The Pittsburgh Pirates have won 11 of their last 14 games and have a firm grip of one of the National League's Wild Cards. I don't see them slowing down anytime soon though as they're still trying to chase down the St. Louis Cardinals for the division-title and I think they'll prove well worth the money in the series-finale of a four-game set against the Miami Marlins Thursday.

Here are my keys to the game:

1. Pitching - The Fish hand the ball to Justin Nicolino (2-1, 3.77 ERA) who'll make his sixth start in the majors ever. The 23 year old southpaw is 0-1 with a 5.71 ERA over three starts at Marlins Park and has recorded just 11 strikeouts over 31 innings overall. The Pirates will counter with Gerrit Cole (14-7, 2.49 ERA) who allowed just one run on three hits and three walks in seven innings against the Giants his last start. He's 6-4 with a 2.22 ERA in 12 road starts this season and held the Fish to two runs on seven hits in seven innings of a 5-2 home win on May 27.

2. Road Warriors - The Pirates have won six of their last seven away from home and they're 9-3 in Cole's last 12 road starts versus a team with a losing record. The Marlins meanwhile have won just one of their last six home games.

3. X-Factor - The Marlins are 2-8 in their last 10 games with umpire Alan Porter calling the shots.

Selection: This is a play on the Pittsburgh Pirates (8*)