:45 p.m. ET, ROOT (Pittsburgh), FSN Midwest (St. Louis)
PITCHING MATCHUP: Pirates RH Gerrit Cole (1-1, 5.29 ERA) vs. Cardinals RH Michael Wacha (1-1, 3.00)
Cole picked up his first victory in his last outing, when he gave up two runs and six hits in six innings against the Chicago Cubs. The 26-year-old was reached for three homers over his first two starts before keeping the ball in the park versus the Cubs. Cole is 5-3 with a 2.82 ERA in 10 career starts against St. Louis and has shut down Molina (2-for-20) and Kolten Wong (4-for-26, one homer).
Wacha lost to the New York Yankees in his last turn, when he gave up four runs - three earned - and nine hits over six innings. The 25-year-old was strong in his first start as he gave up one run and three hits in six frames to defeat Cincinnati and is attempting to regain his 17-win form of 2015. Wacha is 3-2 with a 4.25 ERA in 11 career appearances (10 starts) against the Pirates, struggling with McCutchen (12-for-25, one homer) while easily handling Josh Harrison (1-for-14).
WALK-OFFS
1. Pirates 3B Jung Ho Kang has an appeals hearing on May 25 in South Korea regarding his third DUI conviction. He was denied a United States work visa in March due to his legal issues.
2. St. Louis 1B Matt Carpenter (right hand), who is a .385 hitter in 26 at-bats against Cole, hopes to play in the finale after missing the first two games of the series.
3. Pittsburgh recalled OF/1B Jose Osuna, who was retired as a pinch-hitter on Tuesday, from Triple-A Indianapolis to replace Marte on the roster.