Trade Deadline recap

Here's who the Pirates have traded today:

Arizona Diamondbacks: C Chris Snyder and SS Pedro Ciriaco(prospect) for RP DJ Carrasco, 2B/SS Bobby Crosby, and OF Ryan Church.

San Francisco Giants: SP Joe Martinez and 1B/OF John Bowker for RP Javier Lopez.

Los Angeles Dodgers: RP James McDonald and OF Andrew Lambo for RP Octavio Dotel.

Chris Snyder is a decent catcher whose career BA is .233, with a high of .277 in 2006 and a low of .200 in 2009.  This year he's hitting .231.  He had a career high of 16 HRs in 2008, and he has 10 this year, well on track to match or exceed that output. My guess is that he will take over the starting catching job with Kratz as the backup.  They can then decide how Doumit fits in, if at all, when he comes back.  Pedro Ciriaco seems like a decent SS prospect, something the Bucs have been lacking lately.  He's similar to Argenis Diaz, and he will presumably join AAA Indianapolis. Hate to see Carrasco go, but I'm not at all sad to see Church gone and frankly I'm surprised anyone would want him, even if he was fluff in this trade, with the real meat being Carrasco. Bobby Crosby was okay, and was a decent backup for Cedeno at times.

Joe Martinez has only pitched in a handful of games for the Giants and his ERA hasn't exactly been stellar. He was a 12th rounder in the 2005 draft. John Bowker is a weak outfielder whose career stats are not that great. Both of them will head to Indy. Lopez was okay, but not exactly great, so if either one of these guys pan out I'll call it a win.

James McDonald is a decent relief pitcher who pitched well last year, but hasn't had many games this year. He can start and relieve, so presumably he'll replace Carrasco or Lopez in the bullpen for now. Lambo is a pretty talented prospect whose career got derailed somewhat for violating the drug policy.  He was the #3 prospect in the Dodgers organization at the beginning of the year, so this trade looks like a big win for the Bucs at this point.  He'll head to Altoona, I'm guessing. Dotel was great as a closer for the Bucs this year, but he was only supposed to be here until Meek was ready to take over the closer role, and Meek definitely seems ready after his All-Star berth this year.

Surprisingly neither Paul Maholm nor Zach Duke garnered any interest, so they will the stay with the team.  All 3 of these trades seem like wins at this point, but trades have looked good before only to fail miserably, so we'll just have to wait and see how these turn out.

10 innings of silence. Bucs LOSE

	R	H	E	LOB
	0	5	1	6
	1	9	0	5

I'm pretty pleased to see that the Pirates' pitchers were able to keep the Cardinals' bats quiet for 9 innings. I'm pretty disappointed to see them equal that quietness with their own bats. But once it went into extra innings, I knew they had no chance.

Jeff Karstens's best outing of the year was completely wasted because the Pirates couldn't get anything going offensively.  He pitched 6.0 innings, allowing no runs, just 7 hits (all singles), no walks, and 2 Ks. He was pulled after 6 not because he was getting tired, but because there was a concerning play where stepped on 1st to record the out and seemed to tweak his ankle a bit. He threw only 69 pitches.

Joel Hanrahan had an excellent  inning of work in the 9th, striking out the side. Lopez was not as lucky in the 10th.

Erik Kratz had an excellent outing defensively, as he caught 3 Cardinals trying to steal. Each throw was perfectly placed, something we haven't seen from a Bucco catcher in quite a while.

The best offensive player was Lastings Milledge, who went 2 for 4. Jose Tabata got a hit to extend his streak to 10 games, and 13 of his last 14. There were no extra-base hits.

SERIES 34 - Cardinals

St. Louis Cardinals

Friday, July 30, 8:15 PM (FSN)
Saturday, July 31, 7:15 PM (FSN)
Sunday, August 1, 2:15 PM (FSN)



Busch Stadium, St. Louis, MO

Listen live on [WPGB]

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After getting a nice road win in Denver, the Pirates draw the toughest team in the NL Central and will have to face two of their toughest starting pitchers.  The other pitcher for the Cardinals, Suppan, is not that great, but he may end up facing Daniel McCutchen.  Add in the great Cardinals batting and this series looks pretty terrible on paper for the Buccos.  But that's why they play the game.

