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Pirates Vs. Reds Preview: Pittsburgh Sends A.J. Burnett To Face Johnny Cueto

The Pittsburgh Pirates hope to win the rubber game against the Cincinnati Reds on Wednesday night. After dropping Tuesday's game 8-1, the Pirates send A.J. Burnett to the hill against a pitcher that has recently dominated the Pirates in Johnny Cueto.

Cueto's last 12 starts against the Pirates have been nothing short of overwhelming, with a 9-1 record, with a 1.87 ERA. To add insult to injury, Cueto is 7-0 at PNC Park in his last eight starts with a 1.53 ERA. Cueto will have to rebound from a spotty start against the Colorado Rockies last Friday where he went only 4.2 innings, allowing five runs on 11 hits in a loss.

On the Pirates' side, Burnett has been consistent in his last seven starts, allowing no more than two runs in each start. This includes 5.1 shutout innings against the Chicago Cubs last Friday.

The Pirates hope that they can get some offense from Andrew McCutchen, who has been hitting .423 with four home runs and 11 RBIs in 16 games at home. In his career, he is 8-for-28 against Cueto, but also has three home runs and two doubles. The rest of the Pirates lineup is as such.

The Reds will be using this lineup against Burnett. Joey Votto will be given his first game off for the season, his first game off since August 23 last season.

Cozart 6
Stubbs 8
Bruce 9
Phillips 4
Heisey 7
Frazier 5
Costanzo 3
Hanigan 2
Cueto 1

The game is scheduled for a 7:05 p.m. and will be broadcast live on Root Sports with radio coverage on 93.7 KDKA FM.

For more Pirates coverage, visit Bucs Dugout. For more on the Reds, head over to Red Reporter. News and updates from the Pirates' series will be available at SB Nation Pittsburgh.

Photographs by dizfunk used in background montage under Creative Commons. Thank you.