Willy v Sonny Gray, Lineup & Notes

Game: Round Two begins at 2:10 EDT from GABP and will be on AT&T SportsNet & 93.7 The Fan. The weatherman may not cooperate; Cincy is supposed to get an inch of rain today.

Lineup: Adam Frazier 2B, Starling Marte CF, Corey Dickerson LF, Josh Bell 1B, Fran Cervelli C, Jung Ho Kang 3B, Melky Cabrera RF, Erik Gonzalez SS, Trevor Williams P. Nice to see Starling back in the lineup; it was pretty thin w/o him.

Willy toes the slab today (photo Dave Arrigo/Pittsburgh Pirates)

Pitchers: RHP Trevor Williams takes on RHP Sonny Gray. Everyone's hopping on the regression wagon re: Willy, and it is most improbable that he sizzles like he did during the second half of 2018 when he went 7-3/1.38 in his last 12 outings. But hey, if he settles into a solid #3 guy, yay team. We'll see if Sonny fares any better away from Yankee Stadium, his personal house of horrors. The Pirates were thought to be kicking his tires in the off season, as were several clubs, before the Reds swooped in.

Notes:

• Season starters: Erik Gonzalez, first hit; Jung Ho Kang, first RBI; Corey D, first homer. Go to the head of the class if you had Gonzalez for the year's first knock.
• The battered Bucs in Florida are in various stages of rehab. Gregory is playing minor league games, Jordan Lyles is set to toss a six-inning sim game, and the others are still in the early stages of recovery.
• The Pirates and Twins have the most international-born players, with 14 each on the 40-man roster. 11 of the Pittsburgh internationals are from the Dominican/Venezuela.
• The Pirates have always had players helping people. Corey Dickerson and his wife, Beth Anne, launched "Assists for Autism" initiative to support people with autism and their families. The Dickersons will donate $100 for every outfield assist recorded throughout the Majors in April, which is Autism Awareness Month, and also will donate $1,000 for every outfield assist recorded by the Pirates from May 1 until the end of the season.