Blowout. Bucs LOSE

	R	H	E	LOB
	1	5	2	5
	9	14	1	5

Just a pretty awful game all around. Once again the box score looks like a train wreck with 20 players in the Pirates' box.

Duke was terrible. 3.1 IP, 9 H, 8 R, 7 ER, 1 BB, 4 K, 2 HR.

Garrett Jones went 2 for 4. Pedro Ciriaco had a triple. In the 9th, John Bowker had the only RBI in the game pinch-hitting for Tabata for some reason.

The Race For Last™

Arizona: Won 3-1.
Baltimore: Won 11-3.
Cleveland: Won 4-3.
Kansas City: Won 11-3.
Seattle: Lost 9-6.

The current standings:

Team	W	L
Pittsburgh	48	96
Seattle	55	90
Baltimore	57	88
Arizona	58	87
Cleveland	59	85
Kansas City	59	85

Eyes on the prize, Bucco fans.

Extra Anguish. Bucs LOSE

	R	H	E	LOB
	7	11	2	9
	8	15	0	12

Sorry for the lack of updates, but I was busy moving all weekend. Hate to see the Pirates blow a big lead and lose in extra frames. And especially after a big offensive output.

Zach Duke went 5.1 innings, allowing 9 H, 4 R/ER, 1 BB, 1 K, and 2 HR. Joel Hanrahan struck out the side in the 8th.

Lots of offense in this game, but as usual it was ultimately meaningless. Jose Tabata and Neil Walker both went 3 for 6, Pedro went 2 for 4 with a walk, and Doumit went 2 for 5. Doubles were hit by Pedro and Tabata, while solo HRs were hit by Tabata and Walker, and Chris Snyder had a 3-run blast in the 3rd. Cutch walked home a run in the 2nd.

The Race For Last™

Arizona: Won 11-3.
Baltimore: Won 5-0.
Cleveland: Won 4-3.
Seattle: Lost 1-0.

The current standings:

Team	W	L
Pittsburgh	43	86
Baltimore	47	83
Seattle	49	79
Arizona	52	78
Cleveland	53	76

Eyes on the prize, Bucco fans.

Rocco game. Bucs WIN

	R	H	E	LOB
	1	6	0	8
	2	4	1	2

The Buccos avoid a sweep by the New York Baseball Mets with the first nice outing by Zach Duke in almost a month. Ryan Doumit made a horrible throw early in the game after a bunt that set up the only run for the Mets, but luckily it didn't come back to bite the Pirates in the ass. Why Doumit isn't permanently warming the bench by now I have no idea. He's good for maybe one hit a game, exactly what you need in a pinch-hitter.

Zach Duke pitched 7.0 strong innings, giving up just 5 hits, 1 R/ER, 2 walks, and 0 HRs, while striking out 5 Mets. Evan Meek and Joel Hanrahan came in to relieve him and 1-hit the Mets.

Not much offense as usual, but it was enough. Pedro went 2 for 3, and Jose Tabata and Lastings Milledge both hit solo home runs, Milledge's went in the Pirates' bullpen. Hopefully this damn platoon with Doumit is over.

The Race For Last™

Arizona: Lost 1-0.
Baltimore: Lost 6-4.
Cleveland: Lost 8-1.
Kansas City: Won 3-2 in 10.
Seattle: Lost 10-0.

The current standings:

Team	W	L
Pittsburgh	41	83
Baltimore	44	81
Arizona	49	76
Seattle	49	75
Cleveland	50	74
Kansas City	53	71

Eyes on the prize, Bucco fans.

Shut out. Bucs LOSE

	R	H	E	LOB
	6	10	1	7
	0	6	0	6

After putting together a nice game offensively last time, the Bucs fell back to earth with this one. Zach Duke and Marlins pitcher Ricky Nolasco had a pitcher's duel going through 4 innings. That's when Neal Huntington showed up as a guest in the TV-side booth, and everything went to hell. The Marlins scored 4 runs in the 5th, and the Pirates just never got going. Side note: Ryan Doumit in RF is NOT working. Just have him as a pinch-hitter and be done with it.