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Expected Pitching Matchups

July 30: Jeff Karstens (2-6, 4.72 ERA) vs. Chris Carpenter (11-3, 3.09 ERA)

July 31: ???? (Daniel McCutchen?) (?-?, ?.?? ERA) vs. Jeff Suppan (0-6, 6.18 ERA)
August 1: Zach Duke (5-9, 5.09 ERA) vs. Adam Wainwright (14-6, 2.23 ERA)

Proposed Lineups

Pirates

1. A. McCutchen, CF
2. J. Tabata, LF
3. N. Walker, 2B
4. G. Jones, 1B
5. P. Alvarez, 3B
6. L. Milledge, RF
7. R. Cedeno, SS
8. E. Kratz, C
9. [Pitcher]

Cardinals

1. F. Lopez, 3B
2. J. Jay, RF
3. A. Pujols, 1B
4. M. Holliday, LF
5. C. Rasmus, CF
6. Y. Molina, C
7. B. Ryan, SS
8. [Pitcher]
9. S. Schumaker, 2B

Let's Go Bucs.

Meatloaf. Bucs LOSE

	R	H	E	LOB
	3	6	1	4
	9	15	0	8

Had a pretty good idea that the Pirates weren't going to win this game long before it started.  Ubaldo Jiminez isn't the NL's best pitcher for no reason, after all. This probably wasn't him at his best, but even average he is more than a match for the Pirates, especially with Andrew McCutchen out of the lineup.

Paul Maholm was pretty bad. It's pretty much impossible to tell which Paul you are going to get on a given day. In his last 7 starts, he has given up run totals of 7, 1, 8, 2, 0, 4, and 8, with 1.0, 8.0, 3.0, 7.0, 9.0, 6.0, and 5.1 innings pitched respectively.  In this game he gave up 11 H, 8 R/ER, 1 HR, 3 BB, and 3 K.  He did get a hit himself though, one of just 6 for the Buccos.

The Bucs' offense suffered without McCutchen, who had been hitting fairly well recently. Jose Tabata, playing center for Cutch, had the only multi-hit game, going 2 for 4.  Garrett Jones had the only double.  The best offensive player for the Pirates was definitely Neil Walker, who hit a 2-run homer in the 8th (his 5th of the season and second of this series), scoring Tabata.  It just wasn't nearly enough to overcome the 9 run deficit that Paul Maholm and Steven Jackson put us in.

So the Bucs drop the 3rd game of the series.  But 2 out of 3 ain't bad, especially on the road.  On to Poo Holes and St. Louis.

GFJ. Bucs WIN

	R	H	E	LOB
	6	11	1	6
	2	10	0	9

Back to back road wins? Hasn't happened since May 14th and 15th.  The Buccos are now 6-6 after the All-Star break, which isn't too shabby.  This game was a doozy.

It started off in the bottom of the 1st when Ross Ohlendorf took a line drive right at the side of his head.  He got up on his own power though, and was able to walk off the field.  He was taken to a hospital as a precaution, but the CT scan came back negative. With some luck he won't even miss a start.

Later in the game, Andrew McCutchen nearly re-injured his right shoulder crashing into the thin padding of the Coors Field center field wall to make a catch.  He would stay in the game, but exactly how much damage the catch caused has yet to be seen.  It amazing to watch how much ground he can cover out there in center field, robbing batters of what would be hits for lesser outfielders.  Pedro also had a nice defensive gem, making a shoe-string catch for an out, but throwing to first just in case.

Meanwhile, Sean Gallagher comes in for 3 innings of long relief, giving up no hits, 3 BB and 4 Ks, picking up the win.  Newly called up reliever Wil Ledezma made his major league debut, going 1.1 IP with no hits and a K.  Javier Lopez came in and had a rough outting, giving up 3 hits, one of which was a huge solo home run that bounced off the third tier of the right field seats.  That was it for the Rockies' scoring, though, as Joel Hanrahan and Octavio Dotel came in to slam the door.

It was a non-save situation for Dotel, because while the Pirates' hurlers were pitching masterfully, they were getting help from the bats. A big third inning was all the Pirates needed to put this game away.  Sean Gallagher walked, Andrew McCutchen singled, and Tabata hit a weird high-bouncing infield single to load the bases.  Then Neil Walker hit a single right up the middle to score Gallagher and Cutch. Then Garrett Jones hits a single to score Tabata as Neil moves to third. Finally, Pedro singles to right to score Walker, and that was it for Aaron Cook, who lasted just 2.1 innings.

