NL Central Division rivals will square off on Friday night, when the St. Louis Cardinals invade PNC Park to face the Pittsburgh Pirates. The Cardinals had yesterday off after being defeated at home by Kansas City by a 5-2 final score on Wednesday. St. Louis is five games above .500 overall and trails Milwaukee by 3.5 games for first place.
Twenty-five year old righty John Gant (1-1 4.67 ERA) will take the mound for the Cardinals in this matchup. Through 17 plus innings, Gant has struck out 18 batters and owns a solid 1.10 WHIP.
The Pittsburgh Pirates have dropped five of their last six games overall and are looking to get back on track. On Thursday, SP Ivan Nova surrendered a grand slam during a 5-4 road loss against Cincinnati. The Pirates are five games above .500 overall and 3.5 games behind Milwaukee for the division lead.
Twenty-five year old righty Joe Musgrove will make his first start as a member of the Pirates. Musgrove, who started 25 games for Houston, comes into this contest with a record of 11-12 and an ERA of 4.52 for his career.