Zach Duke pitched 5.2 innings, giving up 9 H, 5 ER, 2 BB, and 0 HR while having 4 Ks. Chan Ho Park continues to be a big pile of fail in relief, giving up yet another run, bringing his ERA to 10.80.

Two players went 2 for 4: Jose Tabata and Pedro Alvarez. Pedro had the only XBH, a double.

The Race For Last™

Arizona: Lost 6-2.
Baltimore: Lost 4-0.
Cleveland: Lost 2-1.
Kansas City: Won 2-1.
Seattle: Won 4-0.

The current standings:

Team	W	L
Pittsburgh	40	79
Baltimore	42	78
Arizona	47	73
Seattle	47	73
Cleveland	49	70
Kansas City	50	69

Eyes on the prize, Bucco fans.

Shut out. Bucs SWEPT

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

Getting shut out is an apt way to end this series, as the Pirates have shifted firmly into Anemic Offense Mode again. Can't say I like losing like this, but at this point if you're going to lose, you might as well lose big.

Zach Duke went 6.0 IP with 6 H, 3 R / 2 ER, 3 BB, 2 K, and 1 HR. It was an effort that might have gotten a win had he had any support. Chris Resop and Joel Hanrahan both had 2 Ks each.

Ryan Doumit went 2 for 3 with a double, but only Neil Walker and Argenis Diaz had the other hits for the team.

The Bucs were swept in this series, but it moves them into the bottom spot for the first time this season, overtaking Baltimore.

The Race For Last™

Baltimore: Lost 4-1.
Arizona: Lost 8-4.
Seattle: was off.
Cleveland: Won 4-1.
Kansas City: Lost 4-3.

The current standings:

Team	W	L
Pittsburgh	39	75
Baltimore	40	75
Seattle	44	71
Arizona	46	70
Kansas City	47	68
Cleveland	48	67

Eyes on the prize, Bucco fans.

Double up. Bucs LOSE

	R	H	E	LOB
	6	15	1	10
	3	6	1	4

Sorry for the lack of posts all weekend, but I was out of town and didn't have access to a computer. Just a few quick posts to get back on track.

Zach Duke went 6.0 IP with 10 H, 3 R/ER, 0 BB, 5 Ks, 1 HR and a balk. The score was tied when new reliever Chan Ho Park gave up the winning run in the 7th.  Hanrahan had a bad outing later, giving up 2.

Jose Tabata was the only Pirate who had a multi-hit game, going 2 for 4.  Pedro Alvarez hit a 3-run homer that tied the score in the 6th, but it was the only runs scored for the Bucs in the game.

The Race For Last™

Baltimore: Won 2-1 in 10 innings.
Arizona: Won 2-1.
Seattle: Won 7-1.
Cleveland: Won 7-6.
Kansas City: Lost 7-1.

The current standings:

Team	W	L
Baltimore	36	73
Pittsburgh	38	71
Seattle	41	69
Arizona	42	68
Kansas City	46	63
Cleveland	47	63

Eyes on the prize, Bucco fans.

Another blowout. Bucs SWEPT

	R	H	E	LOB
	1	10	0	9
	9	14	1	6

Steelers training camp has begun, and most people in Pittsburgh have forgotten about the Pirates for another year.  That's probably a good thing, as they scored just 2 runs in the 28 innings of this series.

Things started off well enough, with Lastings Milledge getting a triple, and Ronny Cedeno bringing him home, but that's as far as it got. Zach Duke imploded in the 5th, allowing 5 runs and putting the game out of reach. Steven Jackson wasn't much better in the 8th, allowing 3 more runs. The Pirates' pitchers only struck out 2 batters all day. Duke gave up 7 H, 6 R, 1 BB, 1 K, and 1 HR in 5.0 IP.

Jose Tabata went 2 for 4, extending his hitting streak to 12 games and improving his average to .299. Lastings Milledge also went 2 for 4 with a triple. Argenis Diaz got a hit as a pinch-hitter in his first at-bat since 20-0.

The Bucs now hope to have better success next series when they head back home to take on the Cincinnati Communists in a 3-game series.

