The Pirates have had a hard time in their first two games against the Orioles, but a more favorable pitching matchup could lead to a different outcome in the series finale Thursday (7:05, ROOT Sports).

The Bucs allowed eight and seven runs in the first two games of the series after underwhelming starting pitching performances by Brad Lincoln and Kevin Correia, respectively, but the more reliable Erik Bedard takes the hill Thursday to face Tommy Hunter.

Hunter is a pitch-to-contact righty who has allowed way too much hard contact this season, giving up a remarkable 16 homers in 65 innings. That home run rate will likely come down if he gets more time, although it's not particularly clear he deserves it.

Bedard, meanwhile, strikes out nearly a batter an inning, and he has a good chance of racking up strikeouts against Baltimore's very strikeout-prone offense.

For more on the Pirates, check out Bucs Dugout. For more on the Orioles, there's Camden Chat.