June 2010
There’s a first time for everything
Today, was Brad Lincoln’s first Major League win.
I hope this is how he was greeted in the clubhouse:
Obviously Lincoln is much more attractive than his man, but you get the picture. I can’t imagine what it would feel like to get your first career win but I hope he is enjoying it on the plane ride back to Pittsburgh.
Here is what Brad had to say after the game:
“It’s something that I’ve been wanting since I’ve been here,” Lincoln said of the milestone victory. “It gets that monkey off my back. Now I can just go out there and relax, and be who I am, and not have to worry about anything that goes on around me. I can be myself and attack hitters.”
You can read the rest of the article here
What a beauty he pitched today.
8IP 0R 4H 6K (career high) Was hittless through the first 3 innings. If this is the future of Brad Lincoln, the Pirates will see many many more wins. He dominated today. Throwing his breaking ball for strikes, his curveball was awesome, his fastball (which has been straight) had a lot of movement. Great, great outing from Brad today.
Hanrahan came in the 8th and he was nasty. Dotel in the 9th for his 16th save.
If your a huge fan of pitching, today was a great day to watch the game.
Pirates won 2-0 over the cubbies. They are now, 9-3 against them this year.
- McCutchen 2-4, Run
- GFJ 1-3, Double, RBI
- Milledge 1-3, RBI
- Tabata 1-4, BB
- LaRoche 0-4, BB, Run
- Castro 1-3, Double
- Ramirez 2-4
- Gorzelanny gave up 4 hits over 5 scoreless innings (his longest outing since May 26th against the Dodgers) 5IP 4H 0R 3BB 5K
Cedeno went 0-4 today with 3K’s. I want to like Ronny, I really do. He makes some really great plays at Short. But as a hitter? He sucks. Sorry. No other way to describe it. A lot of people on twitter have been discussing the idea of getting Steve Pearce work at SS. Apparently, he used to play SS in high school but was eventually moved. I really like the idea. It would be a great way to get another bat in lineup. It would deffinitly be interesting. Fingers crossed, maybe it will happen?
Another huge problem has been Doumit. I hate to be debbie downer today after a great win but It’s something that should be brought up. On the pre game show, Rocco was discussing Doumit vs JJ catching runners on steals. Here are the results:
Domit- 7-57 11%
JJ- 8-11 42%
League average is right around 28%. Clearly Doumit has been insanely bad.
Ryan is obviously not the catcher of the future. At 29, he is not getting any better. Kratz in AAA and JJ will probally split the time as catcher until Sanchez is ready. Atleast that’s my guess.
The Pirates end june 6-20 overall, 2-13 on the road. It’s the 8th series win, the 3rd on the road.
Andy LaRoche on the month of June:
“Hopefully, we can get this last month out of our system, just go from there. Come back from this all-star break refreshed, come out and dominate the second half. Everything that could go wrong went wrong…that last game in Oakland just summed it all up, the way the last two weeks have been going.” -Pittsburgh Post Gazette
Today MLB trade rumors revisted the trade last year when the Pirates sent Sean Burnett and Nyjer Morgan to the Nationals for Joel Hanrahan and Lastings Milledge. Here is what they had to say. I personally don’t agree at all. I don’t think it was a toss up. I think the Pirates came out on top with that trade. Here is what Pirates.com had to say about it.
Around the Ballpark
- The Phillies offense the last 13 games:
.273 AVG, 6.7 Runs/Gm, 21 HR, .339 AVG w/ RISP
The previous 25 games they have only been averaging 2.5 runs/gm.
- The Mets have allowed 8 grand slams this season. It is tied for the 2nd most in history before the All star break. (Last time was 2008 Indians)
- James Loney has 19 RBI’s in his last 19 games
- The Dodgers are 20-5 against the NL West this season.
- Matt Kemp is batting only .208 in 26 games in June.
- Prince Fielder has 10 HR and 16 RBI in June.
- Today in Sports History: (1962) LA Dodger Sandy Koufax not hits the mets, 5-0.
- The Phillies Roy Halladay is the 1st pitcher to allow 13 + Hits and have 10 K’s in the same games since Curt Schilling (04/2001). Before that: Clemens (10/1991)
Well, that didn’t last long.
As you know the Pirates finally won Monday and snapped the 17 straight game road loss after beating the cubbies. 24 hours later, they lost again.
The final score: 3-1.
It is the 20th loss this month (They are 5-20 in June)
They have been outscored 51-20 on this road trip alone.
And they have lost the last 18 of 19 road games.
The Pirates have hit into 19 Double plays in the month of june.
Okay, I’ll stop! It’s actually pretty depressing.
- Karstens went 6IP 3R 3ER 2HR 7H 1BB 2K (Jeff has only gone 7 innings ONCE this year) He gave up two HR’s to Soriano (Which is his 25th career multi HR game and his 2nd this season)
- Ted Lilly went 7IP 1R 6H 1BB 5K 101 pitches/73 for K’s
- Ryan Doumit 2-3, Solo HR, Double, RBI
- Garrett Jones 2-4
- Andrew McCutchen 1-4
- Alfonso Soriano 2-4, 2HR, 2RBI (Entered the gm a career 4-8 against Karstens)
- Koyle Hill 2-3, Double, Run
- Starlin Castro 1-1, walk, double, RBI
On a different note. Think about this. Remember the Pirates (who are 8-3 against the Cubs this year) have a payroll of $34,943,000. The Cubs have a payroll of $146,859,000. That’s over a 100M $ difference. I just wanted you guys to think about that for a minute. So many fans complain and complain about the payroll here in Pittsburgh. Payroll doesn’t always equal a good team (unless your the Yankees who buy Championships. Yes, I had to go there) Talent always, always prevails.
There is a Neil Walker update. (YAY!) He is said to be doing much better and should be back in the lineup by the end of the week.
Yesterday’s game was the 1st outing at Wrigley Field for Brendan Donnelly. He has pitched in 32 ballparks in his 7 year career.
