Dodgers at Pirates
The major league-best Los Angeles Dodgers look to begin a new winning streak and further damage the Pirates' playoff hopes when they begin a four-game series in Pittsburgh on Monday. Los Angeles owns a 20-game lead in the National League West but had its string of consecutive wins snapped at six with Sunday's 6-1 setback at Detroit.
The Dodgers were attempting to sweep the three-game series - and set the major league-record for consecutive interleague wins with their 14th - after outscoring the Tigers 11-5 over the first two contests but were limited to three hits in the finale. One of the hits was a solo blast by the newly-acquired Curtis Granderson, who reached the 20-homer plateau for the fourth straight season and 10th time in his 14-year career. Pittsburgh earned a split of its four-game set against St. Louis by winning the final two contests after enduring a six-game losing streak. Josh Bell homered and drove in four runs in Sunday's 6-3 triumph, which kept the club 6 1/2 games behind the first-place Chicago Cubs in the NL Central and drew it within seven games of the second wild-card spot.
TV: 7:05 p.m. ET, SportsNet LA (Los Angeles), AT&T SportsNet-Pittsburgh
PITCHING MATCHUP: Dodgers LH Alex Wood (14-1, 2.30 ERA) vs. Pirates RH Gerrit Cole (10-8, 4.04)
Wood settled for a no-decision against the Chicago White Sox on Tuesday despite allowing just one run and six hits over seven innings. The 26-year-old native of North Carolina has given up a total of four runs over 19 frames in three outings this month after yielding at least that amount in each of his final two turns in July. Wood evened his career record against Pittsburgh at 2-2 with a home victory on May 8, when he registered a season-high 11 strikeouts while giving up only two hits in five scoreless innings.
Cole escaped with a no-decision at Milwaukee on Wednesday after surrendering four runs and five hits - three homers - in six innings. The 26-year-old Californian has served up six blasts over his last four outings and 26 on the season, which is more than double his previous career high (11). Cole has posted a 5.22 ERA in five career starts against Los Angeles but owns a 3-1 record.
WALK-OFFS
1. Dodgers SS Corey Seager has gone 13-for-38 during his nine-game hitting streak.
2. Pittsburgh OF Starling Marte is riding streaks of six consecutive multi-hit performances and five straight contests with at least one run scored.
3. Los Angeles LHP Clayton Kershaw (back) will throw his second simulated game in six days on Monday.