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.

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).

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.

Double Digits. Bucs LOSE

	R	H	E	LOB
	7	11	0	6
	2	5	6	3

Six errors.  Seven runs allowed.  Boooo.  Pedro's up.  Jose hits his first dinger.  Woooo.

A night of the highest highs and the lowest lows.

The core is finally all up now.  That's a good thing.  Are they all going to start clicking immediately?  Hell no.  Not everyone is Andrew McCutchen.  But I'd much rather see them getting some experience now than in August.  Get used to the way the game is played in the big leagues.  And come out strong next year.

Six errors is the most by the Pirates in a long time, but who cares, they weren't going to win this one anyway.  Pedro was shaky at third, but I'm chalking that up to nervousness because of playing in his first big league game.  He went 0 for 2 with a walk, a strikeout, and a fly to left that almost dropped in for a single.  His walk led to the other of the 2 Pirate runs.  Not a bad start in my book.  He'll get better the more he plays at this level.

As for the other Pirates, Lastings Milledge was the only player to get 2 hits in the game, his second hit being a double that moved Pedro to 3rd and set up Bobby Crosby's sacrifice grounder to get the Bucs on the board for the first time.  Other than that the list of interesting hits is pretty short.

So the losing streak moves to 10 games.  As I've already given up on this season and am merely watching to see the young players progress, this doesn't bother me that much.  We've been here before, and we'll be here again.  You can tell that the players are losing confidence, though.  They really need a win, if only to prove to themselves that it's still possible for them to win a game.

Canyon, Part III. Bucs SWEPT

	R	H	E	LOB
	2	8	1	7
	4	10	0	9

Zach Duke had a decent game for the first time in a long time.

But the Pirates' bats went to sleep again.

For some reason Doumit was playing 1st base.  Obviously the Pirates wanted Jason Jaramillo and his .170 average instead of having Jones play 1st and putting Milledge in the outfield.  Sigh.  Jaramillo did go 2 for 4, so I guess that's something.  I hope Steve Pearce comes back soon and Pedro gets the call so we have decent hitters at ever position but SS and pitcher.

Really getting sick of watching Andy LaRoche hit grounders directly to the shortstop.

Interleague play begins tonight.  Hope the Pirates fare better than last year.

Blown. Bucs LOSE

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

Can't believe Duke blew a 4 run lead.  Jones, Milledge, Cedeno, Crosby, and Doumit all went hitless. Walker went 2 for 4, raising his average to .333.  Andy LaRoche also went 2 for 4.  Other than the 2nd inning where the Bucs scored all 4 of their runs, none of them earned due to a 2-out, 2-base error with Zach Duke batting, this game sucked balls.  The Pirates went down in order in 6 separate innings.  Bullpen efficient as usual, the only real bright spot in this game.  If we could actually get some decent hitting our bullpen should be able to win the game on any given night.  Too tired to do a legit recap after the rain delay as I have to work in the morning.  Suffice it to say that after the 3-hour wait for the game to start it was a huge disappointment.

When it starts to rain, everything's the same. Bucs LOSE

	R	H	E	LOB
	3	7	1	5
	7	13	1	9

This was another one of those games where the outcome was determined after only a few innings.  After a rain delay pushed back the start of the game (still no postponements, not sure if that's a good thing or not),  The Braves scored 5 runs in the first 2 innings and after that you knew it was over.  A bad game for Zach Duke, earning all 7 runs the Braves scored, but poor play tends to be contagious and the Braves are a tough team to beat anyway.  Neil Walker continues to hit the ball well, going 2 for 4 and scoring a run and an RBI.  His average is up to .294 right now, not bad for a kid no one thought could do anything at the major league level a few years ago.  Garrett Jones also went 2 for 3 with an RBI.  The other RBI was hit by Andy LaRoche, who was the only pinch-hitter for the Bucs in this game.

Freshly called up pitcher Steven Jackson pitched well in relief for 1.6 innings, allowing just 1 hit and throwing 2 Ks.  Joel Hanrahan wrapped it up in the 8th with 2 Ks and no hits.