Minor League News:
- The (Minor League) 2010 Eastern League All Stars were choosen yesterday. The buccos who were selected were:
Hector Gimenez, C (.327 AVG 11HR)
Matt Hague, 1B (.299 AVG 43 RBI)
Josh Harrison, LF (.313 AVG 22 Doubles) -2nd Highest AVG in EL
Derek Hankins, RHP (1.60 ERA) -Lowest ERA in EL
Rudy Owens, LHP (2.74 ERA 0.95 WHIP)
- Charlie Morton started yesterday. It Didn’t go so well. 3IP 7H 4ER 3BB 3K
Today’s Pitching Matchup:
Brad Lincoln vs (ex Bucco) Tom Gorzelanny
0-2 6.00 ERA 2-5 3.41 ERA
Lincoln- Is making his 5th ML start. He is still winless. (Let’s hope that changed today!) His last outing went 6IP 3ER 8H 107 Pitches/63 for K’s
Gorzelanny- Has not started since May 26th (He is replacing crazy Carlos Zambrano in the rotation)
Around the Ballparks
- Tigers reliever Joel Zumaya will miss the rest of the season with a non displaced fracture of the olecranon (which in simple terms means a broken right elbow) The video is pretty heartbreaking. If you want to see it, you can here.
- Bad news for Phillies fans: Chase Utley was placed on the 15 day DL for a sprained right thumb. Placido Polanco was also placed on the 15 day DL for inflammation in left elbow.
- Cliff Lee yesterday was his usuall brillant self. Pitched his 3rd straight complete game. (I still think the Phillies were very stupid for not signing him at the end of last year) The Yankees were apparently impressed with his pitching. (um, duh! Who wasn’t?!) Possible trade rumor? Read the article here
- Denard Span hit three triples in a single game yesterday. Players since 1982 that have done the same:
Denard Span 06/29/10
Rafael Furcal 4/21/02
Lance Johnson 9/23/95
Herm Winningham 08/15/90
Shawon Dunston 07/28/90
- Josh Hamilton set the Rangers record for the most hits in a month yesterday with 48.
- Jim Thome’s HR last night is his career number 572, bringing him within one of Harmon Killebrew’s 573.
- Orioles are 0-46 when trailing after 8 innings.
- Interesting tweet yesterday from @BNightengale (Writter for USA Today) “Now that the Marlins have decided to stay pat, Bobby Valentine certainly will become a top candidate in LA if Torre leaves.”
- Joe Blanton had a 7.28 ERA after his 1st 8 starts this season, but has a 3.80 ERA in his last three.
- Pitcher Yovani Gallardo has 3HR. The same as Johnny Damon, Joe Mauer, Yankees LF’s and Rockies 1st Baseman. 1 more than A’s RF’s, Pirates LF’s. (tweet from @ed_price)
Speaking of twitter, if your on it add me! @kristpie
hallelujah! The Pirates win!
The Pirates win!! The streak is FINALLY over!
Alright. I’ll stop with the pictures. I was just so excited last night. The Buccos beat the Cubs 2-1 and are now 8-2 against them this season. It’s got to feel amazing to win that game after 34 days of straight loosing.
I tweeted this quote yesterday. Coincidence? You decide.
“Any minute, anyday, some players may break a longstanding record. That’s one of the fascinations about the game.” -Connie Mack
Maholm pitched an absolute beauty. He went 8IP 7H 0BB 1R 1ER 2K. 101 Pitches. He is the 1st pirates starter to go 8 innings this season. Not only did Paul pitch amazing he also got his 1st hit of the season and snapped a 0-38 hittless streak (dating back to last yr)
- Dotel got his 15th save of the season.
- GFJ who is batting .412 against the cubs this year went 0 for 3 with a BB.
- Tabata went 1-4 2B rBI SB R (5-5 for SB this season)
- Cutch w/ a RBI triple (his 5th of the yr) went 1-5 with 5 LOB – McCutchen has been going through a bit of a slump recently. Maybe a day off to recharge his batteries? He rarely gets a day off.
- Doumit 1-4 1K 3LOB. He scored the go ahead run. Although he BARLEY made it, didnt slide at the plate. He was so close to being out. Horrible base running. He has just been awful all season.
- Lastings Milledge has a .823 OPS since May 1st. He also leads all NL hitters with a .436 AVG since June 9th.
- There was yet ANOTHER collision in right field yesterday. This time involving Bobby Crosby and Lastings Milledge. Crosby was pulled on and replaced by DY. They later updated him with concussion like symptoms. He should be fine but is getting the day off today.
- Neil Walker is still having concussion symptoms. His MRI was negative and is still in pittsburgh getting futher tests. JR said today that within the next 2-3 days will determine if he needs to go on the DL.
The Pirates this season are 9-40 with 3 runs or less scored.
3 More draft picks were signed: RHP Casey Sadler (25th round) RHP Jason Townsend (31st round) and James Archibald (36th round)
Zack Duke did soft toss on Sunday and Monday. He is slated to throw of the mound on Friday and could miss 2 more starts.
Pirates vs Cubs (going into monday) Pirates vs rest of MLB
7-2 18-48
4.56 runs/gm 3.09 runs/gm
2.81 ERA 5.66 ERA
0.44 e/gm .086 e/gm
Today’s pitching matchup:
Jeff Karstens 2-2 4.60 ERA vs Ted Lilly 2-6 3.28 ERA
- Karstens has not allowed more than 4 runs in a start since returning to the rotation May 24th. He is 2-1 with a 4.50 ERA vs CHC
- Lilly has only 1 win in his past 11 starts. He is 0-2 with a 4.25 ERA against PIT
Minor League Updates:
Jeff Locke: 5IP 5H 2ER 1BB 7K
Bryan Morris: 7IP 3H 2BB 6K 1R (Has a 3.35 ERA in AA)
Jim Negrych: 2-4 2RBI 2SB R (.411 AVG)
Chase D’Arnaud: 2-4 Triple 2RBI BB (.241 avg)
Around the Ballpark
- Jack Taschner (who refused a minor league agreement with the Pirates) signed a minor league deal with the Dodgers yesterday. He went 6.05 era, 7.9 k/9, 3.7 BB/9 in 19 innings with the buccos this year.
- Stats after the no hitter:
Braden: 0-5 4.31 ERA 30/9 K/BB 1.42 WHIP
Jimenez: 10-1 1.67 ERA 75/26 K/BB 1.00 WHIP
Halladay: 2-3 3.00 ERA 32/5 K/BB 1.28 WHIP
- Strasburg made his 5th start last night. He went 6IP 6H 4R 3ER 2BB 7K -92 pitches Got his 2nd loss of the season.
