Okay guys, and gals: I believe my first post went on the hockey blog. I cleary don't know what I'm doing. Anyway, glad to be a part of this. I just had to get hockey season over with, but I'm ready to talk Bucco baseball.
I'm going to make this first one short and sweet.
I'm watching baseball more than at any time in my life and have really been following the Pirates. And yes, I will even watch if they start to stink.
Pittsburgh dropped a 5-1 decision to Cleveland Friday night in Cleveland. The bats must have stayed in Pittsburgh International because the offense was bad.
Kevin Correia didn't pitch bad, but he took the loss. The bullpen gave up three late runs and the Indians were able to shut down the Bucs without any trouble. No rallying tonight for Pittsburgh.
I will have more in the coming weeks and months.
Thanks again for allowing me to contribute. It should be fun.
Friday, June 17, 2011
The Buc and the Thrash: a Cautionary Tale
(Please note, I am posting this in conjunction with a Hockey (and politics) blog I run as well)
Stop me if you’ve heard this one before. After years and years of a sports team posting losing records, trading away superstars for questionable returns, dwindling away their credibility in the community with incompetent roster management by a much ridiculed GM, and piss poor ownership support in terms of payroll authorizations, the team has started to, at least on the surface, turn the corner. A young nucleus of blossoming stars is shaping itself together. Fans who had abandoned their support of the team are starting to come back on board. A few savvy offseason acquisitions are performing well above expectations. It seems that everything is in place for the team, which had bottomed out the previous season, to start to make a legitimate run, at least for respectability, if not for Titles and Championships quite yet. Approaching the halfway point of the season, the team seems to be gelling and moving in the right direction. There is buzz about who, and how many total players, will be representing the franchise in the All-Star game.
This is obviously a situation that the Pittsburgh Pirates currently find themselves in, and that is fantastic for baseball, for the city, and most of all for the long suffering fans of the beleaguered franchise. Not to throw a wet-blanket upon unbridled optimism that is now surrounding this current squad and its possible future incarnations, but I’d like to pull some posts from one of my favorite sports blogs that was centered upon a team that found itself in a similar situation 6 months ago: The Atlanta Thrashers.
To say the “wheels fell off” for the Thrashers would not do their fans justice. The wheels fell off, the floor of the car rusted out, the driver (fans) fell through the floor, was dragged through a bramble bush on the roadside after falling out, and was left barely conscious on side of the road, when a roving rouge biker gang drove up, smashed in his car with baseball bats, set it on fire, took his wallet, and spit upon him and kicked him a few times in the gut just for good measure.
Now I’m not suggesting that the Pirates are going to be pulled up by the roots and relocated to the Central Canadian Prairie anytime soon. There is a better chance of the Pope resigning from his post as head of the Church to take up a lifelong secret desire to become a Hula Dancer.
But when reading over these posts take note of how a situation for a sports team that looked so promising in the not-so-distant past went horribly bad, horribly quickly. The posts are from the Bird Watcher’s Anonymous blog, a group of well informed, well written dedicated fans of the now suddenly defunct hockey team.
***
Proceed with caution though, as the landscape may shift at any time.
If you need me, I'll be over there. Being giddy.
***
As you can see, and as I'm sure you already know, sports teams go through wild and unpredictable swings all the time. 6 months after Atlanta Thrasher fans were wild and giddy with anticipation; their team was pulled right out from under their noses. There are many possible lessons here, but I will leave it up to your to draw your own conclusions.
Stop me if you’ve heard this one before. After years and years of a sports team posting losing records, trading away superstars for questionable returns, dwindling away their credibility in the community with incompetent roster management by a much ridiculed GM, and piss poor ownership support in terms of payroll authorizations, the team has started to, at least on the surface, turn the corner. A young nucleus of blossoming stars is shaping itself together. Fans who had abandoned their support of the team are starting to come back on board. A few savvy offseason acquisitions are performing well above expectations. It seems that everything is in place for the team, which had bottomed out the previous season, to start to make a legitimate run, at least for respectability, if not for Titles and Championships quite yet. Approaching the halfway point of the season, the team seems to be gelling and moving in the right direction. There is buzz about who, and how many total players, will be representing the franchise in the All-Star game.