Garrett Jones hit two home runs in this game, the second coming when he was a triple short of the cycle. He went 4 for 4 with 3 RBIs and scored 2 runs.  Andrew McCutchen went 3 for 4 with a walk and a run scored. Neil Walker also had 2 RBIs and Pedro had one too. Doubles were hit by Garrett Jones and Andrew McCutchen, and Jones also had two homers.

Finally, a road win. Bucs WIN

	R	H	E	LOB
	4	7	0	4
	2	6	1	6

The last time the Bucs won a game on the road against anyone not named the Cubs was May 25th in Cincinnati. The Rockies, at one point in contention for the NL West crown, are in the middle of a 7-game losing streak and it seems that the scheduled series happened at just the right time for the Pirates.

Zach Duke pitched a masterful 6.0 innings, only allowing 3 hits, two of which unfortunately went for home runs in the 5th.  He also allowed 2 BBs but had 4 Ks. He was visibly upset after being pulled after 6 innings, especially after pitching a perfect 6th.  But the Three Musketeers (Meek, Hanrahan, and Dotel) came in to shut the door, with only a slight scare while Meek was pitching with a runner at 3rd and only 1 out.  Two groundouts took care of that. Hanrahan and Dotel had a much easier go.

Neil Walker was easily the best bat for the Pirates in the game, going 3 for 4 with a home run. Andrew McCutchen and Garrett Jones also hit doubles for the Pirates.

SERIES 33 - Rockies

Colorado Rockies

Tuesday, July 27, 8:40 PM (FSN)
Wednesday, July 28, 8:40 PM (FSN)
Thursday, July 29, 3:10 PM (FSN)



Coors Field, Denver, CO

Listen live on [WPGB]

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Both of these teams roll into this series on large losing streaks. The Pirates have lost 4 in a row, while the Rockies have lost 6 in a row. Something's gotta give, and with Ubaldo Jiminez pitching in this series for the Rockies, things are not looking like they will go in the Pirates' favor this road trip, as they are currently only 11-38 on the road.

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Expected Pitching Matchups

July 1: Zach Duke (4-9, 5.22 ERA) vs. Jorge De La Rosa (3-2, 5.65 ERA)

July 2: Ross Ohlendorf (1-8, 4.39 ERA) vs. Aaron Cook (4-6, 4.78 ERA)
July 3: Paul Maholm (6-8, 4.13 ERA) vs. Ubaldo Jiminez (15-2, 2.75 ERA)

Proposed Lineups

Pirates

1. A. McCutchen, CF
2. J. Tabata, LF
3. N. Walker, 2B
4. G. Jones, 1B
5. P. Alvarez, 3B
6. L. Milledge, RF
7. R. Cedeno, SS
8. E. Kratz, C
9. [Pitcher]

Rockies

1. D. Fowler, CF
2. R. Spilborghs, RF
3. C. Gonzalez, LF
4. T. Tulowitzki, SS
5. M. Mora, 3B
6. M. Olivo, C
7. B. Hawpe, 1B
8. C. Barmes, 2B
9. [Pitcher]

Let's Go Bucs.

Brad Lincoln gets sent down. Bucs SWEPT

	R	H	E	LOB
	6	8	0	5
	3	8	0	5

Brad Lincoln's brief time with the Pittsburgh Pirates has come to an end, at least for now.  He was sent back down to AAA Indianapolis after his 4th major league loss.  I didn't think he pitched bad enough to get sent down, and I think that any issues he has should be worked out at the MLB level rather than down in AAA.  He did give up 5 runs in one inning, but that's happened to a lot of major league pitchers, even the great ones. Anyway, Brendan Donnelly got released as well, and that's probably a good decision as he has been pitching absolutely awful lately. Brad Lincoln will apparently be replaced by Daniel McCutchen (really!?) and Donnelly will be replaced by AAA reliever Wil Ledezma.

Andrew McCutchen made his return from the DL in this game, but it didn't really help the Pirates any more than not having him in.

Jose Tabata went 2 for 4, and Brad Lincoln went 2 for 2 with an RBI, raising his average to .400.  Ronny Cedeno had the best outing of the game for the Pirates, going 2 for 4 with a double and a home run.

The Blown Lead Blowout. Bucs LOSE

	R	H	E	LOB
	9	11	1	6
	2	8	2	8

Better recap will be forthcoming later, but it was a long game and I have to work this morning.  Didn't get back home until 2 AM. I took plenty of pictures and some videos that I will collect into a post sometime soon.