- The cubs have 60 errors on the season (4th most in the NL)
- Highest win percentage vs the cubs (active pitchers)
Paul Maholm 6-1 .857%
Billy Wagner 6-1 .857%
Kevin Millwood 8-2 .800%
Brandon Webb 4-1 .800%
Chris Carpenter 10-3 .769%
- Scott Rolen hit his 300th career homerun yesterday
- Jason Heyward was put on the DL. He will wear a cast on his hand for 6 days. Diagnosed with a Bone Bruise (thumb) Matt Diaz will be activated today.
- Dustin Pedroia not expect to require surgery. Timetable about 6 weeks.
- Victor Martinez also underwent more exams, they revealed minimally displaced fracture tip of left thumb. He is not expected to require surgery.
- John Grabow was pulled in the 8th inning of the PIT/CHC game yesterday. He was diagnosed with a sprained left knee. Was previously on the DL bc of knee May 31-June 15
The Dbacks have been struggling as of late.
- 5.33 team ERA (worst in NL)
- 14 Blown saves (most in NL)
- 15 Saves (2nd fewest)
- 38 quality starts (4th)
- .280 Opponet avg (3rd)
- 103 HR allowed (most in NL)
- 1.51 team WHIP (3rd highest)
You think you have it bad?
Welcome to the life of a Pirate fan. Always losing. Always gloomy. The Bucco’s have been a loosing team since I have been attending games. When I was 6, my parents started taking me to ball games. 1992. The heartbreak season. I remember everyone crying and not much talking for days. Since then, the loses have continued. Nothing seems to really shock me with this team. Well, almost nothing…
If you watched the game yesterday you know exactly what I am talking about. Bottom of the 8th, 2 outs. Suzuki pops it up into foul territory. Easy catch for JJ? Wrong. He misses it. (I actually felt really bad because you could tell how upset he was.) 2 pitches later? Suzuki with a solo HR to take a 3-2 lead. 9th inning. Pedro on 1st and tabata at the plate. The ball actually HITS Pedro on his run to 2nd. 3rd out. Pirates lose.
Has that actually ever ended a game before? I swear the Pirates are cursed. They just can’t catch a break.
It was a tough play, I should have had it,” Jaramillo said. “I missed it and that’s all.”
Meek, meanwhile, placed the blame solely on his shoulders, not on those of Jaramillo.
“I just happened to miss my spot and threw it right to where he was looking to hit it,” Meek said. “He put a nice, smooth swing on it. Right when I threw it, I was like, ‘Oh, God.’ I mean, it’s frustrating, but what are you going to do?”
You can read more here
Unfortunately, there were more disasters on the day. The Pirates commited 4 Errors. Yes, that’s correct. All the Athletic’s runs were all un earned. The pitching staff has commited 9 e’s this season, 4 belong to Ross Ohlendorf. The E’s on the day: Ohlendorf with an “attempt” to pick off, then GFJ’s throw to 3rd. Yes. That actually happened. The runner at 1st actually scored thanks to 2 errors. Cutch and JJ had the other 2 on the day.
Ross actually pitched a pretty good game.(If you minus the E) He went 6IP (no decision) 2H 2R 0ER 4BB 3K. In the 5th inning Ohly got out of a pretty big jam. The bases were loaded with 0 outs. He walked Crisp (which scored a run) then a P4, L6 and a F8. To get out of that with only 1 run scored was pretty great. A huge problem with the starts from Ohlendorf has been the run support. He is only averaging 2.3 runs in his last 10 starts.
Evan Meek in for the 7th and he pitched a perfect inning. The 8th was a great inning as well (minus the HR) Evan has only allowed 2 HR’s all season (the 2nd was Suzuki’s) Meek had 4 K’s in the innings.
- Milledge went 2-4 with a HR. He FINALLY got his first HR on the season. His last? All the way back to October 2nd, 2009. 254 PA’s later.
- Tabata 2-4 RBI BB (He is on a 5 GM hit streak)
- GFJ hit .396, 3 doubles, 2HR, 11RBI in interleague games this year.
- Gonzalez 6IP 4H 1ER 4BB 2K
- Cust 1-2 BB Run
- Suzuki 1-4 HR (10)
The Pirates drop to 17 straight losses on the Road. The A’s have won all 9 meeting all time agianst the Buccos.
If you think you can stomach it. Read this article on “The Pirates June swoon”
Pedro Alvarez had the day off yesterday. So far since he has been called up he has only 4H in 35 AB’s. 1 K in each of his last 10 games. Pedro is known for having a late start. I’m hoping he starts to hit come July. :-/
- JR quote after the game:
“We stunk. Were not a very good team right now. Too many stupid mistakes. We spoiled a very good start by our pitcher. We can’t play that way and expect to win.”
- JR on having a difficult month:
“It hasn’t been a very kind month to us. Usually, when you face your worst adversity, that’s when you grow the most. I hope we’ve hit the bottom and are heading back up.”
Has anyone been voting for the All Star Game? Who do you think? Meek or McCutchen to represent the Pirates? They are both having All Star Years. Read more
Minor League update:
Good news here!
- AAA Indy beat Toledo 15-3
- Alex Presley hit for the cycle (His 2nd cycle this year. His first was in AA Altoona) 5-6 HR 2RBI. Since joining AAA he is batting .538
- Brandon Moss went 2-6 HR 5RBI (Past week: .357AVG 4HR 14RBI .438OBP .786SLG)
- Steve Pearce 1-4 HR 3RBI
- Jeff Clement 2-4 HR 2RBI
- Tweet from @ScottDMcCauley Iwamura bounces out to 1B. Reporters who follow him, he felt pressure of being Pirates highest paid player & is lacking confidence
Minor League Pitching Prospects (this season):
- Danny Moskos 2-1 1.44 ERA 31K 9BB
- Rudy Owens 6-3 2.80 ERA 63K 16BB
- Jared Hughes 10-3 3.83 ERA 31K 9BB
- Bryan Morris 7-2 2.05 ERA 76K 20BB
- Tim Alderson 6-4 4.87 ERA 48K 21BB
Chris Jacubauskas made a rehab start yesterday. Didn’t go so well. He went 4.1IP 7H 3R 3ER 2BB 3K
Today’s Pitching Matchup:
Paul Maholm vs Randy Wells
4-6 4.24 ERA 3-6 5.21 ERA
6-1 w/ 6.29 ERA against CHC 2-1 4.05 ERA vs PIT
- Wells- Hasn’t won since April 30th. He has given up 20 ER in 61.1 IP (May & June)
The Pirates have pretty much “owned” the Cubs this year. Winning 7 of 9 (including 1 sweep)
Okay. Maybe that was a little mean. I needed a laugh and I’m sure you do too.
