Cardinals Call on Sonny Gray to Cool Off Streaking Pirates
Coming off his most dominant outing in nearly a decade, St. Louis Cardinals ace Sonny Gray will take the mound Wednesday afternoon against a red-hot Pittsburgh Pirates team riding a five-game winning streak.
Gray (8-2, 3.36 ERA) dazzled in his last start, tossing a one-hit shutout against the Cleveland Guardians — his first complete game and shutout since 2015. The 35-year-old right-hander struck out 11 and carried a perfect game into the fifth inning, allowing just a single hit across nine innings.
Now, Gray faces the Pirates for the third time this season, having already held them to one run over 12 innings combined in two wins (0.75 ERA). He has had long-term success against Pittsburgh as well, going 7-4 with a 3.66 ERA over 14 career appearances.
The Cardinals are desperate for offense after being blanked in back-to-back games by the Pirates and shut out four times in their last seven contests.
Opposing Gray will be Mitch Keller (2-10, 3.90 ERA), who just snapped a 15-start winless streak by holding the Mets to one run over 5 1/3 innings in a 9-1 victory. Keller has pitched well against the Cardinals this year, allowing just one run over two outings, including a 7 1/3-inning shutout effort on April 9.
Despite being limited to a single hit through seven innings on Tuesday, the Pirates managed to edge the Cardinals 1-0 thanks to a late sacrifice fly from Henry Davis. Pittsburgh’s bullpen sealed the deal, with starter Paul Skenes and three relievers combining for the shutout.
As the Pirates continue their hot streak, the Cardinals turn to their top arm in hopes of flipping the script.