Robbed. Bucs LOSE

	R	H	E	LOB
	5	9	1	9
	3	6	1	5

Two things to take away from this game.  One, the Pirates got robbed of a run in the 1st, as Tabata clearly touched home and was not tagged by the Padres catcher.  He was "tagged" while waiting for the safe call from the umpire.  This quite possibly could have changed the outcome of the game, as the Padres have a great record when they score first and a terrible record when they don't.  Second, Brendan Donnelly was not very good.  He walked the first 3 batters he faced in the 7th, finally forcing Russell to take him out after he loaded the bases with no outs.  He threw 13 pitches, only 1 of which was a strike.  Awful. Carrasco came in and did his best to get out of the toughest situation for a pitcher in the game, but 1 run still came across the plate, firmly putting the game out of reach.  Sean Gallagher came in to pitch 2 scoreless, hitless innings against his former team to finish the game for the Pirates' pitchers.

Paul Maholm went 6.0 IP with 9 H, 4 R / 4 ER, 2 BB, 2 Ks and 0 HR.  Pedro Alvarez was the only player with more than 1 hit for the Pirates, going 2 for 4.  The Bucs' only extra-base hit was a double by Ronny Cedeno.

On a positive note, the Bucs only struck out 5 times, and none of them were by Pedro Alvarez.  I am going to the game tonight, and I'll be hoping to attend my first Pirate win of the season.  If not, there's always Steve Miller to look forward to.

SERIES 32 - Padres

San Diego Padres

Friday, July 23, 7:05 PM (FSN)
Saturday, July 24, 7:05 PM (FSN)
Sunday, July 25, 1:35 PM (FSN)



PNC Park

Listen live on [WPGB]

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After a bipolar series with the Beers, it's time to meet the San Diego Padres for the first time this year. This will be a tough test for the Pirates, as the Padres are in 1st place in the NL West and have given up the fewest runs in the majors. The good news is that they haven't scored all that many either. This series should determine whether or not the Pirates can sustain that heavy hitting against a playoff team. Should be interesting.

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Expected Pitching Matchups

July 23: Paul Maholm (6-7, 4.03 ERA) vs. Kevin Correia (6-6, 5.22 ERA)

July 24: Jeff Karstens (2-5, 4.84 ERA) vs. Mat Latos (10-4, 2.45 ERA)
July 25: Brad Lincoln (1-3, 6.29 ERA) vs. Wade LeBlanc (4-8, 3.28 ERA)

Proposed Lineups

Pirates

1. J. Tabata, CF
2. D. Young, RF
3. N. Walker, 2B
4. G. Jones, 1B
5. P. Alvarez, 3B
6. L. Milledge, LF
7. J. Jaramillo, C
8. R. Cedeno, SS
9. [Pitcher]

Padres

1. J. Hairston Jr., 2B
2. C. Denorfia, CF
3. A. Gonzalez, 1B
4. S. Hairston, LF
5. Y. Torrealba, C
6. A. Cunningham, RF
7. O. Salazar, 3B
8. E. Cabrera, SS
9. [Pitcher]

Let's Go Bucs.

Down to Earth. Bucs LOSE

	R	H	E	LOB
	3	10	0	9
	2	7	0	8

Even though the Bucs lost this game, it felt like they still had a chance to come back, even in the later innings.  When Neil Walker hit his 2-RBI double in the 7th, I was thinking "ok, here comes the rally." But it never came.  So instead of a series win, the Bucs take a series tie.  Not terrible, but not exactly good either, given the offensive output in those two wins.  San Diego will be a much tougher opponent than the Brewers, though, and if the Bucs are for real, we will find out in that series.

Ross Ohlendorf went 6.0 IP, 5 H, 1 ER, 1 BB, 6 K, and 1 HR.  Neil Walker went 2 for 3 with a walk, improving his average to .320, and Garrett Jones went 2 for 4.  The Pirates' only double was hit by Neil Walker, which scored 2 runs.

Okay, this is getting a little crazy. Bucs WIN

	R	H	E	LOB
	3	7	0	7
	15	18	2	6

In the last 4 out of 5 games, the Bucs have scored 9+ runs. As mentioned in the last post, output like that over a 5 game stretch hasn't happened for the Pirates since 1971. What does all this mean?  Just that it's really hard to sustain production like this for long, but it should definitely be enjoyed while it lasts.

