Matchups

The Chicago Cubs haven’t had much trouble with the Pittsburgh Pirates in the National League Central rivals’ first two meetings of the season, and they’ll try to keep it up in the finale of a three-game series Wednesday at PNC Park. The Cubs have outscored the Pirates 14-3 while taking the first two contests, and are trying to complete their first three-game sweep at Pittsburgh since September 2012.

The Cincinnati Reds own the worst bullpen in the major leagues by a significant margin, and the futility of the relief corps is reaching historic levels. The San Francisco Giants will try to take advantage of the friendliness of the Cincinnati relievers for the third straight day when they visit the Reds in the series finale on Wednesday afternoon.

The New York Mets averaged 6.3 runs while winning 11 of 12 games but are having a harder time pushing runs across in the last three contests. The Mets will try to bounce back from a shutout when they host the struggling Atlanta Braves in the rubber match of a three-game series on Wednesday.

Chris Carter was a relative bargain-basement signing during the offseason, but the slugger continues to provide huge dividends for the Milwaukee Brewers over the first month of the season. The Brewers - buoyed by a resurgent offense - look to complete a three-game sweep of the visiting Los Angeles Angeles on Wednesday afternoon.

Stephen Strasburg is finally living up to his potential and the Washington right-hander aims to improve to 5-0 this season when the Nationals complete a three-game road set against the Kansas City Royals on Wednesday. Strasburg, who has struck out 40 and walked eight in five starts, is 12-2 with a 1.91 ERA in his past 18 starts dating back to last season.

Felix Hernandez looks to continue his mastery of Oakland hitters when the Seattle Mariners attempt to complete a three-game sweep of the host Athletics on Wednesday. Hernandez struck out 10 in seven shutout innings against Oakland in a no-decision earlier this season and boasts a 22-8 record and 2.58 ERA in 41 career starts versus the Athletics.

San Diego tries for a three-game sweep of Colorado on Wednesday and the Padres' Matt Kemp will be sorry to see the Rockies leave town. The right fielder has eight home runs and 22 RBIs in 26 games this season with four homers and 13 RBIs coming in five contests versus Colorado after contributing a solo shot in Tuesday's 6-3 victory.

The Cleveland Indians have experienced little issues igniting their offense against the Detroit Tigers this season while the latter's production has dried up when facing their American League Central rival. The Indians will vie for their fifth victory in as many meetings versus the visiting Tigers on Wednesday when the clubs play the second contest of their three-game series.

One of the reasons the New York Yankees could avoid lengthy losing streaks in the past was having CC Sabathia at the top of their rotation. Sabathia is no longer is the ace of the the staff, but the Yankees will be looking to the veteran left-hander to halt a six-game skid when they play the second of a three-game series at the Baltimore Orioles.

The Texas Rangers and the Toronto Blue Jays continue to prove the margin separating the two clubs is razor thin. The Blue Jays, who beat the Rangers in five games in the American League Division Series last fall, will try to ride the momentum of a dramatic victory to another win when they host Texas in the third of a four-game series on Wednesday.

The Los Angeles Dodgers hope to build off one of their best offensive outbursts of the season when they go for a sweep of a two-game interleague series with the host Tampa Bay Rays on Wednesday. The Dodgers belted three homers, including a three-run blast by Yasiel Puig, in a 10-5 victory over the Rays on Tuesday for their second straight win after a six-game slide.

The Miami Marlins have slugged their way back over .500 with 15 homers during their sizzling 8-1 stretch. The red-hot Marlins look to continue their torrid ways on Wednesday when they vie for a series victory against the visiting Arizona Diamondbacks.

Jose Abreu is streaking along and the American League-leading Chicago White Sox are following suit, having won three in a row and nine of their last 11. After driving in three runs in the series opener, Abreu carries a seven-game hitting streak into the second contest of a three-game set versus the visiting Boston Red Sox on Wednesday.

The Houston Astros are once again in position to record back-to-back victories when they close a three-game series against the visiting Minnesota Twins on Wednesday. The Astros (9-18) have failed to win consecutive games in each of their eight opportunities this season and make another attempt after winning Tuesday for only the fourth time in 14 games.

All Philadelphia Phillies first baseman Ryan Howard needed was a visit to his hometown to break out of a brutal slump. Howard's solo homer accounted for the lone run Tuesday and put the visiting Phillies in position to notch their fourth straight series win in Wednesday's rubber match against the St. Louis Cardinals.