This is obviously a situation that the Pittsburgh Pirates currently find themselves in, and that is fantastic for baseball, for the city, and most of all for the long suffering fans of the beleaguered franchise. Not to throw a wet-blanket upon unbridled optimism that is now surrounding this current squad and its possible future incarnations, but I’d like to pull some posts from one of my favorite sports blogs that was centered upon a team that found itself in a similar situation 6 months ago: The Atlanta Thrashers.
To say the “wheels fell off” for the Thrashers would not do their fans justice. The wheels fell off, the floor of the car rusted out, the driver (fans) fell through the floor, was dragged through a bramble bush on the roadside after falling out, and was left barely conscious on side of the road, when a roving rouge biker gang drove up, smashed in his car with baseball bats, set it on fire, took his wallet, and spit upon him and kicked him a few times in the gut just for good measure.
Now I’m not suggesting that the Pirates are going to be pulled up by the roots and relocated to the Central Canadian Prairie anytime soon. There is a better chance of the Pope resigning from his post as head of the Church to take up a lifelong secret desire to become a Hula Dancer.
But when reading over these posts take note of how a situation for a sports team that looked so promising in the not-so-distant past went horribly bad, horribly quickly. The posts are from the Bird Watcher’s Anonymous blog, a group of well informed, well written dedicated fans of the now suddenly defunct hockey team.
***
11/26/2010
I'm Thankful the Thrashers are Playing Smarter Hockey
The Atlanta Thrashers are playing the most intelligent brand of hockey in team history. Hallelujah!
When the team first arrived in 1999 I was extremely excited to have the NHL in the city I call home. I watched every game that was televised and attended nearly every home game in person after Season 2. I watched many defeats and many bad decisions over the last decade. Given that context, I keep pinching myself when I watch this version of the Atlanta Thrashers--because they're playing a smarter brand of hockey.
Many of the things that I'm seeing are subtle. About two weeks ago, I was at the home game and the Thrashers had a power play. The puck came over to the right side point men. That point man noticed that the opposing PK unit was sagging off him to protect the passing lanes. Inside of just burying his head and blasting a long shot, the Thrashers defenseman moved in towards the top of the circle which caused the defending PK man to move towards him opening up the middle of the ice more. It was a very small thing, but it was an adjustment that elite players or elite teams make and bad teams don't. It was an adjustment previous Thrashers teams rarely made.
On Wednesday, the Thrashers beat a very good Red Wings team. The Wings didn't bring their best effort after the 1st period and the Thrashers made them pay for that. In the past, the Thrashers probably would have found a way to let the Red Wings climb back into the game. What impressed me the most about the victory over the Wings was that the Thrashers forwards were consistently getting the step on the Wings defenders and creating 2 on 1 rushes. The Thrashers ability to get out wide on Detroit's defenders was obviously the result of a team strategy because more than one line was taking this approach. The coaching staff saw something they thought they could exploit on video and the team bought into the strategy and then they executed it.
The Thrashers probably have the best coaching staff in the history of the franchise--and it shows in many little details. The Thrashers players are making little clever plays in each game. Those small improvements will not always produce a victory but over the long run they could add a couple of wins to the team's total. Remember how competitive the Eastern Conference playoff race usually is--stealing a few extra points here and there over 82 games could prove to be enormous.
Credit also should go to GM Rick Dudley. Not only did he bring in this coaching staff, but he brought in many of the players who fill out the roster. Some of these guys are simply smarter hockey players than the guys they replaced. The players have embraced the team concept, they are listening to the coaching staff. The scoring by committee has been enough to keep the team in the hunt.
Also the Thrashers PP unit has not allowed a shorthanded goal against--something the PP defense should get credit for.
The on-ice direction of the team is very good right now. Certainly the players will make some boneheaded plays as we go along, but the ratio of stupid decisions to smart decisions has shifted in the correct direction--and I'm very thankful for that.