This game started off kind of slow, with the Pirates and Brewers trading leads for the first 3 innings.  The Brewers scored 1 run in each of the first 3 innings, while the Bucs scored 2 in the bottom of the 1st.  After 3 innings, it wasn't looking that great for the home team, with Randy Wolf retiring 9 in a row after the Bucs put up their two runs in the 1st. But then the Bucs started Battling. Lastings Milledge hits a long double to score Garrett Jones.  Then Ronny Cedeno hits a perfect bunt and reach 1st safely, scoring Pedro in the process.  Tabata hits a single which scores Milledge.  And the Delwyn Young comes to the plate.  He hits a 3-run homer. Suddenly the Bucs have a commanding 8-3 lead after scoring 6 in the 4th.

But they weren't done yet.  In the 5th, Pedro hits his 7th homer of the year, scoring Garrett Jones in the process.  In the 6th, Delwyn Young nets his 5th RBI of the game, scoring Zach Duke.  Then Neil Walker hits a sacrifice Ground into Double Play (yeah, weird), scoring Tabata.  It's 12-3, and it's only the 6th inning.  At this point we were thinking revenge for 20-0.  It came fairly close to that.  Andy LaRoche pinch hits a single to score Lastings Milledge in the 7th, and Neil Walker singles to score Ronny Cedeno, also in the 7th. 14-3.

Pedro comes to the plate in the 8th. He's already contributed a ton to this game, can he do more? Yes.  He hits another bomb towards the Clemente Wall, which doinks off the foul post about 2/3rds of the way up for his 4th homer in the last 2 days.  15-3. At this point the Pirates were showing mercy.  Sean Gallagher was in for the last few innings, and he got a chance to bat for the first time since probably ever. He gets the job done in the 9th.

Zach Duke went 6+ IP, 6 H, 3 R / 2 ER, 2 BB, 3 K, and 1 HR.  Bullpen of Donnelly (1 IP) and Gallagher (2 IP) came in for 3 innings of 1-hit, 3 K baseball.

Jose Tabata went 2 for 4 with a walk and an RBI; Delwyn Young went 3 for 4 with a walk, a homer, and 5 RBIs; Neil Walker went 2 for 5 with 2 RBIs; Garrett Jones went 2 for 4 with a walk; Pedro went 3 for 5 with 3 RBIs and two homers; Lastings Milledge went 2 for 5 with an RBI; Ronny Cedeno went 2 for 5 with an RBI, and Zach Duke got a hit, going 1 for 3.  Doubles were hit by Walker and Milledge, while homers were hit by Delwyn Young and Pedro (twice).

El Toro! Bucs WIN

	R	H	E	LOB
	9	14	3	7
	11	11	0	6

So after one day of anemic offense the Bucs go back to the second coming of the Lumber Company.  I'm cautiously optimistic that they can win or tie this series, but I know better than to get my hopes up too much with this team.  They're definitely making progress though, as they haven't scored 9+ runs in 3 out of 4 games since May 25-28, 2007, when they had scores of 10-4, 9-5, and 14-10 in Cincinnati. UPDATE: I was curious to see when the last time the Pirates had 9+ scored in 4 out of 5 games.  Turns out it was in June 25-28, 1971, with a double-header played on the 27th.  That team had scores of 14-4, 11-9, 10-9, and 11-5 over 4 games in Philadelphia and 1 in St. Louis.

Pedro and Walker were the big stories of this game.  Neil went 5 for 5 at the plate, and Pedro smacked his first Major League grand slam to give the Pirates a 4-0 lead.  But they weren't done there. 4 hits and 3 errors later, and the Pirates had a 9-0 lead after only one inning.  Pretty safe lead, right?  Well, the Brewers came back in a big way, scoring 3 in the 2nd and 4 in the 3rd.  In between those runs, Pedro smacked another homer, a solo shot, in the bottom of the 2nd, giving him 2 homers in 2 innings and 5 RBIs.  Brad Lincoln was pulled in the 3rd inning after giving up 7, so Carrasco came in for some long relief.

Things got more interesting (read: nerve-wracking) in the 6th, when Brendan Donnelly gave up a home run to Lloyd Braun which put the Brewers within 1 run of tying the game.  The rest of the bullpen which included Lopez and the Three Musketeers of Meek, Hanrahan and Dotel were able to limit the Beers to just 3 hits and struck out 6 of them.  Delwyn Young scored an insurance run in the bottom of the 6th off a Garret Jones sac, and the rest is history.

