Red Sox-Pirates Live: Brandon Workman Looks To Find Way Vs. Pittsburgh

It’s been a long time since Brandon Workman won a major league baseball game.

The Boston Red Sox enter Thursday’s series finale against the Pittsburgh Pirates looking to avoid a three-game sweep at PNC Park. Workman will receive the nod, though his season has taken a turn for the worse after such a promising start to the year.

Workman is 0-9 over his last 10 big league starts. He hasn’t earned a victory since June 10 in Baltimore, and his ERA has skyrocketed from 2.86 to 5.27 in that span. While Workman has shown he can be a valuable contributor, it has looked as though the 26-year-old is battling fatigue of late. Workman’s velocity has been down amid his struggles.

There’s still time for Workman to end 2014 on a positive note. He’ll have his hands full Thursday, though, as the Pirates’ offense has been rolling. Plus, Workman will go up against one of Major League Baseball’s best young pitchers in Gerrit Cole.

Rusney Castillo, who made his major league debut for the Red Sox on Wednesday, isn’t in Thursday’s starting lineup. However, David Ortiz is back in the mix, which should bode well for an offense that is 0-for-16 with runners in scoring position over the first two games of the series.

Thursday’s first pitch is scheduled for 7:05 p.m. NESN.com Red Sox beat writer Ricky Doyle will be tweeting live throughout the game. Follow him on Twitter and check out the updates below.

You also can follow Thursday’s Red Sox-Pirates game right here.

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