11/27/2010 Thrashers Blank Habs 3-0, That's Four & Counting
Yes, Thrashers fans, that's four wins in a row. Not just wins, but clear-cut, make-a-statement, we-can-hang-with-anybody kind of wins.
I almost don't want to jinx it by talking about it.
But I will. Hit the jump for more.
Some particulars of note:
- Atlanta put 47 shots on net to Montreal's 25. In the second, the Thrashers fired 23 shots to the Habs' 4.
- I think the Thrashers may have found a goalie. Ondrej Pavelec has allowed just 4 goals in his last 5 starts, with a save percentage of .974 over that span.
- Atlanta has now beaten three of the league's top five teams. They also have a plus-2 Goal Differential, which is a pretty good predictor of post-season eligibility.
12/05/2010 Five Game Report Card: Games Twenty-One through Twenty-Five
This Five Game Report Card covers the games beginning with the overtime win against the New York Islanders and ending with the overtime win against the Colorado Avalanche. The Thrashers won all five games in this series thanks to, in large part, the heroics of Dustin Byfuglien. Big Buff netted a team-leading 4 goals and team-leading 6 assists to go along with a team-leading +5 and team-leading 30 shots.
Yeah, he was pretty awesome.
Let's not forget the incredible play of Ondrej Pavelec. OP shut out the Montreal Canadians and gave up just one goal to the Detroit Red Wings, New York Islanders, and Boston Bruins.
During this series, the Thrashers finally started looking like the team that was promised: a hard-working team that gets scoring from all players. Perhaps most promising? Not a single Thrasher was a minus-player over this series.
Over This Five Game Period
· Record: 5-0-0 (1.000 P%)
· Goals Scored/Allowed: 17/4 (4.250)
· PP%/PK%: 23.8%/89.5%
· Goal Leaders: Byfuglien (4), Peverley (3), Stewart (2)
· Assist Leaders: Byfuglien (6), Ladd, Enstrom (5)
· Point Leaders: Byfuglien (10), Enstrom, Ladd (6)
· +/- Leaders/Trailers: Byfuglien (+5), Oduya, Enstrom (+4), Hainsey, Burmistrov (+1 as trailers)
· Team +/-: Plus-44
12/18/2010
Postgame: Thrashers/Devils - Wow. Just, wow.
Attention Thrashers' fans: I know your surroundings must be unfamiliar to you. Some of you have never been here before, thus leaving you confused and possibly frightened. Others of you have been here before, but it's been so long that you've forgotten. For your convenience, I have drawn up a map to help you better orientate yourselves:
Proceed with caution though, as the landscape may shift at any time.
If you need me, I'll be over there. Being giddy.
***
As you can see, and as I'm sure you already know, sports teams go through wild and unpredictable swings all the time. 6 months after Atlanta Thrasher fans were wild and giddy with anticipation; their team was pulled right out from under their noses. There are many possible lessons here, but I will leave it up to your to draw your own conclusions.
Taking Out the Trash
When you have had 18 straight losing seasons, you take wins any way you can get them. When the chance for a 3 game sweep presents itself, against a terrible team all too willing to give games away, you take it and run like hell. The 2011 Pittsburgh Pirates are playing like a viable MLB team. The Houston Astros are downright awful, playing at a pace that would duplicate the 105 loss season the Bucs had a year ago. They were ripe for the picking and the Bucs took as much as they could get. That is what good teams do, beat the bad teams.The Pirates are looking like a good team, maybe not the most talented team, but a good TEAM.
Yesterday's game started off with a bang when GI Jones blasted a 3-Run job for his 7th HR of the season and RBI's numbers 22,23, and 24. For those scoring at home, that is one more HR and 1 less RBI than Overpaid has in 71 more at-bats. Moving on, J-Mac found himself in trouble quite often, loading the bases with no harm in the bottom the first. The Bucs went down in order in the top of the 2nd and the Astros, ever the gracious host, followed suit in the bottom half. In the third, the Bucs went down in order again but the Astros threatened when Carlos Lee doubled to left with 2 outs and Hunter Pence already on first. Pence was waved home but Tabata's relay got him in time, prompting a Mr. Sunshine "Browngasm" per Pucks_And_Pols.