Walker, as mentioned previously, went 5 for 5, Pedro went 2 for 4, and Delwyn Young went 2 for 3 (he was taken out as part of a double switch in the 7th).  Doubles were hit by Tabata, Young, and Walker, and homers were hit by Pedro twice.

The return of No Hitting. Bucs LOSE

	R	H	E	LOB
	3	3	0	1
	1	6	0	7

And so the Pirates fell back down to Earth.  Not exactly unexpected.  It was really annoying to see them lose after pitching another 3-hitter.  Jeff Karstens had a great outing despite giving up 2 homers, one of which scored 2 runs.  He was perfect through 4 innings and ended up striking out 6, but home runs by Prince Fatass and Weeks meant that he still ended up with the loss as the Pirates settled back into Anemic Offense Mode.

Cedeno continues to hit well, going 2 for 4 with a triple, and Neil Walker also went 2 for 4 with a double.  Lastings Milledge now has a 7-game hitting streak, while Pedro Alvarez has reached base safely in 7 straight games, drawing 3 walks in this one. He has reached base in all but one contest in the month of July.

SERIES 31 - Brewers

Houston Astros

Monday, July 19, 7:05 PM (FSN)
Tuesday, July 20, 7:05 PM (FSN)
Wednesday, July 21, 7:05 PM (FSN)
Thursday, July 22, 7:05 PM (FSN)



PNC Park

Listen live on [WPGB]

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The Pirates don't have the best luck against the Beers.  This season, they are 1-3-1 in series against them.  So I can't say I'm exactly excited to see them come to town, ridiculous offense explosion or not.  Offense against the Astros is one thing, but if the Pirates can continue that success against the Brewers, it would make me feel a lot more confident about the direction this team is heading.  Or this series could mean a colossal nosedive for the Bucs.  Should be interesting either way.

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Expected Pitching Matchups

July 19:Jeff Karstens (2-4) vs. Chris Capuano (0-1)

July 20: Brad Lincoln (1-3) vs. Dave Bush (4-7)
July 21: Zach Duke (3-9) vs. Randy Wolf (7-8)
July 22:  Ross Ohlendorf (1-7) vs. Yovani Gallardo (8-4)

Proposed Lineups

Pirates

1. J. Tabata, CF
2. N. Walker, 2B
3. L. Milledge, LF
4. G. Jones, 1B
5. P. Alvarez, 3B
6. R. Doumit, C
7. R. Church, RF
8. R. Cedeno, SS
9. [Pitcher]

Brewers

1. R. Weeks, 2B
2. C. Hart, RF
3. R. Braun, LF
4. P. Fielder, 1B
5. C. McGehee, 3B
6. J. Edmonds, CF
7. J. Lucroy, C
8. A. Escobar, SS
9. [Pitcher]

Let's Go Bucs.

The Complete Game Shutout. Bucs WIN

	R	H	E	LOB
	0	3	0	2
	9	19	1	9

Okay, so after 7 straight games of suck against Houston, the Pirates suddenly turn into the Yankees against them?  Whatever, I'll take it.

Paul Maholm pitched a 3-hit complete game, striking out 1 and walking none.  Obviously the best game of his career, as he's never had a shutout CG before.  His last CG came on April 27, 2008.  This is the first CG for the Pirates all season.

Meanwhile, the offense exploded for the second time in a row, putting up even more hits than they had in the previous game. Every position player had a hit, and out of them only Pedro and Cedeno did not have an RBI, which is odd, because Cedeno went 4 for 4 on the day. Other multi-hitters were Tabata (3 for 5), Walker (2 for 5), Pedro (2 for 5), Doumit (3 for 5), and Milledge (2 for 4). Doubles were hit by Doumit (twice), Cedeno (3 times), Church (who came in when Cutch was injured making a diving catch), and Tabata.  Garrett Jones hit the first multi-run homer for the Bucs in over a month, scoring Tabata.

To expect this kind of offensive surge to continue would be foolish, but it certainly shows what the Pirates are capable of doing.  I hope this is a boost of confidence for them.  The Pirates have now won 3 straight series at home.  If only their road contests went as well as their home ones, they might actually be in contention.

Fireworks. Bucs WIN

	R	H	E	LOB
	6	7	2	4
	12	17	0	8

This game had it all, highs and lows.  Ross Ohlendorf got yanked after just 1.1 IP, giving up 5 H, 4 ER, 2 BB, 1 K, and 1 HR.  Carrasco came in for 3.1 innings of long relief, giving up 1 H, 2 ER, 1 BB, 2 K, and 0 HR. The rest of the bullpen (Lopez, Donnelly, Meek, Hanrahan, Dotel) had a combined one-hitter, adding 3 more Ks in the process.

