The Pirates completed a sweep of the St. Louis Cardinals over the weekend, extending their current win streak to five games. Next, they welcome the Oakland Athletics into town, owners of a 12-49 record.
The Pirates will start today with Johan Oviedo on the mound. The bullpen was used a lot over the weekend, and David Bednar was used three days in a row. While no MLB team offers an easy path to victory, this is probably the best time that the Pirates could be playing the worst team in baseball. If Oakland wins one game, they raise their winning percentage over the Mendoza line.