GAME.

Walk-off. Bucs WIN

	R	H	E	LOB
	2	8	0	7
	3	11	1	11

It's always good to end a series on a high note, even if you lose overall.  Especially when going on a road trip.  It can build momentum.  The Pirates will need it when they roll into Cincy, where the Commies are only a half game behind the Division leading Cards.

Atllanta took a 1-0 lead in the 2nd off a David Ross single, a run which was not charged to Zach Duke due to a throwing error by Ronny Cedeno.  The Duke was in rare form today, earning no runs and striking out 5 in his 7 innings.

Very little happened for the next 4 innings, as both pitchers were pitching well.  But in the bottom of the 6th, the Bucs took a 2-1 lead off a Cutch triple which led to a Steve Pearce sac, and a Ryan Doumit single which scored GFJ later in the inning.

But Atlanta wasn't done yet.

Evan Meek gives up only his 3rd ER of the year, and his first homer, to former Pirate Eric Hinske in the 8th.  Unfortunate since it meant that Duke would not get a win after a 0 ER performance.

Neither team could get anything else through 9, so it's on to the tenth.

A bit of a scare in the top as Octavio Dotel loads the bases, but he gets a big K to end the half.

To the bottom.  Steve Pearce strikes out, and Clutch flies out too.  Ryan Doumit steps up to the plate.

Walk-off Home Run.

GAME.

---

Miscellaneous shit

Aki Iwamura finally ends his hitless streak, going 2 for 5 today with a double.  Cutch went 2 for 4 with a walk and Ryan Doumit went 3 for 5 with 2 RBIs and of course the game-winning home run.

Zach Duke's ERA drops to 4.47 with the no ER performance today.  It would be only 2.74 if the two bad performances against Milwaukee are excluded.

Octavio Dotel gets the win, his second of the year.

Okay, you can tase me. Bucs WIN

	R	H	E	LOB
	2	9	0	7
	1	6	3	6

Wow.  The Pirates just handed one of the best pitchers in baseball his second loss.  Sure, the Phillies had 3 Errors, but only 1 led to a score, the attempted play at the plate as Milledge scored in the 6th.  The dude tried to make the tag, but ended up throwing the ball toward Milledge from his glove.  That was the winning run, though.  Still counted as an Earned Run to Halladay, who had 2.

You knew The Duke was going to have to be nearly perfect if the Bucs had any chance of taking this game.  Through 4 innings, he had faced just 12 batters.  However, the Phils loaded the bags in both the 5th and 6th.  Only one run this time, a Castro single in the 5th.  Duke had 5 Ks on the day.

Bullpen time.  They've been great in these situations all year.  Meek, our best pitcher so far, takes them down with a walk and a K.

Hanrahan takes them down in order with a K.

Can't deny that I was a little nervous with Dotel closing.  But then I remembered he only has 2 Blown Saves on the year, both of which came in wins.  He takes them down in order with a K.  Yeah, the bullpen no-hit one of the best offensive teams in the league.  The same team that smoked them for a grand slam last night.

Raise the frakking Jolly Roger.

GAME.

---

Miscellaneous shit

Halladay had a rare complete game loss.

Garrett Jones went 3 for 4 with another RBI, his 28th.  To put that in perspective, he is now only one RBI shy of Poo Holes, Ryan Howard (he of the 6 RBI night last game), and Lloyd Braun.

Doumit was the other batter with multiple hits, going 2 for 4 and scoring the first run.

Evan Meek's ERA is now a microscopic 0.69.  His WHIP is 1.00.  That's good for 58th out of 449 active pitchers in the majors.  In last place is former Pirate draft mistake Bryan Bullington, with a WHIP of 9.00.  Not sure how that even happens.  Also near the bottom are current Buccos Hayden Penn, Chris Jakubauskas, and Brian Bass.  Although to be fair, Jaku's game wasn't really his fault as he only pitched 1/3 of an inning before getting hit in the face.

Bucs play the Phillies to a tie series, their first such series of the year.

