Two 90-loss teams close out the season with a three-game series that begins Friday night when the San Diego Padres host the Pittsburgh Pirates.
San Diego (62-97) has won seven straight home games over Pittsburgh, but that streak will probably be the furthest thing from both clubs' minds as they close out the year.
The Padres won two straight NL West titles before falling one game short of the playoffs last year, but have stumbled to their first losing season in five years. The Pirates (65-94), meanwhile, are enduring their 16th straight losing season.
San Diego took three of four games at PNC Park in July in the first series between these teams in 2008. The Padres have won 13 of their last 15 overall versus the Pirates.
In addition to their losing streak in San Diego, the Pirates have lost a season-high nine straight on the road after being swept in a three-game series in Milwaukee to start this season-ending road trip. Pittsburgh scored eight runs in the series versus the Brewers, capped by Thursday's 5-1 loss in 10 innings.
"We should have made some plays that we didn't," manager John Russell told the Pirates' official Web site. "Balls came up a little bit."
While this series features two last-place clubs, it's also a final chance to see two promising All-Stars -- Pittsburgh's Nate McLouth and San Diego's Adrian Gonzalez.
McLouth has scored 111 runs -- the most by a Pirate since current Padre Brian Giles scored 116 -- in 2001. Gonzalez hit his career-high 36th home run in Thursday's 7-5 win over the Los Angeles Dodgers and is third in the NL with 118 RBIs.
Ian Snell (6-12, 5.54) will close out his disappointing season for Pittsburgh. He's posted his highest ERA since becoming a full-time starter two years ago and has been particularly bad on the road, going 3-8 with a 6.48 ERA in 16 outings.
In his last start, the right-hander yielded two runs in six innings last Friday in a 5-1 loss to Houston.
This will be Snell's second career start against San Diego. He gave up two runs in seven innings and did not get a decision in a 5-3 loss on Sept. 19, 2007.
Josh Geer (2-1, 2.86) makes his fifth career start as he takes the mound for San Diego. He suffered his first career loss in his last outing on Sept. 17 despite pitching well, giving up one run in five innings in a 1-0 loss at Colorado.
The right-hander, who has never faced Pittsburgh, is 2-0 with a 3.00 ERA in two home starts this year.