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Tonight, Jon Niese will make his Pittsburgh Pirate debut at 7:05 against the St. Louis Cardinals. This is the perfect setup for Niese, because the Cardinals are the perfect team for him to make his Pirate debut against.
Niese is of course a left-handed pitcher, and last season the Cardinals hit a Major League worst .230 against left-handed pitching. The Cardinal woes against lefties continued in the season opener on Sunday when Francisco Liriano tossed six innings of three hit, shutout ball and fanned 10 Cardinal batters.
The Cardinal lineup will most likely struggle even more against left-handed pitching as a result of the injury suffered by outfield Tommy Pham on Sunday. Pham was slated to play in left field, with Matt Holliday at first base, for the Cardinals against left-handed pitching this year. However, Pham is now on the 15-day disabled list with a leg injury. As a result, Matt Holliday will shift back out to left field while either Matt Adams or Brandon Moss, both left-handed hitters, play first base.
Adams has a lifetime .540 OPS against left-handed pitching, while Moss checks in at .720. So neither, especially Adams, is a strong options against left-handed pitching. These are not the only Cardinal hitters that struggle against left-handed pitching though, as second base man Kolten Wong’s lifetime OPS against left-handed pitching is just .600.
Yadier Molina is a hitter in decline who had a very poor season against left-handed pitching last season posting an OPS of .577. Matt Carpenter’s career OPS against left-handed pitching is 100 points lower than it is against right-handed pitching, and Jedd Gyorko can’t really hit anything.
Also aiding Niese tonight will be pitching at PNC Park. PNC Park is one of the most left-handed pitcher friendly parks in the Major Leagues. So when you combine that with the Cardinals being a lineup that struggles immensely against left-handed pitching, this might be the perfect recipe for Jon Niese’s Pirate debut.