Pirates at Giants
The Pittsburgh Pirates appear to have a glaring need in right field due to Gregory Polanco’s strained left hamstring, but general manager Neal Huntington isn’t about to panic. While Huntington continues to monitor the trade market, the Pirates’ immediate focus is on Wednesday’s rubber match of their three-game series against the host San Francisco Giants.
Jameson Taillon allowed 10 runs (nine earned) over three innings in Tuesday’s 11-3 loss as the Pirates fell 3 1/2 games back of first-place Milwaukee in the National League Central and 7 1/2 games out of the second wild-card spot. The Pirates have lost three of their last four games while using the trio of John Jaso, Adam Frazier and Jose Osuna in place of Polanco, who is expected to miss several weeks but hopes to return sooner. The Giants are a dismal 39-63 and began planning for the future on Tuesday with the trade of Eduardo Nunez to Boston in exchange for minor-league pitchers Shaun Anderson and Gregory Santos. “Eduardo just did a nice job for us,” manager Bruce Bochy told reporters. “He was a lot of fun to have around on the club. I’m going to miss him, because this guy was exciting, he gave me a lot of options with his versatility, and he played the game with a passion.”
TV: 3:45 p.m. ET, AT&T SportsNet - Pittsburgh, NBCSN Bay Area (San Francisco)
PITCHING MATCHUP: Pirates RH Trevor Williams (4-4, 4.74 ERA) vs. Giants RH Jeff Samardzija (4-11, 5.05)
Williams settled in after a shaky start Friday against Colorado and earned the win after allowing five runs over 6 2/3 innings. The 25-year-old San Diego native has posted a 4.21 ERA in his last 13 outings since giving up eight runs (six earned) over three frames in his first start on May 8 against the Los Angeles Dodgers. Williams pitched well against San Francisco on July 2, giving up two runs on three hits over six innings before the Giants rallied for a 5-3 victory.
Samardzija is looking to get untracked after allowing a total of 12 runs on 17 hits over 10 1/3 innings in back-to-back losses to San Diego. The 32-year-old has made 20 starts but has just four wins, including one against Pittsburgh on July 2 when he allowed two runs over six frames. Andrew McCutchen is 15-for-37 against Samardzija, who is 5-4 with a 2.91 ERA in 24 career games (13 starts) against the Pirates.
WALK-OFFS
1. The Giants have lost eight of their last nine games against the Pirates at AT&T Park.
2. Pirates rookie 1B Josh Bell has hit safely in 11 straight road games, going 20-for-52 with two home runs and 13 RBIs over that stretch.
3. The Giants optioned OF/INF Orlando Calixte to Triple-A Sacramento and recalled RHP Chris Stratton.