Philadelphia and Pittsburgh have always had a unique rivalry in sports. The Flyers and Penguins are mortal enemies. Eagles and Steelers fans claim a similar rivalry but don’t often have the chance to show it (not to mention the franchises were once one-and-the-same.) And then there are the Phillies and Pirates. Despite having played each other over 2,000 times, there just isn’t that same feeling of rivalry.
And yet here we stand with the Phillies ready to host the Pirates in a three-game weekend series. The Phillies (25-18) lost a wet affair against the St. Louis Cardinals by a series score of 2-1 after winning the previous five series straight. Kyle Schwarber’s 47-game on base streak is in ruins and Aaron Nola has continued to struggle. The Pirates (15-29), meanwhile, are struggling. The Pirates just dropped a series to the Mets 2-1. Previously they did take two of three from the Braves after having been swept by both the Cardinals and Padres.
Phillies vs Pirates: Pitching matchups
Friday night is Zack Wheeler bobblehead night in Philadelphia, so of course Ranger Suárez is on the mound. Suárez returned from the Injured List two starts ago. In his last time out, Suárez pitched an 82-pitch gem for seven shutout innings against the Guardians. Suárez will go against Andrew Heaney. Heaney owns a 3.15 ERA on the season, most recectly allowing two runs over six innings of a no decision against the Braves.
Speaking of Zack Wheeler, he gets Saturday’s outing against Carmen Mlodzinski. Wheeler has continued to put together a strong 2025 season, owning a 2.95 ERA, striking out eight in his recent seven-inning shutout against the Guardians. Wheeler currently leads the league with 58.0 innings pitched on the year. Mlodzinski, meanwhile, is boasting a 5.20 ERA.
Sunday, the Phillies meet phenom Paul Skenes for the first time. The young star has done well for the Pirates despite a 3-4 record on the year. He has a 2.63 ERA over 54.2 innings of work. Cristopher Sánchez will go toe-to-toe with the young gun with a similar 2.91 ERA on the year.
All eyes on Harper
Kyle Schwarber was getting a lot of well-deserved attention for his long on-base streak. Unfortunately the streak came to an end in game one of the Phillies’ doubleheader against the Cardinals on Wednesday. Bryce Harper, meanwhile, has been slowly approaching a milestone of his own. With 23 RBIs on the season, Harper stands at 999 on his career. Should Harper secure RBI number 1000, he will be the 306th player in Major League Baseball history to do so. Harper, who recorded the first 521 with the Nationals, is currently 31st in Phillies history, 21 RBIs behind Richie Ashburn.
Harper, who is batting .200 over his last seven games, has flash signs of his usual electric self at the plate but is still leaving a lot to be desired as the cornerstone of the offense. On the season, he is batting a measly .236 with seven home runs so far.
The details
Friday night’s affair against the Pirates will begin at 6:45 p.m. Saturday night is Salute to Service Night at the ballpark with a 6:05 p.m. slated first pitch. Sunday’s getaway game before the team’s trip to Colorado is scheduled for a 1:35 p.m. start. It will also be Phanatic About Reading Day, so thank you for reading this article. All three games will be broadcast by NBC Sports Philadelphia.
Mandatory Credit: Bill Streicher-Imagn Images
