The Dodgers begin the home portion of their schedule on Tuesday afternoon as the Pirates come to town for three games. Phil Gurnee already broke down the Pirates roster from top to bottom, and Gary Scott went even deeper in his analysis of Kevin Correia, Erik Bedard, and Jeff Karstens, the three starting pitchers the Dodgers will face over the next three days.

For a further look at the Pirates, I went straight to Charlie Wilmoth of Bucs Dugout. I talked briefly with the fellow UCSD alum about the Pirates' pitching staff, the Andrew McCutchen contract, Pedro Alvarez, and his outlook for the 2012 season. Click here to download the MP3 file, or click below to listen.

I was also a guest on the Bucs Dugout podcast, with a more Dodger-centric discussion. My interview starts just past the 23-minute mark.

Clayton Kershaw starts the opener Tuesday, then before Wednesday's game he will receive his 2011 National League Cy Young Award on the field. The first 30,000 fans to Dodger Stadium Wednesday will receive a replica of Kershaw's Cy Young Award.