Around the Ballpark
- Chipper Jones hit his 431st Homerun (Sat) tieing Cal Ripken for 38th all time. After he hit the HR, Chipper took the field alone. The teamates set him up. The fans gave him a standing O. “It was an awfuly nice gesture by the fans and I’m going to kill my teamates. It was really cool, something I’ll never forget.”
- Kawakami got his 1st win since Aug, 31 2009.
- Most Starts before 1st win of the season:
Elarton 16 in 2004, Sturtze 15 in 2002, Kawakami 14 in 2010 and Millwood 14 in 2010.
- Cubs played the 20,000th game (sat) the most in ML history.
- The White Sox had a 11 game wining streak. The longest since 1961 (12) 1951 (14) 1906 (19) The streak was snapped yesterday when the White Sox lost to the Cubs 8-6. Dempster went 7IP 9H 3ER 8K 122 Pitches. He has thrown 1,762 (the most in the NL)
- David Price (sat) went 8IP 11K (career high) 7H 2ER. He is the 1st AL Pitcher to get his 11th win this season. Price has been hot since June 2: 4-1 2.18 ERA 9.3 k/9IP 1.36 WHIP. The rest of the staff? Not so hot: 4-11 6.07 ERA 7.5 K/9IP 1.43 WHIP
- Team HR Leaders:
Blue Jays 115
Red Sox 103
Brewers 91
Dbacks 90
Reds 89
- Best ERA over 9GM Span (Since 2005):
Ubaldo Jimenez 0.53 2010
Clayton Kershaw 0.79 2009
Zack Greinke 0.82 2009
Josh Johnson 0.83 2010
Chris Carpenter 0.83 2005
- Last nights Yankee/Dodger game was pretty intense. Yankees won in the 10th 8-6. Cano with a 2 run Homer. Broxton in the Top of the 9th: Faced 9 batters, 4R 4H 2BB 48 Pitches
A Rod- 2-5 HR (11) 3R
Cano 2-5 HR (15) 3RBI
Belliard 1-4 HR(2)
Ethier 1-4 RBI
If somehow you missed it, the rest of the highlights are found here
- Jamie Moyer won his 267th win yesterday. He is now 36th all time. 1 win away from tying Jim Palmer (268) He also allowed his 506th HR, the most HR’s allowed in MLB History.
- The Mets have won 14 of their last 17 games at home. 28-12 overall.
- Jason Bay had his 1,000 hit and is now only the 10th Canadian to reach this milestone.
- Interleague 2010 ended: AL 133 W NL 118
- Jose Guillen extended his hittting streak to 21 games. The longest in Royal history since Rey Sanchez in 2001.
The streak lives on (Pit @ Oak)
Bucco’s lose. 5-0. The streak continues. That’s 16 straight losses on the road. The last time that happened in bucco history? 1914 (Sept 5-Sept 26) It’s also the 8th time the Pirates have been shutout this season.
Daniel McCutchen took the mound (he was recalled by AAA Indy) He had a decent start, not good, not great. If I were to grade him I’d say a C.
He went 6IP 4H 4ER 2BB 2K
Cahill was a different story. He struck out a career high, 10. Gave up only 2 hits, 3BB through 7 2/3 innings. Cahill is also the 1st A’s Pitcher in the past 2 yeras with 7 + IP shutout & 10 K’s (The last guy? Rich Harden 6/26/08)
Barton went 3-4, 4RBI
Crisp 2-3, BB, SB, 3R
On a much brighter note, atleast they looked pretty sweet. And by that, I mean the uni’s. It was throwback night in Oakland and both teams worse 70′s uniforms. They are by far my favorite of the throwbacks in a while.
There is an update on Neil Walker. After spending the night at the hospital for precautionary reasons he was diagnosed with a concussion. He was (obviously) out of the lineup last night, and will be out the lineup possibly the remainder of the road trip. Walker will fly with the team to Chicago sunday and to Pittsburgh Monday to be examined by team doctors. Thankfully it was just a concussion, it could have been much worse.
It was “basically a mild concussion,” Walker said. Other than the headache and fatigue from lack of sleep in the hospital, he feels OK. He underwent a CT scan, blood tests and had his blood pressure checked every hour.
“I don’t remember getting hit,” Walker said, still wearing his hospital ID tag and joking that, “Fortunately, Church has soft knees.”
You can read the rest of the article here
Minor league update:
- Scott McCauley (AAA Indy’s annoucer) told me via twitter regarding Aki “he’s here, just not in the Indians lineup. In BP Aki hit some serious HR’s. He took ground balls at 3B”
Aki has yet to start since arriving on Friday.
- Brandon Moss hit a HR last night. If your counting that is 3 in his last 15 AB. He is 8 for his last 15 with 8RBI.
- Indianapolis beat Toledo 6-4. Negrych went 1-3, HR (3) and is batting (.404)
- Altoona lost to Bowie, 4-2. Alderson went 1.2IP 5H 4ER 2K 1BB
- Bradenton lost to Jupiter 4-3. Grossman went 2-4 with a triple, and a R.
- West Virgina lost to Greensboro 3-2. Brito 1-4, double, run
- State College won 9-8 over Batavia. Santos 2-4, HR, 2R
As you know, Alex Pressley was promoted to AAA a few days ago. But just who is this Alex? Check out Rocco DeMaro’s blog to find out. “A Mystery Player Evaluation”
Today’s Pitching Matchup:
Ross Ohlendorf vs Gio Gonzalez
0-6 5.43 ERA 6-5 3.89 ERA
Ohlendorf- Still winless this season. (Yes, you heard that right.) He has held opponents to a .203 AVG the 1st time through the order. The 2nd & 3rd time through? The opponents are batting .341.
