Tim Hudson (3-4, 4.62 ERA) and Francisco Liriano (2-4, 3.47 ERA) take the hill in the last of a three-game series between the San Francisco Giants (30-24) and the Pittsburgh Pirates (28-24) at AT&T Park. The Pirates won the last game 7-4 and Pittsburgh leads the series 2-0. Action begins at 3:45 p.m. ET on Wednesday, Jun. 3 and can be seen on ROOT-PIT and CSN-BAY.
Hudson is 6-8 with a 3.23 ERA, 1.13 WHIP, and 68 strikeouts against the Pirates. Brandon Crawford (.297, 27 Rs, 8 HRs, 36 RBIs, 3 SBs) had another good game yesterday, going 2 for 4 with one run, one home run, and two RBIs. Liriano is 2-1 with a 4.76 ERA against the Giants in his career. He takes on a quality San Francisco offense that’s batting .271. Andrew McCutchen (.292, 30 Rs, 7 HRs, 34 RBIs, 3 SBs) has been successful at the plate for the Pirates, going 4 for 5 yesterday with two runs and two RBIs.
Pittsburgh takes on San Francisco as a -116 favorite. The Over/Under (O/U) for the matchup is sitting at seven runs. The Giants have recorded an overall money line of +474 and have shown high-level performance as an underdog this season with a record of 16-9. Opposing offenses that come to AT&T Park have been stifled by the Giants, who have a team ERA of only 2.92 at home. The Giants are the fifth-best team in the NL at limiting walks to their opponents, allowing only 2.7 walks per game so far this season.
In the other locker room, in contrast to a worrisome overall money line (-63), Pittsburgh has an impressive 22-13 record when playing as the favorite. They have managed to pull off a perfect record over their last ten games playing as the favorite, and have an 8-2 SU record over the same span. Offensively, the Pirates have really picked up the pace in the last 10 games. They have exceeded their season average of 4.2 runs per game by averaging 5.4 during that stretch. Pittsburgh’s pitching staff is one of the top in the NL at pitching on the road, with a 2.83 ERA.
The Pirates have the edge in the season series, 2-0. The Giants have a great 6-1 record at home (8-3 overall) against left-handed starting pitchers, which is what they’ll be facing when Liriano takes the mound. Hudson (RHP) will be on the hill against the Pirates, who have a 24-20 record against right-handed starting pitchers.
Predictions: SU Winner – PIT, O/U – Over
Notes
The Giants are 3-1 in games that go into extra innings. Meanwhile, the Pirates are 0-6 in such matchups.
The Pittsburgh batters brought in a solid 14 hits last game. San Francisco has a record of 0-7 when their opponents get that many hits or more.
When they are outhit, the Giants are 3-14. The Pirates have a 4-15 record when opponents outhit them.
San Francisco ranks near the bottom of the league at 21st when it comes to home runs, hitting 43 this season. Pittsburgh ranks in the bottom half at 20th with 44.
Ranking sixth, Pittsburgh is in the top 10 of the league in hits, notching 8.61 per game. San Francisco ranks in the top five at second with 9.36.
Ranking 19th, Pittsburgh is in the bottom half of the league for its on-base plus slugging percentage (.697). San Francisco ranks in the top 10 at sixth with an OPS of .737.
When the Pirates allow at least one home run, they are 9-16. When the Giants allow one or more homers, they have a 14-17 record.
