Pittsburgh will attempt to get the bats going tonight and defeat Cleveland in Game 2 of a three-game set.
The first pitch is scheduled for 7:05 p.m. at Progressive Field.
Carlos Carrasco (6-3) will be on the mound for the Indians (37-31). He has a 4.09 ERA in 12 starts. Carrasco has pitched 72.2 innings.
The Pirates (35-34) counter with Paul Maholm (3-7). Maholm brings a 3.12 ERA into tonight's contest. The story on Maholm all season has been the lack of runs when he pitches. Maholm has one complete-game shutout this season in 89.1 innings.
I like the Bucs to bounce back in this game. Maholm has been strong all season. With the exception of last night, Cleveland has been struggling lately, but it is still in first place.
The bats have to come around. Lyle Overbay needs to start driving in some runs. Twenty-five RBIs in 69 games isn't going to cut it. The guy only has five home runs.
Andrew McCutchen leads the team in almost all offensive categories, but he shouldn't be in home runs. McCutchen has ten and I project he will hit about 25 this season, but Overbay and Garrett Jones should be hitting about 30-35 out of the ballpark.
Neil Walker leads the team with 45 RBIs, however he needs to get that average up.
It's not the best offense, but they need some timely hits. I hate to see them leave runners on base, especially when guys are in scoring position with nobody out. That said, if the pitching remains strong, the Pirates will be in most games.
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