Gio- His last start against the Reds was a beauty. He threw 7 innings. Gave up 1ER 4H 1BB and 9K (season high) At home this season Gonzalez is 4-2 with a 2.47 ERA (7 Starts) Lefties be scared. They are only hitting .145 against him.
I heard this quote yesterday. “You win 60 and you loose 60, it’s what you do with the other 42 that makes the difference.” At this rate, I hope the Pirates win 60 games. It has not been a very pretty year. 
- Oh, the power of the Stash. Carl Pavano of the Twins is the 1st AL Pitcher with a CG shutout and 2 + hits at the plate since Clyde Wright on 9/14/1972 (against TEX)
As you guys know, I think there is nothing more funny then when baseball players grow staches throughout the season.
Here is a look at some of my favorites:
I am Ron Burgandy?? (haha I couldn’t help myself!)
DJ Carrasco had a nice one going when the Pirates were all growing them out. But I can’t find a picture anywhere. Boo.
Who’s Hot?
- Mets Starting Pitching
Since May 17th they are a combined 17-4 with a 2.76 ERA
R.A Dickey Mike Pelfrey Jonathon Niese Johan Santana
6-0 2.33 ERA 6-1 2.38 ERA 3-0 3.25 ERA 2-3 3.25 ERA
- James Loney (last night against the Yankees) tied a season high 4 RBI. He leads the club with 51 RBI’s.
Who’s Not?
- Russell Martin. In his last 10 games he is batting .143 with 3RBI and 10BB. 1 for his last 21.
Anyone watch the Yankee/Dodger game yesterday? My highlight for sure was when Tommy Lasorda and Reggie Jackson were in the press box. (Im a HUGE TL fan!) It was very entertaining to hear them fight. Tommy still upset over that play at 3B. Reggie mad about a TL vmail saying something about “only Dodgers fans get into heaven” It was hilarous.
- Aj Burnett has been struggling as of late. Since Dave Eiland’s leave of absence he has gone 0-4 with a 10.35 ERA. 9HR allowed in 20 innings. With Eiland: 6-2 3.28 ERA. Only 4HR in 71 2/3 innings.
Here is what he had to say about his recent struggles:
“I’m out there throwing pitches, whether Dave’s in the dugout or not. He’s corrected me enough where I should have a memory of what Dave says. I’m a man, I’m a professional athlete who’s got a big contract, who’s here for a reason.”
Rooting for Charlie
On yesterday’s Pirates pre game show they spotlighted Charlie Morton and how his rehab has been going down in AAA. As you know, I’m a huge Charlie fan and I’m really hoping he pulls through. Let’s face it, WE NEED HIM!
In his last 4 starts he is 1-1 with a 3.42 ERA. (I posted a few days ago how well his most recent start went! 9IP 1R 2H 4K 1BB) The start of the season he wasnt so hot. 1-9 a little over a 9.00 ERA. Anyways, if you missed it here is what they had to say:
Charlie Morton- “I know how bad it was going and I think a lot of that had to do with my inability to get guys out with runners on. Whether or not it was a mechanical thing, pitch selection, I’m not sure. But I know that we are working on some things out of the stretch and bullpens and trying to get a better rythm because I feel that, I know for a fact that hitters were hitting much better off me when I was in the stretch.”
AAA Manager Frank Kremblas- “Mainly he has a problem when runners get on and its with his load and delivery. He doesn’t quite get a very good balance position or a load position with runners on base at time and that causes his pitches to suffer.”
In addition to tweeking his mechanics from the stretch Morton has been working on his mental approach down in AAA and he hasn’t been doing it alone. He’s been working with a team of sports psychologists to learn how to better deal with pressure situations. The Indy coaching staff has spent considerable time trying to build Mortons confidence on the mound.
AAA Pitching Coach Dean Treanor- “You can’t not talk about the mental side with the numbers he has had this year in Pittsburgh. Anybody would be beated up over that and he came here beaten up. I mean you can’t deny that. So you have to talk about that side.”
Charlie Morton- “For my whole career confidence has been an issue. As opposed to using it as a crutch or using it as something to blame or something like that its just a simple fact that I have to embrace what I am and who I am and all the things I’ve learned and know that I can do what I want to do in this game. Here in AAA I don’t feel that I’m out of place in terms of who I am, where I am in my career. But I do feel like that ability that I possess is that, is good enough to have lasting success in the big leagues.”
Erik Kratz, Catcher AAA- “Once he gets that taste of success, once he gets that groove of a win, you know a second win, now he starts a third start quality start, doesn’t get the win but you know. I think its going to compound and his confidence is going to grow imensly. He has had a tough start this season, but everyone can tell, he’s the real deal for sure.”
I personally can’t wait for Charlie to come back up and prove to everyone the stuff he has. He really has the makings to be a great pitcher. I’m rooting for him!
Other Pirates news:
Pirates Franchise longest road loosing streaks:
1890 (July 18-Sept 12) 41
1985 (July 23-Aug 30) 19
1914 (Sept 5-Sept 26) 16
2010 (May 26-current) 15
If the Pirates lose again tonight they will set yet another record this year (and not the good kind either) Let’s hope D McCutchen can get us through atleast 6 good innings.
No one likes to lose. It’s pretty depressing. So here are a few pictures from Rookie hazing last year. (Who doesn’t love seeing the players is ridicolous outfits? Well, maybe not the players. But they don’t read this, so.) Hope this gives you a laugh, or if anything makes you smile for a moment. Hope it helps lighten the mood.
Cutch as a hooters girl. Pretty freaking funny!
I honestly have NO IDEA what Ross Ohlendorf is? Anyone? Anyone?
Yes! That is Donnie Veal in a blonde wig. So hilarious!
Steve Pearce as Nacho Libre
Tonight’s starter, Daniel McCutchen I think as Strawberry Shortcake and Evan Meek as a hula dancer.
Aw, Pocohantas, er Jesse Chavez. Who I believe is a Brave now.
Charlie Morton and Kevin Hart.
Who’s hot?
