Cole v Gallardo; Grilli & The Gang Back

Gerrit Cole (6-7, 3.80) takes on Yovani Gallardo (10-9, 4.39) tonight. Cole has been taking a somewhat unfair beating; the kid has been consistent through the various routine changes management is mandating (there was a time IP was a good thing), and his biggest problem hasn't been the pitching but the lack of support. The Bucs have scored eight runs in his last six losses. And no matter what Gallardo's seasonal line is, he's tough against the Pirates, as his 11-4/2.59 career mark shows. The same pair met last week, with Gallardo shutting out the Bucs 4-0.

The game starts at 8:10 and will be aired on Root Sports and 93.7 The Fan.

Pirate lineup: Jose Tabata LF, Neil Walker 2B, Andrew McCutchen CF, Justin Morneau 1B, Marlon Byrd RF, Russell Martin C, Josh Harrison 3B, Clint Barmes SS and Gerrit Cole P.

Pedro's down today.

Brewer lineup: Norichika Aoki RF, Jean Segura SS, Jonathan Lucroy C, Aramis Ramirez 3B, Carlos Gomez CF, Scooter Gennett 2B, Khris Davis LF, Juan Francisco 1B and Yovani Gallardo P.

• The Bucs recalled Jason Grilli from the DL and called up Jeff Locke, Tony Sanchez, Jared Hughes, and Andrew Lambo from Altoona.
• Neil Walker extended his hitting streak to six games yesterday.
• The Pirates have taken three consecutive wins in Milwaukee for the first time since 2004. They're going after four in a row for the first time since 2002.
• What goes around: In 2005, the Brewers ended a losing streak of 12 seasons, getting win # 81 in Pittsburgh. The Pirates are at Milwaukee and have 80 wins...
• With his next home run, Andrew McCutchen would become just the sixth player in team history to hit 100 or more home runs and steal 100 or more bases in his career. The others are Barry Bonds, Al Martin, Andy Van Slyke, Dave "The Cobra" Parker and Paul "Big Poison" Waner.
• 47 players have appeared in at least one game for the Pirates this season and a club record-tying 27 have pitched for the Bucs. The team record for most players used in a season is 52 in 2011, and the record for most pitchers used, 27, was set in 2010
•  Wandy is slated to get 50 pitches in on Friday for Indy. The Tribe is playing Durham in the opening round of the AAA playoffs.
• The West Virginia Power made the South Atlantic (Sally) League playoffs.
• Octavio Dotel was finally and officially shut down this season by the Tigers, and at 40, he may have tossed his last MLB pitch, per Anthony Fenech of the Detroit Free Press.