Recap: Veras Makes it Rain. BUCS WIN.

Kept waiting for the defense and pitching to collapse, but it never did. Lyle Overbay seems to have responded well to being benched, and even Matt Diaz had a few good plays, although I'm still convinced he's a waste of money at this point. Chase d'Arnaud impressed in his first big league game, getting his first career hit, which was a triple. Maholm worked out of jams all night, limiting the Sox to their only run of the game. He got a much-deserved W, even if he only lasted 5.1 innings. When you play a power hitting team like the Sox and you hold them to just one run, you're doing something right. There was some major drama in the 8th as Jose Veras faced David Ortiz with 2 on and 2 out. Just as Ortiz stepped up to the plate, rain began to fall, adding to the ominous atmosphere. But Veras was up to the task, striking out Papi and allowing Hammertime to commence in the 9th as Joel did his thing to keep his 21-game perfect save streak going. No matter what happens in the rest of this series, the Bucs will be no worse than 1 game under, still very much in the hunt when they travel to Toronto. Obviously, I would love a series win or a sweep, but the Sox are just too good of a team that I have to think they'll take at least one.

VFPH's 3 Stars of the Game

1. PIT Paul Maholm, SP: 5.1 IP, 6 H, 1 ER, 3 BB, 2 K
2. PIT Jose Tabata, LF: 2 for 4, 1 RBI
3. PIT Chase d'Arnaud, 3B: 1 for 3, triple

Play of the Game: Jose Veras's strikeout of David Ortiz to end the top of the 8th

Recap: Hitting Like '71. BUCS WIN.

Garrett Jones got things started with a 2-RBI double which just barely stayed in the park on a bounce and allowed Tabata and Harrison to come home. Later, Tabata had a double of his own which bounced past the centerfielder's glove and allowed Ronny Cedeno to score. Neil Walker hit a little bloop to left with the bases loaded in the 8th to cap off a 9 run, 15 hit effort for the Bucco bats. Also of note was the fact that they only struck out 3 times, which is great considering their average on the season is 7.8 Ks per game. James McDonald is still struggling to stay in the game late, and he was pulled in the 5th with 104 pitches thrown. Because of this, he was awarded no decision. The Bucs will look to continue their hitting prowess and win the series today in a businessman's special.

VFPH's 3 Stars of the Game

1. PIT Neil Walker, 2B: 2 for 4, 3 RBI, double, SF
2. PIT Jose Tabata, LF: 2 for 5, 2 R, 2 RBI, double
3. PIT Andrew McCutchen, CF: 1 for 1, 1 R, 3 BB, SH

Play of the Game: Neil Walker's 2-RBI double in the 8th