Daily MLB Previews for 6/17

Interleague play is back and there are some great matchups today. Here you can find the previews for all the games of the day.

Interleague

Pittsburgh Pirates (33-31) vs. Cleveland Indians (33-31) 1:05 PM ET Preview

Colorado Rockies (25-39) vs. Detroit Tigers (31-34) 1:05 PM ET Preview

Philadelphia Phillies (31-36) vs. Toronto Blue Jays (33-32) 1:07 PM ET Preview

Baltimore Orioles (38-27) vs. Atlanta Braves (35-30) 1:35 PM ET Preview

New York Yankees (39-25) vs. Washington Nationals (38-25) 1:35 PM ET Preview

The Washington Nationals have had a chance to win each of the first two games against the New York Yankees this weekend. The Yankees pitching has just turned out to be too strong. The Nationals were supposed to have the stronger staff in the battle of first-place teams but have broken down in the bullpen two straight days. The weak link has been veteran Brad Lidge, who took the loss on Saturday and yielded three runs on Friday.

New York has not been able to do much against Washington's pitching but has gotten the hits when it counted. Mark Teixeira provided the big hit on Saturday, clubbing a two-run double off Lidge in the 14th inning to end the marathon and give the Yankees their eighth straight victory. Nationals phenom Bryce Harper went 0-for-7 with five strikeouts and grounded out to second with two runners on to end the game.

Miami Marlins (33-32) vs. Tampa Bay Rays (36-29) 1:40 PM ET Preview

Milwaukee Brewers (30-35) vs. Minnesota Twins (25-39) 2:10 PM ET Preview

Kansas City Royals (28-35) vs. St. Louis Cardinals (34-32) 2:15 PM ET Preview

Houston Astros (27-38) vs. Texas Rangers (39-27) 3:05 PM ET Preview

Arizona Diamondbacks (32-32) vs. Los Angeles Angels (34-31) 3:35 PM ET Preview

San Diego Padres (23-43) vs. Oakland Athletics (31-35) 4:05 PM ET Preview

San Francisco Giants (37-29) vs. Seattle Mariners (28-39) 4:10 PM ET Preview

Chicago White Sox (35-30) vs. Los Angeles Dodgers (41-25) 4:10 PM ET Preview

Boston Red Sox (32-33) vs. Chicago Cubs (22-43) 8:00 PM ET Preview

The Boston Red Sox have tried a number of different lineups in their search for offense. On Saturday, that led them to Jarrod Saltalamacchia in the cleanup spot. Saltalamacchia responded with a two-run homer to spark the club to its fourth win in the last 12 games. The Chicago Cubs, who shut out the Red Sox on Friday, are no strangers to offensive struggles and have been held to four or fewer runs in 12 of 15 games this month.

The Cubs will be trying to secure their first series win of June on Sunday when they close a six-game homestand. Chicago president Theo Epstein has admitted to mixed feelings upon seeing his new club face the team that he guided to a pair of World Series titles but has been watching intently this weekend – not only because of the opponent but in evaluation mode. The Cubs are one of the few teams already decided as sellers and will be trying to improve the club in advance of the trade deadline. The Red Sox are trying to prove they belong in the buyers' club.

National League

Cincinnati Reds (37-27) vs. New York Mets (35-31) 1:10 PM ET Preview

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