AJ v Yordano Ventura; Lineup (Brent Morel Back, Jordy Out 6 Weeks) & Notes

Today's Game - AJ Burnett (7-3, 2.11) v Yordana Ventura (4-6, 4.73) is the KC opening draw. The 38-year-old righthander will be making his first start post-ASG. He's won seven of his last nine decisions and has posted a 1.99 ERA in his last seven starts. AJ is 5-3 with a 2.69 ERA in 11 career outings against Kansas City, but hasn't faced them since 2012

AJ - 2014 Topps series

Yordano made his first start in a month just before the break, coming off the DL after suffering ulnar nerve irritation, and says he's still not at 100% yet. Ventura was on a rough streak prior to the diagnosis, going 1-6 with a 5.17 ERA in 10 starts before he was shut down. He's a fastball, curve, change guy whose peripherals aren't a lot different from last year when he won 14 games and had a 3.20 ERA. Ventura has never faced Pittsburgh.

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

S-Rod gets the start at third, and Pedro is back in the lineup as a DH with Ishy at first.

• Brent Morel got the call up to Pittsburgh to replace Jordy. He's hitting .266/9/47 at Indy after batting .179 in limited action as a Bucco in 2014. The player movement to date: Jordy was placed on the 15 day DL with a sprained knee/contusion and is expected to miss six weeks, but at least avoided going under the knife. Corey Hart was moved from the 15 day to 60 day DL because of his knees, and that opened up Morel's spot on the 40-man roster.
• Kansas City (55-35) has won four of their last five and just beat Chris Sale yesterday. The Royals had 30 hits in their last two games and are batting .315 in 11 games as part of a 10-of-12 run. The Pirates are looking for their first series win in Kansas City, with a 2-6 record at Kauffman Stadium since the start of interleague play.
• Pedro is in a 2-for-21 slump.
• Jon Morosi tweeted that the Pirates are interested in Justin Upton, but they will prioritize on an infielder if Jordy Mercer is out for extended period. The team us in a holding pattern now.
• Jonah Keri of Grantland writes (at the bottom of a longish article) that he doesn't think the Bucs have to make a major move before the deadline.
• Altoona RHP Tyler Glasnow was named the Eastern League Pitcher of the Week.
• Evan Meek, a Bucco All-Star in 2010, has signed to pitch in Korea. He was in the Washington system, pitching in AAA.