- David Wright
Since May 30th:
23 Games, .404 AVG, 26 RBI, 15 XBH, .685 Slug pct, 12 multi hit gms
- Jose Guillen
He is currently on a 19 game hit streak batting .373 with 28H in 75AB with 11 RBI. He raised his AVG from .244 to .279 during this time period.
- The Cincinnati Reds
This season (NL Offensive Rankings)
AVG .275 (Ranks 1st)
Runs 360 (1st)
Hits 696 (1st)
RBI 348 (1st)
Other notes:
- Billy Wagner got his 400th career save last night (ATL beat DET 3-1)
- I posted earlier about Edwin Jackson’s no no last night. Here is an interesting stat:
Seasons with 4 + No hitters before July:
1884- 4
1917- 6
1990- 5
2010-4
Alright. No more posts for today. I’ve been stuck in the house thanks to the cold that started last night. While everyone is in the pool or on the river ive been watching baseball all day. (hehe)
USA just lost to GHA in the World Cup. What a game. Congrats to the US for making it this far. Very heartbreaking but they should be very proud for what they acomplished.
Shambles. Pirates @ Athletics
It’s no suprise that the Pirates and the Athletics have lacked power and runs scored all season. The game started at 10:05 here on the east coast but I thought the game would last no longer than 2 1/2 hrs and only a few runs scored. Boy, was I wrong!
Top of the 1st the Buccos scored 2 runs. Bottom of the 1st the Athletics scored 2 runs. It was actually a pretty good game for a few innings. Both teams bringing out the bats and putting runs up on the board. (I would like to note: How in the world does Tony Beasley have a job as a 3B coach? He is arguably the WORST in baseball. After a wild throw to 1st base Tabata went to 2nd. Good job right? Wrong. Beasley then sent him to 3B where he was out by a mile! Still shaking my head about that one.)
and then….
Shambles. Shambles. Shambles.
The 7th inning was a disaster. This is exactly how I felt after it FINALLY ended.
and maybe a little like this…
11 men came to the plate. 7 runs were scored. It took 3 pitchers to get 3 outs and to stop the bleeding. Here are there stats:
DJ: 0.0IP 3H 3R 3ER
Lopez 0.1IP 1H 2R 2ER 1BB
Donnelly 0.2IP 2H 2R 2ER 1BB 1K
and to make matters worse in the 7th inning. Church and Walker collided trying to catch a foul ball down the right field line. Neil was down for a few minutes but did get up on his own. He was taken out of the game and was taken to the clubhouse where they said he was alert and coherent. He was taken to the hospital for further tests. There is still no word on the status of Walker. I hope everything is okay. You can see the video and read the article here
Neil had a great night too before the injury. He was a triple away from the cycle. He went 3 for 4, 2R. He hit a solo HR in the 5th (his first from the left side) and his 3rd HR on the season.
Walkers homerun snapped the 59 inning drought without a homerun. It was also the 1st HR hit in the 5th inning for the Pirates this year.
Justin Thomas made his debut in the 8th inning. He went 1IP 3H 2R 2ER 1K.
Other random notes from the game:
Cutch 1-4 1RBI SB 2R
Lincoln 6IP 8H 3ER 1K 2BB
Crisp 3-4 1BB 3R
Pennington 3-4 3RBI SB 2R
Sheets 6IP 8H 4ER 9K 0BB
The Pirates hitters 6-9 went 0-4. Big fat O’fers
Oakland had 17 hits on the night.
Pirates loose the 15th straight road loss.
I’m not exactly sure why I decided to stay awake for the whole game. (Perhaps to rub salt into the wounds?) or maybe because I thought there might be a chance for a rally? No clue either. I want to erase this game from my memory and move on. Today’s a new day.
The Children are the Future:
AAA Indy:
Clement 5RBI
Negrych 3H 2R (.408 in last 14 games)
Pearce 0-5 with 7LOB
The Indians won 9-8 over Toledo. They are now tied for 2nd in the West.
Around the Ballparks:
Some exciting news to mention. Edwin Jackson of the Arizona Dbacks threw a no hitter!
Thank goodness for MLBNetwork. They keep you updated throughout the game, and then went live from the 8th inning on. Seeing that my favorite part of the game is pitching I was on the edge of my seat watching.
After the 8th inning he was at 134 pitches. (134!!) He completed the game throwing 149 pitches and 8BB. (Which is perhaps a pretty sloppy no no? Nontheless a no hitter is a no hitter and is a HUGE acomplishment. My cap is tipped to you Jackson)
He is the only the 2nd in Dbacks history to throw a no hitter, 2nd to the Unit.
His stats on the night: 149 Pitches, 79 for K’s, 0H 0R 6K 8BB
The Tampa Bay Rays are the 1st team in ML History to be no hit 3 9 inning games in 12 month peroid. Brooklyn was no hit 3 times in 1906, 2 were 7 innings.
- Roy Halladay faced his former club, the Blue Jays last night and threw a complete game shutout.
- As we all know by now, Carlos Z is nuts. I’ll never forget the Gatorade machine may it RIP. If you didn’t see his latest show you can see it here He has been suspended indefinitely.
- Yankees were in LA to face the Dodgers last night. It was Torre’s 1st time facing his former club since he left as manager in 07. I’m sure the atmosphere was incredible. A lot of emotions between the teams. CC & Padilla, James Loney was ejected. Can’t wait to tune in tonight. Dodgers lost 2-1 and now 7 of 8.
- Battle of the Rookie of the Year? The Braves faced the Tigers last night. Heyward vs Boesch. How did they do?
Heyward: 1K 1LOB (batting .251)
Boesch: 1H 1RBI 1K 1LOB (batting .344)
Interleague Scorecard entering last nights games:
AL NL
110 Wins 100 Wins
.273 AVG .254 AVG
977 Runs 932 Runs
194 HR 205 HR
NL K Leaders (Entering last night)
MIL Gallardo 115
SF Lincecum 113
ARI Haren 109
STL Wainwright 107
LAD Kershaw 103
FLA Johnson 98
PHI Halladay 98
CHC Dempster 97
COL Jimenez 95
STL Carpenter 95
NL ERA (Entering last night)
COL Jimenez 1.60
STL Garcia 1.79
FLA Johnson 1.80
MIL Gallardo 2.36
PHI Halladay 2.43
STL Wainwright 2.47
ATL Hudson 2.54
STL Carpenter 2.63
NYM Pelfrey 2.69
SF Cain 2.72
Tonight’s matchup: Pirates @ Athletics:
Daniel McCutchen 0-2 13.50 ERA vs Trevor Cahill 6-2 3.21 ERA
D McCutchen Making his 5th apperance this season. Since he was sent down to AAA (April 25th) he has shown improvement going 4-5 3.86 ERA in 10 starts. This is Daniel’s first start in interleague play.
