Tonight at 7:05 p.m. in PNC Park, Pittsburgh, the Pirates (88-65) are set to face off against National League Central rivals, the Cincinnati Reds (87-66) in a battle that will go a long way toward determining home field advantage in the National League wildcard, and may still affect the NL Central division race. Live stream the action here; Reds fans can tune in to WLW 700, while Pirates fans can do the same on KDKA-FM 93.7.
The Reds enter this series two games behind the St. Louis Cardinals in the division, and one game behind the Pirates in the wildcard hunt. With so few games left on the schedule, it is highly unlikely the Washington Nationals will be able to sneak into contention, so the drama of either team missing postseason play is mostly gone; however, home field could play a large role in a one-game playoff; both clubs have been markedly better at home, and Cincinnati is actually under .500 as a road team.
The series starts off with a big-time pitching matchup, as Cincinnati will toss out Mat Latos (14-6, 3.14 ERA), while Pittsburgh turns to one of 2013's best redemption stories, Francisco Liriano (16-7, 2.92 ERA).
"We are going to hold our destiny in our hands the next week and a half," Latos said. The Reds and Pirates will be playing six of their final nine games against each other, which has Reds third baseman Todd Frazier fired up.
"It's going to be really exciting. I'm juiced," Frazier said. "You're going to feel a little fall atmosphere. Hopefully, it's a little nippy out there. I love it like that. It keeps me in tune. Hopefully, it will be a packed house, and a lot of craziness will happen and we come out with victories."
Liriano comes into this game red-hot, having been removed from a no-hitter in his most recent start. "He battles and he competes," Pirates manager Clint Hurdle said of Liriano. "Francisco's a pro and he realizes it wouldn't benefit anyone for him to throw 130 pitches on Sept. 15."
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