The top of the 4th was yet another 1-2-3 for the Bucs and the Astros made it interesting the bottom of the inning, scoring a pair to cut the Bucco lead to 3-2. The same Bucs trio that went down consecutively in the 2nd did the same in the 5th, giving the Bucs 3 runs on 2 hits through 5. The Astros tied it up in the bottom of the inning when Pence doubled in Michael Bourn, 3-3 after 5. However, as has been the case for the 2011 Bucs, they got the runs right back in the top of the 6th. As has also been the case for the 2011 Bucs, they got a considerable amount of help from the opposition in doing so.
After Tabata and Paul went down to start the inning, Cutch singled up the middle. The Pride or PR matched Cutch's single and then the fun started. GI Jones lined a 2-out shot to center and the speedy Bourn ran on, looking like he had a beat on the ball. However, he COMPLETELY MISSED with his glove the ball hit his wrist, allowing Cutch score and giving the Bucs a 4-3 lead. Josh Harrison then doubled the Pride of PR home and GI Jones was nabbed at the plate to end the inning, Bucs 5, Astros 3. If Bourn makes the fairly routine catch, it's the end of the inning and it's 3-3, but he makes the Astros 56th error in 70 games. A poor throw by Corporan in the 9th would make it Heinz 57, tying the Astros with the Cubs for first in MLB for errors. It's no wonder those 2 teams are in the NL Central basement..............
J-Mac again found himself with a RISP in the bottom of the 6th and with 1 on and 2 out was lifted for Tony Watson. The rookie continued his hot streak by getting a line out to end the inning and preserve the 2-run cushion. Can't say enough about Watson's performance this season, most of his appearances in high pressuers situations. Two of the same three guys who went down in order in the 2nd and 5th innings did the same in the 7th, only this time Brandon Wood made the 1-2-3 inning official, pinch hitting for J-Mac. The Astros also did nothing with their share of the 7th and the Bucs had 2 on and 1 out in the top of the 8th but the Pride of PR did what he does when he isn't driving in big runs: GIDP to end the inning. Watson retired the first 2 batters he faced in the bottom of the 8th before walking Angel Sanchez and giving way to Tim Wood, who got the final out of the inning.
The Bucs had lefty specialist Matt Diaz on base but Cedeno and Dusty Brown, the guys who went down in order in the 2nd, 5th, and 7th innings, failed to get him in. Jose Veras, not Hammer Hanrahan, came on to pitch the 9th for the Bucs and the adventure began. Maybe Hanrahan was tired from obliterating opposing batters or maybe he was too busy chasing Reg Dunlop around afrer he called his wife a lesbian. Anyways, Jose Veras was Jake Taylor's choice, looking for his first save with the Bucs. Veras has been a solid late reliever his entire career, but coming in to yesterday's save attempt, he had converted 3 saves in 10 chances over the span of his MLB career. He doesn't exactly have ice water in his veins like the Hammer.
Veras allowed the first batter, PH Jason Bourgeois, to single and promptly steal second. Bourn then hit a tweener towards the hole between 1st and 2nd, but Walker showed nice range in getting the ball quickly and threw on to Overpaid in time for the first out. Jeff Keppinger then singled in Bourgeois to cut the lead to 5-4, with 1 on and 1 out. Pence was next and he hit a chopper to 3rd, which Wood fielded and came up firing to first, ignoring the tying run moving to second when it seemed he had an easy play there. The next batter was Carlos Lee and he ran a 3-0 count on Veras before getting the green light and ripping a line drive foul down the 3rd base line. After fouling off a pitch to cut it to 3-2, Lee hit a hot shot to 3rd which Wood could not field cleanly, kicking the ball towards shortstop. Wood did not give up on the ball, fielded it and threw JUST in time to get Land Mass Lee, chugging up the line. Replayed showed Lee was clearly out by about a millimeter, but inch or a mile, it was the final out, Bucs 5, Astros 4. Bucs are 2 games above .500, 35-33!!!!!
Player of the Game: GI Jones- 1 for 4 with the 3-run HR and also hit the error ball that gave us the W.
