The Pittsburgh Pirates are heading out to the West Coast to open a nine-game road trip that will close out the month of August. The first stop is Los Angeles, where they face the defending champion Dodgers in a three-game weekend set at Dodger Stadium.
Bubba Chandler takes the mound for the Pirates, carrying some of his best stuff of the season. He has won all three of his starts in August, including his most recent outing on August 14 against the Boston Red Sox. That night at PNC Park, Chandler pitched five innings, allowed four hits and two earned runs, and left with an 8-4 victory.
The Dodgers will counter with Yoshinobu Yamamoto, who celebrated his 28th birthday earlier this week. The third-year pro from Japan has already matched his win total from the previous season, an accomplishment he secured in his last start against the Milwaukee Brewers on August 14. In that game, he went six innings, gave up four hits and one earned run, and picked up a 3-1 win at Dodger Stadium.
Los Angeles enters the series with a comfortable nine-game lead over the San Diego Padres in the NL West standings, while Pittsburgh is fighting to stay alive in the NL wild-card race. The Pirates sit five-and-a-half games back of the Padres for the final postseason spot.
Friday’s matchup features Chandler with a 6-8 record and a 4.23 ERA against Yamamoto’s 12-7 mark and 2.60 ERA. First pitch is scheduled for 7:10 p.m. PT / 10:10 p.m. ET. The game will be broadcast on KDKA AM/FM and Sportsnet Pittsburgh, as well as SportsNet LA and the MLB app.
