Pirates lose the pitchers duel, 3-2

Ross Ohlendorf just can’t buy a win, can he? He has allowed three runs or fewer in nine of his last 10 starts. His ERA during that span is 2.35. Yet he’s 1-4 in those games and just 1-10 for the year. Ohlendorf was up against one of the best in the National League, Josh Johnson.

 

 

 

Both Johnson and Ohlendorf were nasty last night. It was a pitchers duel through eight innings. But the Bucs couldn’t manage to score runs in the ninth and the Fish won, 3-2.

Johnson gave up two runs on seven hits with with six strikeouts, Ohlendorf gave up three runs on four hits with five strikeouts and two walks.

“The game, I feel like, could have gone either way, and we were playing against a team with a great pitcher,” Ohlendorf said. “It showed we can hang right in there, and I think we’ll get to the point where we can win those games.”

“I was happy with how I pitched,” he added. “It was probably the best I’ve pitched, even though the results weren’t as good.”

One of Ohly’s best starts, it was. He needed just 103 pitches through the eight innings, his longest outing of his career.

Of the five runs scored in the game last night, three of them came from the long ball. The Pirates’ Doumit and McCutchen both went deep and the Marlins’ Dan Uggla hit a solo-homerun as well. (Doumit’s home run, by the way, was tourched. I didn’t even see it leave the ballpark. It went 445 feet, would have landed in the river if it didn’t hit a tree on the river walk.)

“Every time I go out, I’m just trying to get a win on that night,” Ohlendorf said. “I wish my record was better at this point, but it is what it is. I just have to worry about going forward and picking up wins for the rest of the year.”

“Josh Johnson had an outstanding game today,” Marlins manager Edwin Rodriguez said. “He felt in control of his pitches after the fifth inning, [and] he took control of the game. His breaking ball, he was throwing for strikes, and he had command of his fastball and that was the difference with him.”

The Pirates had a chance in the bottom of the ninth to win it. Garrett Jones reached first on a four pitch walk. Both Alvarez and Doumit striked out and Young out to end the game.

“They really want to get the hit, so they worry about the result a lot and don’t continue to stay within themselves,” Russell said of his scuffling offense. “It’s a battle that we’re fighting through. We are capable of swinging the bats. We’ve just had too many games where we don’t.”  

 

 

News and Notes:

• Garrett Jones is batting just .145 in his last 19 games.
• The Pirates have 12 home runs in their last eight games at PNC Park.
• (Via @rocodemaro) Jeff Locke, 22: 7.0 ip, 3 h, bb, 8 k tonight. ERA at AA: 3.07.
• Zach Von Rosenberg, 19, last five starts in NYP: 1.08 ERA, 17:6 K:BB, 25 ip. ERA at 3.38 for the season.
• Drew Maggi was added to the State College roster. Andy Vasquez was promoted to West Virginia.
• The Pirates remove RHP Chris Jakubauskas from 60-day DL, outright him off 40-man roster. 
• Stetson Allie re: Jameson Taillon: “We’ve both got some heat. He’s got better stuff than me. Hopefully, we can get (to majors) in 2-3 yrs.”
• Neil Walker hitting .387 w/ runners on base this season (43-111). Josh Hamilton only MLB player with higher avg in category (.390). 

 

Stetson Allie was introduced at PNC Park yesterday.

Allie was joined with friends and family last night at the ballpark as he was introduced to the  city in a press conference. 

“It’s pretty exciting for me and the whole family,” Allie said. “It’s great to see a Major League jersey with my name on the back. I’d love to help change this club around as best as I can. I’ll do whatever I can on the field.”

“I think sometimes when you hear bullpen come out of his mouth, he knows that’s the fast track,” Smith said. “If you look at some of the young guns, if you want to go fast, bullpen is the way to go. But I know deep down he wants to start, and we think he has the traits and the overall package to start.” 

“After coaching him for all these years, you dream about this day,” Danny Allie said. “It’s a reality now. He’s accomplished part of the dream. The other part of the dream is being at PNC Park pitching at the big league level. He’ll be there. He’s a hard worker. He’s smart. He’s talented.”

“We’re so excited to help get this organization where it deserves to be for the fans,” he added. “He’s excited for that part of it.”  

“The arm strength started coming when he was a freshman,” said his dad, Dan, who coaches baseball at his son’s powerhouse high school. “He was throwing 85 to 87 (miles per hour) as a ninth grader. His senior year he was sitting at 94 to 96 and he’ll hit 98, 99. It’s crazy because velocity is what everyone’s amazed by and after games they’d come up and say, ‘He hit 100 twice and 99 four times.’ I don’t know how he does it. I ask him all time and he says, ‘Dad, you created the monster.”

 

Yesterday, as you know, would have been Roberto Clemente’s 76th birthday. In honor of “the great one” I took a picture with his statue before the game.

 

Today’s Pitching Matchup:

Alex Sanabia 1-1, 4.63 ERA

VS

Paul Maholm 7-11, 4.86 ERA

Sean West was placed on the DL and the Marlins re-called Sanabia from Triple-A for the start. Alex is 6-1 with a 1.92 ERA in the minors this season.

Maholm pitched well in his last start against the Astros, 6.2 innings, three runs on nine hitsand struck out four. He picked up his 11th loss of the season due to lack of run support. (Pirates lost 3-2)