The offense, meanwhile, awoke in a huge way.  After going up 3-0 in the first inning, the lead was lost as the Astros came back 4-3.  But the Pirates came back in the bottom of the 2nd, making it 5-4.  And then it was the Astros turn to come back in the 5th, scoring 2 runs to take the lead again 6-5.  But in the bottom, the Pirates finally took the lead back for good, going up 7-6, and then adding 2 more in the 6th and 3 more in the 8th.

Every spot in the order had at least 1 hit, and the 2-8 spots all had two or more.  Jones, Cedeno, Tabata, Alvarez, and Walker all had doubles.  Neil Walker went 3 for 5 with 2 RBIs. Tabata and Milledge also had 2 RBIs each.  Even Ryan Church had a nice AB as a pinch hitter, scoring newly called up catcher Erik Kratz.  Was his calling up what sparked the Pirates offense in this game? Or was it the sold-out crowd atmosphere on fireworks night that helped to motivate the team? I don't know, but it was refreshing to not see a team steal bases on us at will, and it was great to see a guy like Kratz, a perennial minor leaguer, finally get a shot at the big leagues and do so well in his debut (2 for 5 with an RBI and a run).

As fir the other aspects of the game, Cutch stole another base, giving him 21 steals on the year, tying him in second place on the NL list with Nyjer Morgan.  Lastings Milledge also made a nice catch.

So the Pirates have the somewhat daunting task of winning the series against the noted Pirate-killer Roy Oswalt.  If the Pirates that show up look anything like the Pirates of this game, they might just have a chance.  No guarantees, as always.

That's 7. Bucs LOSE

	R	H	E	LOB
	5	8	0	5
	2	6	0	4

The Pirates lost this one in their usual inept fashion.  Whether it was a botched rundown by Cedeno, the bullpen breaking down yet again (Sean Gallagher had a balk. WTF), or Andy LaRoche getting thrown out by a few miles after wandering slowly off the base,  the Pirates looked downright awful.  Ryan Doumit was his usual terrible self as well.

Zach Duke had a promising start, and left the game after 5.0 with 5 H, 2 ER, 0 BB, 5 K, and 0 HR.  But the offense was unable to help him out and the bullpen gave up 3 more, 2 by Carrasco and 1 by Sean Gallagher.

Andrew McCutchen and Jose Tabata each went 2 for 4.  Walker and Cutch had the RBIs for the Pirates, scoring Cutch and Milledge, respectively.

And so the Pirates have lost 7 in a row to the just as bad Astros.  You have to think that with how bad the Astros have been this year that the streak will end sooner rather than later.  Today represents the Pirates' best chance of ending it, as tomorrow they have to face Oswalt again, who last time gave up just one hit to the Pirates.

SERIES 30 - Astros

Houston Astros

Friday, July 16, 7:05 PM (FSN)
Saturday, July 17, 7:05 PM (FSN)
Sunday, July 18, 1:35 PM (FSN)



PNC Park

Listen live on [WPGB]

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Yep, it's the Astros.  The team the Pirates can't beat this year.  Maybe they'll have better luck at home.

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Expected Pitching Matchups

July 16: Zach Duke (3-8) vs. Brett Myers (6-6)

July 17: Ross Ohlendorf (1-7) vs. Bud Norris (2-6)
July 18: Paul Maholm (5-7) vs. Roy Oswalt (6-10)

Proposed Lineups

Pirates

1. J. Tabata, LF
2. N. Walker, 2B
3. A. McCutchen, CF
4. G. Jones, 1B
5. P. Alvarez, 3B
6. R. Doumit, C
7. L. Milledge, RF
8. B. Crosby, SS
9. [Pitcher]

Astros

1. M. Bourn, CF
2. J. Keppinger, 2B
3. L. Berkman, 1B
4. C. Lee, LF
5. H. Pence, RF
6. C. Johnson, 3B
7. J. Castro, C
8. A. Sanchez, SS
9. [Pitcher]

Let's Go Bucs.

Canyon, Part IV. Bucs SWEPT.

	R	H	E	LOB
	5	9	0	6
	6	11	0	7

And so the Pirates go into the All-star break on a 6-game losing streak.  It's disappointing, but not exactly unexpected.  What was a little unexpected was the utter collapse of the bullpen in this series.  In two out of 3 games the Pirates were leading in the 9th, only to blow the save and lose.  I can only hope the break will help them get back on track.  No guarantees as always, though.