This is Cahill’s 2nd year in the big leagues. He has won his last 5 decisions and hasn’t lost since May 16th against the Angels.Trevor is 3-0 with a 1.75 ERA in 4 starts at home.
Around the ballpark
Some updates from last nights games:
- Red Sox beat the Rockies 13 to 11. Dustin Pedroia hit a 2 run homer in the the top of the 10th. He also went 5 for 5 on the night with 3HR 2B 5RBI 4R BB
- Cubs and Mariners went into extras last night as well. The cubs won 3-3 in the 13th. Hernandez went 9IP 5H 2ER 8K.
Cubs Mariners
54 Batters Faced 49
7 Pitchers used 5
225 Pitches 170
The game lasted 4 hours and 2 mins.
- The White Sox have won now 9 straight. (They beat the Braves 2-0 last night)
In their last 14 games they are 11-1 w/ a 2.06 ERA 0.94 WHIP with 76 K and 22B
They are the 1st club to sweep Atlanta since April 29th. They are now only 2 1/2 games back of the Twins in AL C.
Who’s Hot?
Marlon Byrd has a .390 AVG & 8RBI in last 19 games.
Chase Utley in the last 6 games is batting .455 with 6R 8RBI and 10H in 22AB
Jayson Werth in last 6 games is batting .444 with 4R 7RBI and 8H in 18 AB
Carlos Pena has hit safely in his last 14 of 16.
Who’s Not?
Doc Halladay is 0-3 with a 4.09 ERA in his last 3 starts.
Tampa Bay Rays in the month of June:
.258 AVG (9th) 99 R (7th) 4.69 ERA (12th) They have los 6 of 7, 17 of 27 and have dropped from 1st place in the AL E to 3rd.
Last night during the game aparently Lastings Milledge had a heated discussion with Gary Varsho and Bobby Crosby. You can read the full story here
I guess its official. Although the Pirates haven’t annouced it yet. Daniel McCutchen will start against the A’s tomorow. A McCutchen 34 Jersey was spotted in the dugout.
Evan Meek after the game last night: (gave up 2 runs in the 7th)
“Nights like that you try to replay in your head and figure out what went wrong and you just kind of come up blank,” Meek said. “It’s a terrible feeling. That seventh inning is usually mine, and I usually get the job done. That’s a tough loss because it’s a game I think we should have won.”
:-( You can read the whole article here
Today’s Matchup:
Brad Lincoln (Makes his 4th ML Start) vs Ben Sheets
0-1 w/ a 6.50 ERA 18 IP 7K 6BB 2-7 w/ a 4.95 ERA 87.1 IP 61K 37BB
Sheets in 8-8 with a 2.92 ERA career against the buccos
I have yet to see Lincoln pitch in person. I couldn’t make it to his home debut and gave away my ticket the other time he started at home. The other 2 starts have been on the road. Hopefully I’ll get a chance to see him in person soon.
The Pirates have lost 14 Straight games on the road. Please oh pretty please snap that streak tonight!
Any Vin Scully fans out there?
Personally I think he is hands down the greatest broadcaster of all time. When I hear his voice I smile. I love listening to his stories and you learn something new everytime you listen to him. When I lived in LA I had the oppurtunity to listen to him everyday and I never took it for granted. I even met him once in Phoenix, AZ when the Dodgers were playing the Dbacks. It was only for a few seconds I don’t even remember what I said because I was so in awe. Anyways, the reason why I brought him up was because I read this great story in the NY Times. ”Pulling up a Chair with the great Vin Scully” its a must read for all you Scully fans.
Okay, one more thing and I’ll go. I love to ramble if you haven’t noticed. If you missed the post game show with Rocco Demaro last night I highly recommend you listen to the podcast Jay Jaffe of Baseball Prospectus was a guest on the show. “Consider the K” was the article he wrote where he talked about the value of the strikeout from both the hitters perspective and the pitchers perspective. It was Very interesting.
Pirates @ Rangers 6-24
Pirates Loose 5-6. Vladi with the walk off single off Steven Jackson for the Rangers 11th straight win.
Pirates have now been swept for the 8th time this season.
and what a heartbreaking loss it was…
No, that’s not really me. But that’s what i look like a lot of times when the Pirates break my heart.
Steven Jackson entered in the bottom of the 9th (WHAT! First of all. Why JR would you bring in Jackson into a high situation. You know, the Rangers only needed a run to win. Dotel was even up in the pen. Sometimes he makes these decisions I just DONT understand!) Gave up a BB 2H including the walk off RBI single by Vladi. *sigh*
If you love stats here is an interesting one:
Before last night’s game the Pirates with 2 outs: .220 (29th) 77 RBI (last)
RISP with 2 outs: .221 (24th) 64 RBI (last)
The Rangers this season with RISP with 2 outs: .307 !!!!
No wonder the Pirates drop to 25-47 on the season. Yikes!
There were many good things about the game though. The Buccos sure did bring out the bats. Unfortunatly the bats fell silent after the 4th inning.
Tabata went 3 for 5, SB, Run
GFJ went 3 for 4, RBI, Run
Pedro went 1 for 4, 2B, 2RBI, Run
Doumit 2 for 4, RBI, Run
Crosby 2 for 4
Church (the DH for the night) went a big fat 0 for 4. Oh, JR! Why oh WHY! is Church DH’ing when he is batting way below the Mendoza line (.180) Another pondering question is why not have Church play RF and DH Milledge. As we all know, Lastings is not a very good fielder. If you didn’t know by now, you sure figured that out last night. Made a few horrible plays, which Church more than likely would have caught (Ryan’s upside is his fielding) I’m not sure if Church’s wrist is still bothering him or what, but .180 SHOULD NOT BAT 5TH IN A LINEUP!
