Chicago Cubs (58-45, second in the NL Central) vs. Pittsburgh Pirates (53-51, third in the NL Central)
Pittsburgh; Saturday, 6:40 p.m. EDT
PITCHING PROBABLES: Cubs: Shota Imanaga (6-8, 3.91 ERA, 1.11 WHIP, 109 strikeouts); Pirates: Paul Skenes (9-8, 3.43 ERA, 1.04 WHIP, 138 strikeouts)
LINE: Pirates -138, Cubs +113; over/under is 8 runs
BOTTOM LINE: The Chicago Cubs hit the road against the Pittsburgh Pirates trying to prolong a three-game road winning streak.
Pittsburgh has a 27-25 record in home games and a 53-51 record overall. Pirates hitters are batting a collective .260, which ranks second in the NL.
Chicago is 58-45 overall and 28-23 on the road. Cubs hitters have a collective .337 on-base percentage, the third-ranked percentage in the NL.
The matchup Saturday is the ninth time these teams square off this season. The season series is tied 4-4.
TOP PERFORMERS: Brandon Lowe has 21 doubles, a triple, 21 home runs and 65 RBIs while hitting .241 for the Pirates. Nick Gonzales is 14 for 43 with four doubles and two home runs over the last 10 games.
Pete Crow-Armstrong has 22 home runs, 53 walks and 56 RBIs while hitting .285 for the Cubs. Michael Busch is 13 for 43 with three doubles, two home runs and six RBIs over the last 10 games.
LAST 10 GAMES: Pirates: 6-4, .249 batting average, 3.43 ERA, outscored opponents by 17 runs
Cubs: 6-4, .242 batting average, 3.16 ERA, outscored opponents by 16 runs
INJURIES: Pirates: Rafael Flores: 7-Day IL (head), Oneil Cruz: 60-Day IL (hand), Endy Rodriguez: 10-Day IL (lower body), Spencer Horwitz: 10-Day IL (hamstring), Evan Sisk: 15-Day IL (elbow), Konnor Griffin: 60-Day IL (finger), Chris Devenski: 60-Day IL (illness)
Cubs: Justin Steele: 60-Day IL (elbow), Matt Shaw: 10-Day IL (hand), Riley Martin: 60-Day IL (elbow), Hunter Harvey: 60-Day IL (tricep), Phil Maton: 15-Day IL (knee), Ethan Roberts: 15-Day IL (forearm), Christopher Austin: 60-Day IL (knee), Daniel Palencia: 15-Day IL (elbow), Hoby Milner: 15-Day IL (appendicitis), Edward Cabrera: 15-Day IL (hamstring), Ben Brown: 15-Day IL (neck), Porter Hodge: 60-Day IL (elbow), Cade Horton: 60-Day IL (forearm), Shelby Miller: 60-Day IL (elbow)
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The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar.
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