What better way to spend your Friday night than with some fantastic Major League Baseball matchups.
The Pittsburgh Pirates look to regain their pre-All-Star Break momentum as they host NL East division leaders in the Washington Nationals in the second meeting of their four-game series. Later on in the night, we’ll be treated to another classic Bay Area interleague showdown when the Oakland Athletics visit the San Francisco Giants for the opener of a three-game series in AT&T Park.
Read on for a glimpse of what’s in store for these two stellar matches. Afterwards, prepare yourself for some hard-hitting MMA action by checking out preview for UFC 90: Rousey vs. Correia.
[sc:MLBArticles ]Washington Nationals vs. Pittsburgh Pirates (7:05 PM ET)
Line: Washington Nationals (-125) vs. Pittsburgh Pirates (+115); total: 6.5 – view all MLB lines
[sc:MLB240banner ]The Washington Nationals’ Max Scherzer (10-8, 2.09 ERA) will look to add another stellar outing to his Cy Young Award campaign. Scherzer has given up 11 hits over his past two starts, but he did manage to strike out 15 batters in the process and gave up only a total of three earned runs.
However, the Nats are now missing five starting positional players on offense. Third baseman Yunel Escobar recently suffered an injury to his wrist in the second inning of Wednesday’s game against the New York Mets.
A 7-3 win over the Nationals in Thursday’s series opener is just what the Pittsburgh Pirates needed to catch up on the St. Louis Cardinals’ lead in the NL Central race. Starting for the Pirates on Friday will be Jeff Locke (5-6, 4.01 ERA). Since his June 6 start at Atlanta, Locke has gradually lowered his ERA in each game from 5.37 to 4.01 over seven starts – including an eight-inning, two-hit shutout gem against the Cleveland Indians on July 4.
Writer’s Prediction
Pittsburgh wins, 2-1.
Oakland Athletics vs. San Francisco Giants (10:15 PM ET)
Line: Oakland Athletics (+115) vs. San Francisco Giants (-125); total: 7.0 – view all MLB lines
The Oakland Athletics will get a good chance to gain some ground in the AL West division standings this Friday night. The A’s won three out of the four games in last season’s series against their Bay Area rivals with an aggregate score of 17-2. Starter Jesse Chavez (5-9, 3.21 ERA) limited Giants batters to four hits and had nine K’s in six shutout innings from his last start against San Francisco in July of the previous year.
Meanwhile, the San Francisco Giants – winners of eight of their last nine games – will send Jake Peavy (1-4, 4.94 ERA) to the mound. Peavy has a lifetime record of 22-13 in 44 interleague games with a 2.94 ERA. He has surrendered just three earned runs and has struck out nine batters in 13.1 innings of work in his last two outings. The Giants have outscored their opponents 61-27 during their recent nine-game stretch.
Writer’s Prediction
San Francisco wins, 4-2.
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