Head Scratcher of the Game: Not really of the game, but cumulatively. GI Jones appears to be a better option at 1B than Overpaid for about 1/10 the price and in RF that Paul or Diaz for about 1/4 the price. Jones adds power to a power sick lineup; he hit 21 HR in his first half season in 2009 and last year hit 21 again and also had 86 RBI. His fielding % is .01 behind Overpaid and I've never seen him trip over a ball like Diaz did in RF against the Mets last Friday. People who say 2010 was a disappointment for Jones beacuse he hit as many HR in a full season as he did in half of 2009 are crazy if they expected him to hit 42 bombs.
Face Palm of the Game: Not so much the decision to not use the Hammer, because Hanrahan probably needed a break, but the performance of Veras was awful. Jake Taylor likes to play the odds, batting Ronny Cedeno and his .157 June average 2nd because he was 5 for 10 career against a guy. So why send a guy out for a save when he was 3 for 10 in save opportunities prior? Oh well, he got the save and the Bucs got the sweep. Can't question a winning manager, unless he's Mike Tomlin and just lost the SB after winning the division for the 3rd time four years, going 12 -4 playing 1/4 of a season with no QB, 30 different OL combos, and taking the team to a 2nd SB in 3 years, winning more home AFC title games in 4 years than Cowher did in 15.... Obviously sarcasm there; although I was ticked off at Tomlin after "unleash hell" was a failure but the way he got that team playing last season proved why he is coaching the best franchise in the NFL. Just taking a swipe at some of the SmizBlog posters who trash MT, Arians, LeBeau, Rooneys, Steelers Draft picks like Ziggy "AFC Divisional Playoff Clinching Sack" Hood, and like to point out the 4 years the Pens didn't make the playoffs out of the last 20......
Overall, a very nice series. The Astros are lousy, they helped us get some runs, etc. But the Bucs are also responsible for making their own luck. Jones put the bat on the ball, it's not our fault Bourn can't catch it. Wood boots a ball, but NEVER GAVE UP and got the final out at first. Good teams get lucky because they put themselves in a situation to benefit from luck. Awful teams are the Houston Astros. Ugly wins are wins none the less, especially since there is no such thing as a beautiful loss. After 18 years of losing baseball, ugly wins , pretty wins, downright disastrous wins, we'll take 'em all! Freak Show part II might be on it's way to make this a fun summer for Pittsburgh Baseball fans.
Yesterday's game started off with a bang when GI Jones blasted a 3-Run job for his 7th HR of the season and RBI's numbers 22,23, and 24. For those scoring at home, that is one more HR and 1 less RBI than Overpaid has in 71 more at-bats. Moving on, J-Mac found himself in trouble quite often, loading the bases with no harm in the bottom the first. The Bucs went down in order in the top of the 2nd and the Astros, ever the gracious host, followed suit in the bottom half. In the third, the Bucs went down in order again but the Astros threatened when Carlos Lee doubled to left with 2 outs and Hunter Pence already on first. Pence was waved home but Tabata's relay got him in time, prompting a Mr. Sunshine "Browngasm" per Pucks_And_Pols.
The top of the 4th was yet another 1-2-3 for the Bucs and the Astros made it interesting the bottom of the inning, scoring a pair to cut the Bucco lead to 3-2. The same Bucs trio that went down consecutively in the 2nd did the same in the 5th, giving the Bucs 3 runs on 2 hits through 5. The Astros tied it up in the bottom of the inning when Pence doubled in Michael Bourn, 3-3 after 5. However, as has been the case for the 2011 Bucs, they got the runs right back in the top of the 6th. As has also been the case for the 2011 Bucs, they got a considerable amount of help from the opposition in doing so.