Ronny Cedeno was the only Pirate with more than one hit, one of which was a double.  One good thing, however, is that home runs are coming more often than usual for this team.  Lastings Milledge has apparently shaken off his first half jitters, as he hit his 3rd of the season and his 2nd in the last two games he's played in.

Pedro Alvarez continues to show that calling him up was a smart decision.  He hit his 3rd home run of the season, and has a hit in 11 out of his last 13 games.  His average in July is .289, much improved from his .152 average in June.

Brad Lincoln continues to be a pleasant surprise, if not always on the mound, then definitely at the plate.  His average through 13 at-bats is .308.  His pitching line wasn't bad either, going 6.0 IP, 7 H, 3 ER, 2 BB, 3 K, and 2 HR.  Other than giving up 2 HR, I'd take that line any day.  Milwaukee is a hitter's park though, as evidenced by the amount of homers the Pirates have been getting there lately.

And so the All-star break begins, and we have a reprieve from sucky baseball.  Halfway home.

Rally Falls Short. Bucs LOSE

	R	H	E	LOB
	3	7	0	6
	4	9	0	11

Yet another late rally falls short for the Pirates.  On the plus side, home runs seem to be becoming more common for them.  Garrett Jones and Ryan Doumit both had solo shots.  It would be nice to see a homer with someone on base though.  It hasn't happened for over a month (June 8).  Pedro and Tabata both had 2-hit games, and they also had a double apiece. Newly acquired reliever Sean Gallagher was okay, striking out 1 but giving up 2 hits in 0.2 innings of work.  Jeff Karstens went 5 IP, 5 H, 4 ER 6 BB, 5 K, and 2 HR.  Not exactly great, but on a good team it might have gotten the job done. This is the Pirates, though.

Blown. Bucs LOSE

	R	H	E	LOB
	4	10	1	8
	5	8	0	6

I suppose it had to happen eventually.  The Pirates' great streak of unbeatens when leading after 8 innings is over.  Some major ineptitude by Ryan Doumit, who most of the time seems unable to catch a ball (which, as a "catcher" is pretty important).  Then there was the throw down to 2nd (where there was no play) that went into Center Field.  Ugh.  Hate losing like this, after Maholm, who has been imitating Pitt's Gilbert Brown by alternating good and bad games, had a great outing, going 7 innings and allowing 3 hits, 2 ER, 2 BB, 1 HR, and 4 Ks.  Evan Meek gave up the walkoff hit, and as a result his ERA is 1.11, the highest it's been since April 17th.

McCutchen, Tabata, and Milledge all had 2 hits, and Cutch and Clutch got a homer apiece.  Cedeno, Alvarez, and Jones all had doubles.  It's nice to see more extra base hits, and eventually that will turn into some runs.  RISP was just 2 for 11 in this one, however.

SERIES 29 - Brewers

Milwaukee Brewers

Friday, July 9, 8:10 PM (FSN)
Saturday, July 10, 7:10 PM (FSN)
Sunday, July 8, 2:10 PM (FSN)



Miller Park, Milwaukee, WI

Listen live on [WPGB]

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We've been playing well against this team lately, so all I can hope for is that it continues. I'd like to see a nice series win going into the All-Star break.  As always with the Pirates, there are no guarantees, however.

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Expected Pitching Matchups

July 9: Paul Maholm (5-7-5, 4.50 ERA) vs. Doug Davis (1-4-2, 7.56 ERA)

July 10: Jeff Karstens (2-3-11, 4.71 ERA) vs. Dave Bush (3-6-8, 4.23 ERA)
July 11: Brad Lincoln (1-3-2, 5.25 ERA) vs. Randy Wolf (6-8-4, 4.49 ERA)

Proposed Lineups

Pirates

1. A. McCutchen, CF
2. J. Tabata, LF
3. N. Walker, 2B
4. G. Jones, 1B
5. P. Alvarez, 3B
6. R. Doumit, C
7. L. Milledge, RF
8. B. Crosby, SS
9. [Pitcher]

Brewers

1. R. Weeks, 2B
2. R. Braun, LF
3. P. Fielder, 1B
4. C. Hart, RF
5. A. Escobar, SS
6. C. McGehee, 3B
7. C. Gomez, CF
8. G. Kottaras, C
9. [Pitcher]

Let's Go Bucs.