Pirates at Reds
Derek Dietrich already has eclipsed his career-high total in homers this season with 17, with the Pittsburgh Pirates serving up seven of them. Dietrich aims to continue to dismantle the Pirates on Wednesday afternoon as the host Cincinnati Reds bid to win their third consecutive contest to conclude the four-game series.
Dietrich belted a trio of two-run homers in Tuesday's 11-6 victory over Pittsburgh, marking the fourth time that the 29-year-old has gone deep in the series while seeing each of his last six hits leave the park. Dietrich is batting 9-for-22 with 14 RBIs and eight runs scored against the Pirates this season, although he'll face Wednesday starter Steven Brault for the first time in his career. Cincinnati has won 11 of its last 18 to move within one game of Pittsburgh, which has lost seven of its last nine to fall a game below .500 for the first time since May 3. Rookie Kevin Newman, who belted a grand slam on Tuesday, is batting 21-for-61 with nine RBIs in May.
TV: 12:35 p.m. ET, MLB Network, AT&T SportsNet-Pittsburgh, FS Ohio (Cincinnati)
PITCHING MATCHUP: Pirates LH Steven Brault (1-1, 7.11 ERA) vs. Reds RH Anthony DeSclafani (2-2, 4.99)
Brault worked a season-high 5 2/3 innings on Friday, allowing two runs for the third time in his last four outings before settling for a no-decision versus the Los Angeles Dodgers. The 27-year-old has kept the ball in the park in each of his last two games after surrendering five homers in his previous 14 2/3 innings. Eugenio Suarez (3-for-6) and Joey Votto (3-for-10) have fared well in relatively small sample sizes against Brault, who sports a 3-0 mark with a 1.27 ERA in eight career appearances (two starts) versus Cincinnati.
DeSclafani has surrendered a career high-tying three homers in consecutive starts and yielded four runs in each of his last four to elevate his ERA by a run and a half in that stretch. The 29-year-old was shelled in his last outing versus Pittsburgh on April 7, permitting six runs on seven hits -- including two homers -- in 4 1/3 innings of a 7-5 setback. Josh Bell (5-for-11, three extra-base hits) and Adam Frazier (2-for-5) went deep off DeSclafani, who owns a 2-5 mark with a 4.53 ERA in 10 career starts against the Pirates.
WALK-OFFS
1. Pittsburgh CF Starling Marte is 9-for-25 with two homers and four RBIs in his last seven games.
2. Cincinnati SS Jose Iglesias, who has four hits, four RBIs and four runs scored in the series, has hit safely in five consecutive contests and nine of his last 10.
3. Pirates C Elias Diaz has 15 hits in his last dozen games.