After Tabata and Paul went down to start the inning, Cutch singled up the middle. The Pride or PR matched Cutch's single and then the fun started. GI Jones lined a 2-out shot to center and the speedy Bourn ran on, looking like he had a beat on the ball. However, he COMPLETELY MISSED with his glove the ball hit his wrist, allowing Cutch score and giving the Bucs a 4-3 lead. Josh Harrison then doubled the Pride of PR home and GI Jones was nabbed at the plate to end the inning, Bucs 5, Astros 3. If Bourn makes the fairly routine catch, it's the end of the inning and it's 3-3, but he makes the Astros 56th error in 70 games. A poor throw by Corporan in the 9th would make it Heinz 57, tying the Astros with the Cubs for first in MLB for errors. It's no wonder those 2 teams are in the NL Central basement..............
J-Mac again found himself with a RISP in the bottom of the 6th and with 1 on and 2 out was lifted for Tony Watson. The rookie continued his hot streak by getting a line out to end the inning and preserve the 2-run cushion. Can't say enough about Watson's performance this season, most of his appearances in high pressuers situations. Two of the same three guys who went down in order in the 2nd and 5th innings did the same in the 7th, only this time Brandon Wood made the 1-2-3 inning official, pinch hitting for J-Mac. The Astros also did nothing with their share of the 7th and the Bucs had 2 on and 1 out in the top of the 8th but the Pride of PR did what he does when he isn't driving in big runs: GIDP to end the inning. Watson retired the first 2 batters he faced in the bottom of the 8th before walking Angel Sanchez and giving way to Tim Wood, who got the final out of the inning.
The Bucs had lefty specialist Matt Diaz on base but Cedeno and Dusty Brown, the guys who went down in order in the 2nd, 5th, and 7th innings, failed to get him in. Jose Veras, not Hammer Hanrahan, came on to pitch the 9th for the Bucs and the adventure began. Maybe Hanrahan was tired from obliterating opposing batters or maybe he was too busy chasing Reg Dunlop around afrer he called his wife a lesbian. Anyways, Jose Veras was Jake Taylor's choice, looking for his first save with the Bucs. Veras has been a solid late reliever his entire career, but coming in to yesterday's save attempt, he had converted 3 saves in 10 chances over the span of his MLB career. He doesn't exactly have ice water in his veins like the Hammer.
Veras allowed the first batter, PH Jason Bourgeois, to single and promptly steal second. Bourn then hit a tweener towards the hole between 1st and 2nd, but Walker showed nice range in getting the ball quickly and threw on to Overpaid in time for the first out. Jeff Keppinger then singled in Bourgeois to cut the lead to 5-4, with 1 on and 1 out. Pence was next and he hit a chopper to 3rd, which Wood fielded and came up firing to first, ignoring the tying run moving to second when it seemed he had an easy play there. The next batter was Carlos Lee and he ran a 3-0 count on Veras before getting the green light and ripping a line drive foul down the 3rd base line. After fouling off a pitch to cut it to 3-2, Lee hit a hot shot to 3rd which Wood could not field cleanly, kicking the ball towards shortstop. Wood did not give up on the ball, fielded it and threw JUST in time to get Land Mass Lee, chugging up the line. Replayed showed Lee was clearly out by about a millimeter, but inch or a mile, it was the final out, Bucs 5, Astros 4. Bucs are 2 games above .500, 35-33!!!!!
Player of the Game: GI Jones- 1 for 4 with the 3-run HR and also hit the error ball that gave us the W.
Head Scratcher of the Game: Not really of the game, but cumulatively. GI Jones appears to be a better option at 1B than Overpaid for about 1/10 the price and in RF that Paul or Diaz for about 1/4 the price. Jones adds power to a power sick lineup; he hit 21 HR in his first half season in 2009 and last year hit 21 again and also had 86 RBI. His fielding % is .01 behind Overpaid and I've never seen him trip over a ball like Diaz did in RF against the Mets last Friday. People who say 2010 was a disappointment for Jones beacuse he hit as many HR in a full season as he did in half of 2009 are crazy if they expected him to hit 42 bombs.
