Pittsburgh @ San Diego preview

Last Meeting ( May 28, 2015 ) Pittsburgh 11, San Diego 5

Jung Ho Kang appears to be settling in nicely with the Pittsburgh Pirates, who are riding a seven-game winning streak heading into Friday’s matchup against the host San Diego Padres. Kang blasted his third home run in Thursday’s 11-5 series-opening victory and is batting .366 during his 10-game hitting streak.

Right fielder Gregory Polanco also homered for the Pirates, who are starting to live up to their lofty preseason expectations. Polanco has been a mild disappointment while batting .247 with two homers and 13 RBI this season, but the 23-year-old appears ready to go on a tear with five hits in his last 11 at-bats. While the Pirates are surging, San Diego sits three games under .500 and has struggled with inconsistency through the season’s first two months. “It seems we either don’t pitch well or hit really well,” third baseman Will Middlebrooks told reporters. “It’s a matter of getting those two to click together.”

TV: 10:10 p.m. ET, ROOT (Pittsburgh), FSN San Diego

PITCHING MATCHUP: Pirates LH Francisco Liriano (2-4, 3.86 ERA) vs. Padres RH James Shields (6-0, 3.75)

Liriano bounced back from a dismal outing against Minnesota by holding the Mets to one run while striking out 12 over six frames in 9-1 victory. “When you’re facing Liriano and you have to protect with two strikes, that’s hard to do,” Pirates reliever Jared Hughes told reporters. “I can’t imagine having to do that.” The 31-year-old is 1-2 with a 2.42 ERA in four career starts against San Diego, including 0-2 with a 3.00 ERA in two outings last season.

Shields remained unbeaten last Sunday as he allowed three runs and struck out seven in seven innings against the Dodgers. The 33-year-old, who became the second pitcher in Padres history to begin a season with a 6-0 record, is making his first career appearance against Pittsburgh. Shields has recorded eight quality starts in 10 tries and ranks third in the National League with 82 strikeouts.

WALK-OFFS

1. The Pirates’ starting pitchers have posted a 1.93 ERA during their seven-game winning streak.

2. Middlebrooks is 18-for-55 with three home runs and six RBI over his last 14 games.

3. Pittsburgh is 23-5 when scoring four or more runs and 2-17 when being held to fewer than four.

PREDICTION: Pirates 3, Padres 1