Recap: On Top. BUCS WIN.

Holy Crap. Karstens pitched the second best game in his Pirates career, leading the Buccos... no, the FIRST PLACE Buccos to a complete game shutout victory using only 83 pitches to record 27 outs. Cutch was running all over the place, with a 2-RBI triple that provided the insurance that Karstens never really needed. The defense was solid as well, turning 2 key double plays including one inning-ending DP that ended the Astros' only real scoring threat. Karstens's ERA now sits at 2.34, 4th lowest in the NL.

The Bucs in first place. In the middle of July. Think about the weight of those sentence fragments. Sure, they were in first place for a time in 1997, but that team was only 1 or two games over .500 in a weak division. The current Buccos are 5 games over. Not quite 1992, but much closer than they have been since that year. The Bucco hysteria around town has been elevated from "Pee Pee Pants" to "Blackwatch Plaid." Act accordingly. Let's Go Bucs.

VFPH's 3 Stars of the Game

1. PIT Jeff Karstens, SP: 9.0 IP, 5 H, 0 ER, 0 BB, 2 K
2. PIT Andrew McCutchen, CF: 1 for 4, 2 RBI, 1 BB, triple
3. PIT Chase d'Arnaud, SS: 2 for 5, 1 R, 1 SB

Play of the Game: Cutch's 2 RBI triple in the 3rd