Face Palm of the Game: Not so much the decision to not use the Hammer, because Hanrahan probably needed a break, but the performance of Veras was awful. Jake Taylor likes to play the odds, batting Ronny Cedeno and his .157 June average 2nd because he was 5 for 10 career against a guy. So why send a guy out for a save when he was 3 for 10 in save opportunities prior? Oh well, he got the save and the Bucs got the sweep. Can't question a winning manager, unless he's Mike Tomlin and just lost the SB after winning the division for the 3rd time four years, going 12 -4 playing 1/4 of a season with no QB, 30 different OL combos, and taking the team to a 2nd SB in 3 years, winning more home AFC title games in 4 years than Cowher did in 15.... Obviously sarcasm there; although I was ticked off at Tomlin after "unleash hell" was a failure but the way he got that team playing last season proved why he is coaching the best franchise in the NFL. Just taking a swipe at some of the SmizBlog posters who trash MT, Arians, LeBeau, Rooneys, Steelers Draft picks like Ziggy "AFC Divisional Playoff Clinching Sack" Hood, and like to point out the 4 years the Pens didn't make the playoffs out of the last 20......
Overall, a very nice series. The Astros are lousy, they helped us get some runs, etc. But the Bucs are also responsible for making their own luck. Jones put the bat on the ball, it's not our fault Bourn can't catch it. Wood boots a ball, but NEVER GAVE UP and got the final out at first. Good teams get lucky because they put themselves in a situation to benefit from luck. Awful teams are the Houston Astros. Ugly wins are wins none the less, especially since there is no such thing as a beautiful loss. After 18 years of losing baseball, ugly wins , pretty wins, downright disastrous wins, we'll take 'em all! Freak Show part II might be on it's way to make this a fun summer for Pittsburgh Baseball fans.
Thursday, June 16, 2011
Why Are These Bucs Winning?
Obviously, a large part of the answer is pitching. Not just starting pitching, but pitching overall. The Bucs starting pitching was horrible last year with a staff including Charlie Morton, Ross Ohlendorf, Paul Maholm, Zach Duke, Jeff Karstens, and Brian Burres accounting for 131 of 162 starts. This year's rotation features Paul Maholm, Jeff Karstens, Charlie Morton, James McDonald, and Kevin Correia. Maholm started 32 games in 2010, going 9-15 with a 5.10 ERA. Duke was 8-15 with a 5.72, Karstens 3-10 with a 4.92, Morton was 2-12 with a 7.57, McDonald came over in a trade and was 4-5 with a 3.52, and KC was in SD, going 10-10 with a 5.40 ERA.
Those stats don't look too promising and the offensive additions to the team were Matt Diaz and Lyle Overpaid. Diaz was brought in to hit lefties as he is a .326 career batter against them. He also came cheap, at $2 million, but is hitting .220 vs lefties and is yet to homer . Overpaid was brought into lend a run driving left handed bat and solid defense to the 1B position. Overpaid is a career .272 hitter and his 162 averages are as follows: 17 HR, 74 RBI, 40 2B, and a .798 OPS. Obviously, Lyle has not performed to expectations, especially not for his $5M salary. He is hitting .229 with 5 HR and 25 RBI and a .666 OPS, translating to 12 HR and 60 RBI and his fielding is .990, .05 below his career average. He made 6 errors in 153 games in 2010 and his career high is 11 in 158 games in 2004. He currently has 6 errors, on pace for 14.5......
So one would think with a pitching staff coming in lugging an astronomical ERA and the offensive weapons brought in to offset it's ineffectiveness being fairly futile, the outlook would be something like another 100 loss season. But no sir, not these Bucs. I have said that a lot in the last month and that is because it is true, not these Bucs. They are never out of game, they play more fundamentally sound than teams of the recent past, they come back when they're down, and they're 34-33.
The pitching has been superb, to put it mildly. Ray Searage certainly deserves his share of the credit for that, but so do the pitchers. Morton has bounced back remarkably, going 7-3 with a 3.21 ERA. Maholm is 3-7 but with a 3.12, Karstens is 4-4 with a 2.66, Correia is 8-5 with a 3.73 , and McDonald is 4-4 with a 4.80. All of these guys are performing at career levels and the bullpen has been more than reliable. Resop and Moskos have been on fire and Joel "The Hammer" Hanrahan has 19 saves in 19 attempts with a ERA of 1.39. Outstanding.