Another Shutout. Bucs SWEPT

	R	H	E	LOB
	5	10	0	5
	0	4	0	2

Simply an awful few days for the Burgh.  The Igloo closes with a heartbreaker, and the Bucs get swept by a team that they swept earlier in the year.  The weather was perfect for it though - cold, wet, and miserable.

The game was essentially the same as last game.  Bucs' offense failed to do much of anything.  You could tell this one was over after the 1st inning.  It was just that kind of game.

The Commies took a 4-0 lead through the 2nd, and tacked on another in the 4th.  Bullpen returned to its normal great form after Duke got yanked after only 5 innings, allowing 9 hits and 2 homers.  The bullpen allowed 1 hit and struck out 6.  Once again the problems lie with our starting rotation and the hitting.

Oh my, the hitting.  The best hitter today was Garrett Jones, going 2 for 3.  I hope those 2 hits means a return to the GFJ we all know and love, because he certainly has been in a slump lately.  After a bright start to the season and briefly leading the league in homers, his power bat has gone mostly quiet.

Aki Iwamura, despite doing decent earlier in the season, now has an average of  .169 and an OBP of just .267.  That's not good enough for the leadoff position.  He hasn't gotten a hit since May 7, and hasn't even been ON BASE since a walk on May 9.  He has just 2 hits and 4 walks in the entire month of May.

Steve Pearce got a hit today.  Still haven't seen anything from him that indicates he can hit the ball the way he did in Indianapolis.  He looks a lot like he did at the end of last year.

Lastings Milledge has performed okay, but still haven't seen anything that resembles the power hitter he was supposed to be.  He still is the only player eligible for the batting race on the Pirates to not have a home run yet (insert joke about the home run that wasn't).  Hell, Bobby Crosby has a home run.  Aki Iwamura has 2.

Batting needs to get infinitely better for the Bucs to have any chance this year, but I think most of us knew it wasn't going to happen this year anyway.  I'd still take a miracle from my beloved Buccos any time though.

Sorry for the downer post today, I'm still shocked about the Pens.  With June should bring some new faces to the Pirates' major league club.  Can't get here soon enough.

Errors. Bucs LOSE

	R	H	E	LOB
	4	13	0	13
	3	11	2	8

Another frustrating game to watch.  There were so many chances for the Bucs to take this one it's crazy.  Zach Duke had no Earned Runs but allowed three due to two errors by Ronny Cedeno, who had had one of the best fielding percentages in the majors, and Andy LaRoche.

And then there was the 8th inning baserunning circus.  Andy LaRoche, trying to reach home, inexplicably runs back to 3rd where Andrew McCutchen is already standing.  Cutch is tagged out, but Andy steps off the bag for some reason and he is tagged out too.  Weirdest double play I have ever seen.

All this after making Poo Holes go 0 for 5.

GAME.

---

Miscellaneous shit

Cutch went 3 for 4 with one run.

Zach Duke threw 7 Ks and Meek threw 3.

The bullpen was dealt its first loss of the season, with Meek taking the L.

Ethier. Bucs LOSE

	R	H	E	LOB
	1	6	0	7
	5	11	0	8

Zach Duke wasn't terrible, but the Bucs offense was in this game.  Ryan Church was the only Bucco with more than 1 hit.  Cutch scored the only run for the Pirates, a solo drive to left center in the 1st.

For the Dodgers, Ethier hit a 3-run shot in the 3rd to take the lead for good.

GAME.

---

Miscellaneous shit

Ryan Doumit's 10-game hitting streak was snapped, going 0 for 4.  He still has the highest batting average on the team at .308 though.

Cutch now has 4 HRs to lead the Pirates.

Next game in like 5 minutes.  Why do you have to have a night game on Saturday, LA? Jagoffs.

XXII. Bucs LOSE

	R	H	E	LOB
	3	8	1	11
	17	17	3	10

This is what the fanbase looks like right now:

"Winning is coming... winning is coming... winning is coming..."

The Andrews, Cutch and LaRoche, were the only Pirates who had more than 1 hit.  Cutch had 2 RBIs.  Legend added another.

GAME.

UPDATE: Jeff Karstens will get the start tomorrow against Randy Wolf.