The Pirates are now 9-28 on the Road this season (NL Worst)
Daniel Moskos and Alex Presley were promoted to AAA Indy. Dany tweeted last night “Headed to Indy! Looking forward to a the new challenge that’s ahead of me. Caravanning with alex Presley” Follow him on twitter @the_dude_41
You can follow me as well @kristpie
The highlight of the night however was Charlie Morton’s start in AAA. His stats: 9IP 1R 2H 4K 1BB Retired 11 batters in a row. 109 Pitches, 77 for K’s. Keep up the good work Charlie!! I’m a huge fan of his and really hope he works out his kinks. Rocco Demaro from Piratesextrainnings.com wrote a good post on why we should all be rooting for him. It’s a good read.
Andrew McCutchen has been hittless since Saturday night. His avg dropped down to .305. Not very Cutch like. I’m hoping he doesnt go into a slump. We really really need him!
Karstens went 5.1 IP last night 4K 86 Pitches and got the No decision. Jeff seems to pitch pretty well until the 4th and 5th innings and then he seems to just run out of gas. He’s just not a good starter. Sorry to say it. He’s more of a long relief kinda guy.
Speaking of Pitching. Evan Meek came into the 7th inning with a 5-3 lead. He showed that he is indeed human and gave up 2 runs. 3H and his ERA jumped from 0.66 to 1.07 In his last 11 games he allowed only 3 hits. Tough night for Evan. He has been the best guy on the pitching staff this season. **** happens. Go get em next time!
MLB Bullpen’s Leading w/ K’s:
Padres 248
Braves 231
Brewers 227
Pirates 220
White Sox 212
The Pirates are off to play Oakland for a 3 game series starting tonight. Fingers crossed for a better series.
Guess Who’s back? Back again.
I haven’t posted in over two months. I apologize to the few of you guys out there that actually read my blog.
A lot has happened. A lot of loosing. Instead of boring you with all of that, im just going to do a few recaps and stay on the positive side of things (even though the buccos are 25-46) I think that is what makes me different from most Pirate fans. I look at the bright side of things and even when they were on a 12 game loosing streak I still turned on the game or was at the game and thought “tonights going to be a good night” I’m not exactly sure how I’m still this way after 17 loosing seasons, ever since I’ve been watching the Pirates they have been a loosing team, but somehow I am.
Starting Pitching. Well, it has been down right awful. Aside from Maholm (last night went only 1 inning gave up 7H 7R 5ER 4BB Who summed it by saying that he “just stunk” ) has been the only starter this season to pitch pretty well and consistent. Zack Duke is on the DL with an elbow strain. Ross Ohlendorf still struggling with his command. Has yet to win a single game this year. His last start went well the first four innings and then he just ran out of gas and the Rangers took advantage of it. Charlie Morton in still in AAA. I’m a huge fan of Charlie’s. He has the stuff to be a really great pitcher. He deffinitly showed that last season. Fingers crossed he works out his kinks because we REALLY need him. Part of the Calvary is Brad Lincoln. He has had three starts so far and has pitched decent. Deffinitly a great pitcher in the making. Karstens, Burress, Jacu, Eveland, McCutchen (have I missed anyone?) So many different starters. So many disasters.
Bullpen. Unbelieveable! and in the best way possible. The pen this year has been just ridiculous. I can’t remember the last time the Pirates had so many great arms. I don’t think they have gotten enough credit for it. Evan Meek is just nasty. He has a 0.66 ERA, which is the lowest in all of baseball. Hanrahan has been great as well. His ERA is not as low, but don’t let that fool you he throws nasty pitches too. Lopez, Donnelly, Dotel, DJ.
If you listen to Pirates extra innings after the game with Rocco Demaro i called in a few days ago and asked Rocco about the future of Meek & Hanny (possible closer) you can hear the podcast here June 19th around the 21 min mark
Today the Pirates called up Steven Jackson and Justin Thomas. The pen has been worked a lot and they came to the rescue! One will be gone friday when they spot start Daniel McCutchen for Saturdays game.
Position Players. GFJ has been a monster. (Jones 12 game hit streak ended last night) Andrew McCutchen. Well, what can’t he do? He is so much fun to watch! Neil Walker has also been very impressive since being called up as well. Not only has he been hitting he has also been flashing the leather over at 2b. The other memebers of the calvary include PEDRO! PEDRO! and Jose Tabata. They have both been here a few weeks now. Pedro is off to a slow start, which isnt new for him. Once he starts hitting he will deffinitly be something to watch. Steve Pearce in still in AAA rehabing his ankle (should be coming off the DL anyday now) Ryan Church is hitting way below the Mendoza line and hopefully gets traded away soon. As we all know by now, AKI was DFA, cleared (big shocker right?) and reports to AAA on friday. Milledge as of late has been hitting well too. Still has yet to show power, no homeruns.
Last years 1st round pick Tony Sanchez had his surgery today. He was hit in the face with a pitch and had two jaw fractures. He is expected to be out 6 to 8 weeks.
Over the last few days there has been a lot of injuries to the Pirates and as well in the minors. It’s very frustrating.
Some other random news:
The Marlins fired their Manager Fredi Gonzalez yesterday. ESPN is reporting that Bobby Valentine is the front runner for the job and will interview tomorow.
Strasburg started his 3rd game yesterday. He went 6 IN 9H 1ER 9K 4BB and got his first loss on the season. He has been just unbelieveable. Not even the slightest overated. Before heading into yesterday’s game he had 32 K in 19.1 Innings. He also got his first ML hit in the 3rd inning. As a huge fan of the game I love watching him pitch. My favorite aspect of the game is deffinitly the pitching. I’d take a pitchers duel anyday.
I have to comment on last night’s Rockies game. It was amazing! Jimenez heading into the start was 13-1 with a 1.15 ERA. That’s just insane. He eneded up giving up 6ER (a season high) and his ERA went up to 1.60. The most exciting part was the Jason Giambi’s walk off BLAST
Gallardo almost had a perfect game today. He lost his bid in the 6th inning. He did go on to get a complete game shutout over the Twins.
Kristy Robinson
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