Scouting report: Cubs vs. Pittsburgh Pirates

Posted August 16, 2019 1:00 am

By Bruce Miles

Cubs vs. Pittsburgh Pirates at PNC Park Friday and Saturday, and at Bowman Field in Williamsport, Pa., Sunday

TV: WGN Friday; ABC 7 Saturday; ESPN Sunday

Radio: WSCR 670-AM

Pitching matchups: The Cubs' Kyle Hendricks (8-9) vs. Joe Musgrove (8-11) at 6:05 p.m. Friday; Jon Lester (9-8) vs. Steven Brault (3-1) at 12:35 p.m. Saturday; Jose Quintana (10-7) vs. Mitch Keller (1-1) at 6:05 p.m. Sunday.

At a glance: The Cubs are 6-4 against the Pirates at PNC Park. Sunday's game will be the Little League Classic. The bottom has fallen out for the Pirates (50-70). They are last in the National League Central with a minus-92 run differential. Rookie Bryan Reynolds is a bright spot. He entered Thursday leading the NL in batting average with a line of .335/.410/.537 with 13 homers and 49 RBI. Josh Bell has 31 homers and 98 RBI. The Pirates entered Thursday 14th in the NL in ERA (5.04), while the Cubs (4.10) were third. The Cubs have fallen in the rankings of several key offensive categories, but they were fourth in on-base percentage, OPS and home runs entering Thursday. Hendricks is 4-6 with a 3.25 lifetime ERA against the Pirates.

Next: San Francisco Giants Tuesday to Thursday at Wrigley Field.

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