Pittsburgh went the other direction at the deadline, adding closer Camilo Doval and reliever Luke Weaver to reinforce a bullpen that's now being leaned on heavily. The oddsmakers have made the Padres a solid favorite on the run line, but the moneyline gap between the two sides is thin — a sign the books expect this to be a legitimate pitching battle even if San Diego's the better team overall.
The form gap heading into Tuesday is stark. The Padres have won three in a row, part of a stretch since the deadline where the new pieces — Ray, Mize, and closer Mason Miller — have clicked. The Pirates, meanwhile, are staggering out of a series in Los Angeles that did real damage to whatever playoff push they had left.
Ashcraft is the reason Pittsburgh isn't a total afterthought here. His last outing against Detroit was an 8-inning, 1-run, 4-strikeout, zero-walk gem on just 80 pitches — control numbers that have made him one of the more efficient arms in the league this summer. If the Pirates are going to steal a game in this series, it starts with him keeping the Padres' lineup off balance early.
San Diego isn't at full strength either. Beyond the rotation injuries, DH Miguel Andujar and outfielder Samad Taylor are both working back from the IL, and Ramon Laureano is out for the year after labrum surgery. Pittsburgh has its own absences up the middle and behind the plate with Konnor Griffin and Endy Rodriguez sidelined, plus Ryan O'Hearn still working back from a quad issue.
Whatever's left of Pittsburgh's wild-card hopes runs through nights like this one — steal a game against a hot team, keep it interesting, get out of San Diego without a sweep. San Diego, for its part, is just trying to keep stacking wins with a roster that got a serious midseason facelift. Ray on the mound for the home team says everything about which direction that facelift was supposed to point.