Pittsburgh Pirates (59-75, fifth in the NL Central) vs. St. Louis Cardinals (65-69, fourth in the NL Central)

St. Louis; Thursday, 2:15 p.m. EDT

PITCHING PROBABLES: Pirates: Braxton Ashcraft (4-2, 2.70 ERA, 1.18 WHIP, 43 strikeouts); Cardinals: Miles Mikolas (6-10, 5.17 ERA, 1.36 WHIP, 81 strikeouts)

BOTTOM LINE: The Pittsburgh Pirates bring a 2-1 advantage into the next game of the series against the St. Louis Cardinals.

St. Louis has a 36-32 record in home games and a 65-69 record overall. The Cardinals have gone 34-16 in games when they did not allow a home run.

Pittsburgh has a 20-45 record on the road and a 59-75 record overall. The Pirates have gone 19-52 in games when they have given up a home run.

The teams match up Thursday for the 13th time this season. The Pirates lead the

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