Writte Up
I'll ride the Diamondbacks here in a case of two teams going in opposite directions.
Arizona has won six of its last seven and 18 of its last 28. The Pirates have dropped four in a row. They have lost four straight to Arizona, too, by the ghastly margin of 26-3.
If you discount an 11-run performance against the Nationals and Craig Stammen, the Pirates are averaging 1.9 runs in their last 10 games. This isn't hard to believe when you look at their infield, which consists of Andy LaRoche, Ronny Cedeno, Ramon Vasquez and Steve Pearce.
Diamondbacks starter Max Scherzer dominated the Pirates when he faced them last Sunday. He held Pittsburgh to five hits and struck out eight in seven innings during an easy 9-0 victory. Scherzer is a rising star. He has a 3.17 ERA on the road.
Kevin Hart makes his first start for Pittsburgh. He's a converted reliever who pitched well for the Cubs in four starts going 3-1 with a 2.86. But he did walk 13 in these four starts spanning 22 innings. Hart is going to find things much more difficult playing for the Pirates.
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