Pirates take on the Reds in first of 4-game series

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Cincinnati Reds (60-55, third in the NL Central) vs. Pittsburgh Pirates (49-66, fifth in the NL Central)

Pittsburgh; Thursday, 6:40 p.m. EDT

PITCHING PROBABLES: Reds: Brady Singer (9-8, 4.36 ERA, 1.30 WHIP, 111 strikeouts); Pirates: Paul Skenes (6-8, 2.02 ERA, 0.92 WHIP, 154 strikeouts)

BETMGM SPORTSBOOK LINE: Pirates -174, Reds +145; over/under is 7 runs

BOTTOM LINE: The Pittsburgh Pirates start a four-game series at home against the Cincinnati Reds on Thursday.

Pittsburgh has a 32-27 record in home games and a 49-66 record overall. Pirates pitchers have a collective 3.89 ERA, which ranks seventh in the NL.

Cincinnati has a 60-55 record overall and a 27-29 record on the road. The Reds have the sixth-ranked team ERA in the NL at 3.87.

The teams meet Thursday for the seventh time this season. The Reds lead the season series 4-2.

TOP PERFORMERS: Oneil Cruz has 16 doubles, two triples and 18 home runs while hitting .208 for the Pirates. Liover Peguero is 7 for 28 with a double and four home runs over the past 10 games.

Elly De La Cruz has 24 doubles, three triples and 19 home runs for the Reds. TJ Friedl is 13 for 36 with a double and a home run over the last 10 games.

LAST 10 GAMES: Pirates: 6-4, .261 batting average, 5.25 ERA, outscored opponents by two runs

Reds: 5-5, .226 batting average, 3.80 ERA, outscored by two runs

INJURIES: Pirates: Chase Shugart: 15-Day IL (knee), Endy Rodriguez: 60-Day IL (elbow), Enmanuel Valdez: 60-Day IL (shoulder), Justin Lawrence: 60-Day IL (elbow), Tim Mayza: 60-Day IL (shoulder), Jared Jones: 60-Day IL (elbow)

Reds: Nick Lodolo: 15-Day IL (finger), Wade Miley: 60-Day IL (flexor), Ian Gibaut: 15-Day IL (shoulder), Rhett Lowder: 60-Day IL (forearm), Hunter Greene: 15-Day IL (groin), Carson Spiers: 60-Day IL (shoulder), Tyler Callihan: 60-Day IL (forearm), Brandon Williamson: 60-Day IL (elbow), Julian Aguiar: 60-Day IL (elbow)

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The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar.