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LOS ANGELES — The Pittsburgh Pirates are undecided on a starter for Wednesday’s series finale against the Los Angeles Dodgers James Harrison Jersey , and volunteers might be hard to come by.

The Dodgers’ offense is coming off a productive June when they hit 55 home runs, most in a calendar month in franchise history. And at the start of July, they look even better.

First the Dodgers crushed the Pirates on Monday to the tune of 17 runs and 21 hits. On Tuesday it was six home runs, including back-to-back homers from Joc Pederson and Max Muncy to lead off the game. Muncy went deep twice and has 20 on the season.

So with scheduled starter Joe Musgrove headed to the disabled list with a finger infection, the Pirates must send somebody else to the wolves.

Right-hander Clay Holmes (0-0, 2.25 ERA) is expected to make his first start of the season for Pittsburgh on Wednesday. He has pitched in two games for the Pirates this season, and he threw two hitless, scoreless innings in his most recent appearance June 24 against Arizona. He has never faced the Dodgers.

The Dodgers’ Rich Hill (1-3, 4.68) will make his fourth start since coming off the disabled list because of a blister on the middle finger of his left hand.

On Friday, Hill faced the Colorado Rockies and gave up one run on six hits over 6 2/3 innings with 10 strikeouts. He threw 110 pitches in that game, validating the series of laser treatments he received while out of action.

“I was really pleased with the consistency of the flight of the ball Chris Hogan Jersey ,” Hill said after his last outing, according to the Los Angeles Times. “The way the curveball came out of my hand, the consistency of that. Everything really came together tonight.”

Hill is 3-2 lifetime against the Pirates with a 3.25 ERA over nine starts, although he is a far different pitcher than the first time he squared off against them in 2006.

Holmes faces a major challenge against the Dodgers’ potent offense. When Matt Kemp went 5-for-5 with a homer on Monday, it gave him a hit in eight consecutive at-bats.

Also homering for the Dodgers on Tuesday were Yasmani Grandal, Enrique Hernandez and Chris Taylor.

The Dodgers’ run-scoring onslaught has left the Pirates reeling. Not only did the Pirates’ bullpen absorb five innings Monday, it was called on for three more innings Tuesday. Tuesday’s starter, Ivan Nova, allowed seven runs on nine hits in his five-plus innings.

“We’ve been a little short on the front end of things, which has provided some complications on the bullpen,” Pirates manager Clint Hurdle said Stephen Gostkowski Jersey , according to mlb.com.

The Dodgers will see their 10-game homestand come to an end Wednesday, but their Southern California stay is just beginning. Next up is a “road trip” to Anaheim and San Diego, before three more home games to close out the first half.

The Pirates are 2-3 on their six-game tour of Southern California, having faced the San Diego Padres before arriving in Los Angeles. They are 4-4 on their nine-game road trip, which also included a stop in New York to face the Mets.

No, his reward was an immediate matchup against two-time Cy Young winner Corey Kluber.

”Yeah, welcome back, right?” Mauer said with a laugh.

The six-time All-Star returned to the lineup on Friday after missing 25 games with a strained neck and concussion-like symptoms sustained when he was injured diving for a foul ball last month.

And while facing Kluber might not be an ideal first step back, the struggling Twins, who have one of the league’s weakest offenses, were thrilled to have Mauer back in their lineup.

”It’s good for any manager to have a chance to put a guy like Joe’s name down there Adrian Phillips Jersey ,” said manager Paul Molitor, who had Mauer batting first against Kluber in the opener of a three-game series against the AL Central-leading Indians. ”Yeah, he’s in a good place, he’s excited to be here and we welcome him back. Hopefully, he can give us a little bit of a boost.”

The Twins came in seven games under .500 and batting just .238 as a team. They also entered the series with only three runs in the past 19 innings.

That’s not ideal against Kluber, who is 5-0 with a 0.76 ERA against the AL Central this season.

”Obviously, he’s one of the best in the game,” Mauer said. ”That’s the big leagues. You’re going to face the best night in and night out. It’s a tough matchup first game, but the one tomorrow (Carlos Carrasco) is pretty tough, too. I’m just excited to be back.”

Mauer has been symptom-free for a week. He went hitless in 10 at-bats over three games in a rehab stint with Triple-A Rochester, but the three-time batting champion feels ready to go.

”It’s been going good Malik McDowell Jersey ,” said Mauer, who was batting .283 with one homer and 11 RBIs when he got hurt. ”Obviously, I went down there and got in a couple of games and did everything I had to do to get back here. I’m excited to check off those boxes, get a couple of at-bats and play in the field for nine innings.”

Mauer said he didn’t have to make any diving stops in the field at Rochester, and that he won’t alter his game just because of the recent injury.

”My experience is when you try to do that you end up getting hurt,” he said. ”I got the full clear to go and I’m excited for that.”.

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