The Milwaukee Brewers have lost six straight games, the longest active skid in the National League
The Pittsburgh Pirates' three-game losing streak is tied for the league's third-longest current slump
Whichever team stops its streak on Friday night will end the night in first place in the NL Central.
The Brewers and Pirates will look to establish themselves as the team to beat in a topsy-turvy division when Milwaukee hosts Pittsburgh on Friday in the opener of a three-game series
Right-hander Julio Teheran (1-2, 1.48 ERA) is scheduled to start for the Brewers against left-hander Rich Hill (6-5, 4.23)
The Brewers were off Thursday after falling to the host Minnesota Twins 4-2 on Wednesday afternoon in the finale of a two-game interleague series
The visiting Pirates absorbed the final defeat of a three-game sweep at the hands of the Chicago Cubs with a 7-2 loss on Thursday night
The Brewers, who are .500 (34-34) for the first time since they were 1-1, squandered a multi-run lead Wednesday for the third straight game and for the fourth time during their skid
"Getting those early leads and then giving them away is definitely demoralizing, and it's tough," Brewers right fielder Brian Anderson told the team's website after homering in the second inning Wednesday
The last two losses have cost the Brewers a chance to supplant the Pirates -- who are a half-game ahead at 34-33 -- atop the division. Milwaukee has spent 51 days in first place this season, 18 more than Pittsburgh
"I know it doesn't look good right now, but we're going to bounce back from this," Anderson told the team's website. "I have no doubt."
Being swept decisively by the Cubs -- who outscored the Pirates 28-11 -- continued another valley in a roller-coaster season for Pittsburgh. The Pirates were 20-8 following a doubleheader sweep of the Washington Nationals on April 29 but lost 19 of their next 25 to fall under .500
The Pirates then won six straight from May 30 through June 5 but have lost six of their past eight against a trio of sub-.500 teams: the Oakland Athletics, New York Mets and the Cubs
"It's a little frustrating right now -- none of us want to lose this game," Pirates pitcher Johan Oviedo said after he took the loss on Thursday by allowing four runs over 4 1/3 innings
The series against the Brewers provides an opportunity for an immediate reset for the Pirates, who haven't made the playoffs since 2015 and haven't posted a winning season since 2018
"We need to wash through this," Pirates manager Derek Shelton said. "We didn't play this well this series, and we just need to move on and get to Milwaukee.
Teheran didn't factor into the decision on Saturday, when he allowed one run over seven innings as the Brewers fell to the Athletics 2-1 in 10 innings. He is 5-1 with a 2.31 ERA in 12 career games (11 starts) against the Pirates
Hill earned a victory last Friday after surrendering two runs over seven innings in the Pirates' 14-7 win over the Mets. In 11 lifetime games (10 starts) against the Brewers, he is 3-3 with a 3.84 ERA
--Field Level Media