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Pirates Preview: Can Oviedo Bounce Back After All-Star Break?

Published

10 months ago

July 15, 2023

The Pittsburgh Pirates (41-50) had taken the lead in the bottom of the sixth inning on Friday, but fell in the the top of the seventh for a tough loss against the San Francisco Giants (50-41).

Colin Holderman hasn’t looked right since coming back off the injured list, and he faltered yet again on Friday in the seventh inning.

To Holderman’s defense, Henry Davis performed terribly in right field in the seventh inning, and Austin Hedges allowed stolen bases left and right, and allowed a ball to get passed him in the seventh.

As a result, the Pirates lost 6-4 on Friday, and now aim to force a rubber match on Sunday with a victory Saturday night.

Game one between between the Pirates and Giants will be at PNC Park, with first pitch at 7:05 Eastern. You can watch all of the action on AT&T Sportsnet and listen to the game on 93.7 The Fan.

Weather

Scattered thunderstorms are expected to begin right around first pitch. The rain isn’t supposed to stop until 6 a.m. Sunday morning. Things may change, but it’s not looking good.

The Pirates will send out RHP Johan Oviedo (3-10, 4.75 ERA)

In his last two starts combined, Oviedo has given up 13 earned runs. In addition, Oviedo pitched 11.2 innings while walking five and striking out seven.

In his last start, Oviedo faced the Los Angeles Dodgers. In 6.2 innings pitched, Oviedo allowed six hits, five earned runs, two walks, and struck out six.

Oviedo has faced the Giants twice (two starts) and holds a record of 0-1 with an ERA of 3.24 in 8.1 innings pitched.

The Giants will send out RHP Alex Cobb (6-2, 2.91 ERA)

Cobb’s last start was on July 5 against the Seattle Mariners. In six innings, Cobb allowed six hits, no earned runs, no walks, and struck out seven.

In his last seven starts, Cobb has amassed a 3-1 record with an ERA of 4.19 in 38.2 innings pitched.

Cobb offers primarily a three pitch mix with a sinker (41.3%), splitter (36.5%), and a curveball (15.8%). In addition, Cobb has thrown a slider (5.9%) and a four-seam (0.5%) on occasion.

Cobb has been a groundball pitcher throughout his career and this year is no different. Cobb’s groundball percentage is at 57.6% currently.

Cobb has faced the Pirates three times (three starts) and holds an 0-1 record with an ERA of 4.24 in 17 innings pitched.

Giants vs. Oviedo

Joc Pederson: 2-2 with a homer
Brandon Crawford: 0-4 with three strikeouts

Pirates Hitters vs. Cobb

Ji-Man Choi: 3-7 with a double
Carlos Santana: 3-18 with a double

Tidbits

Oviedo has by far exceeding his career high in innings pitched in the majors with 100.1 so far on the season. The last time Oviedo pitched 100+ innings was in 2019 when he pitched with St. Louis’ Double-A team.
Cobb has pitched in PNC Park two out of his three starts against the Pirates with an ERA of 1.50 in 12 innings pitched.
Jared Triolo has a hitting streak of seven games after his hit on Saturday night. Other than July 4 and June 3, Triolo has registered at least one hit.