Pitching Matchups For Series Between Seattle Mariners, Pittsburgh Pirates

Bailey Falter has had a solid season but struggled in June. He's allowed three or more earned runs in three of his five outings last month. He fanned one, walked one and allowed one earned run on four hits in 1.2 innings against the New York Mets on June 28.

Saturday, July 5 — Luis Castillo (Seattle) vs. Mike Burrows (Pittsburgh)

Luis Castillo bounced back in a big way after in his last start after a rough month to that point. He fanned four, walked one and allowed one earned run on seven hits in six innings against the Rangers on June 29. He's allowed three or more earned runs in four of his last seven outings.

Mike Burrows has been effective in limiting runs, but has struggled to go deep into his outings. In June, he had a 2.73 ERA with 30 strikeouts in 26.1 innings pitched across six outings (five starts). He hasn't gone deeper than 5.1 innings the entire season.

Sunday, July 6 — George Kirby (Seattle) vs. Paul Skenes (Pittsburgh)

The series finale between the two teams will be a showdown between two All-Star pitchers.

George Kirby's last two outings have been his first consecutive quality starts since being activated off the injured list May 22. He fanned five and allowed one earned run on three hits in six innings against the Kansas City Royals on June 30.

Paul Skenes, a National League Cy Young candidate, has struggled to go deep into his last few outings. He struck out five, walked one, hit a batter and allowed five hits against the St. Louis Cardinals on July 1. He's allowed two or more earned runs in two of his last three outings and hasn't pitched more than five innings in his last two starts.