The offense has struggled outside of the production of Cutch and Walker. Kdro has been a major disappointment and mercifully went to the DL. Overpaid and Diaz have been mediocre at best. Snyder and Doumit were producing well, but are both injured of course. Tabata's AVG is down but OBP is unreal by comparison. GI Jones has been average and Xavier Paul slightly above. Brandon Wood hasn't done much and outside of a 2 week stretch, Ronny Cedeno still flat out sucks.
This leads me to conclude that while the pitching is the main catalyst in this potential turnaround, the overall attitude of the ball club is different, as well. While the offense isn't pumping in runs, they are getting timely hits in close games.There is also a little bit of luck involved, but luck is only notable if you take advantage of it or put yourself in a situation to benefit from it. The Bucs have done both.
The Manager also deserves some praise. Clint Hurdle is a kind of a d*ck. He's short, sarcastic, and smarmy in a lot of interviews. But he has the respect of the players and plays to win. He might run the team out of an inning here or there or sometimes have a slow hook, but the good outweighs the bad. He knows for a team lacking power to win, they need to steal bases and play good defense. He knows that for a team that isn't going to score a ton of runs, you may need to use 3 relievers in one inning to keep your opponent off the board. He knows a ball in play that can be fielded is better than trying to paint the corners and walk a ton of guys. And the best part is, he employs it all in every game. A manager might not improve a team's W/L total by more than a few games, but his decisions have earned us more victories 67 games into his first season than RoboRussell's did during his 3 years at the helm.
Right now, Hurdle needs to keep the training rolling and keep the guys focused on the future and not the past. Past Pirates teams would fall in the tank, realizing that they are not much different than the 105 loss team of a year ago. Not this team, not these Bucs.
Those stats don't look too promising and the offensive additions to the team were Matt Diaz and Lyle Overpaid. Diaz was brought in to hit lefties as he is a .326 career batter against them. He also came cheap, at $2 million, but is hitting .220 vs lefties and is yet to homer . Overpaid was brought into lend a run driving left handed bat and solid defense to the 1B position. Overpaid is a career .272 hitter and his 162 averages are as follows: 17 HR, 74 RBI, 40 2B, and a .798 OPS. Obviously, Lyle has not performed to expectations, especially not for his $5M salary. He is hitting .229 with 5 HR and 25 RBI and a .666 OPS, translating to 12 HR and 60 RBI and his fielding is .990, .05 below his career average. He made 6 errors in 153 games in 2010 and his career high is 11 in 158 games in 2004. He currently has 6 errors, on pace for 14.5......
So one would think with a pitching staff coming in lugging an astronomical ERA and the offensive weapons brought in to offset it's ineffectiveness being fairly futile, the outlook would be something like another 100 loss season. But no sir, not these Bucs. I have said that a lot in the last month and that is because it is true, not these Bucs. They are never out of game, they play more fundamentally sound than teams of the recent past, they come back when they're down, and they're 34-33.
The pitching has been superb, to put it mildly. Ray Searage certainly deserves his share of the credit for that, but so do the pitchers. Morton has bounced back remarkably, going 7-3 with a 3.21 ERA. Maholm is 3-7 but with a 3.12, Karstens is 4-4 with a 2.66, Correia is 8-5 with a 3.73 , and McDonald is 4-4 with a 4.80. All of these guys are performing at career levels and the bullpen has been more than reliable. Resop and Moskos have been on fire and Joel "The Hammer" Hanrahan has 19 saves in 19 attempts with a ERA of 1.39. Outstanding.
The offense has struggled outside of the production of Cutch and Walker. Kdro has been a major disappointment and mercifully went to the DL. Overpaid and Diaz have been mediocre at best. Snyder and Doumit were producing well, but are both injured of course. Tabata's AVG is down but OBP is unreal by comparison. GI Jones has been average and Xavier Paul slightly above. Brandon Wood hasn't done much and outside of a 2 week stretch, Ronny Cedeno still flat out sucks.
This leads me to conclude that while the pitching is the main catalyst in this potential turnaround, the overall attitude of the ball club is different, as well. While the offense isn't pumping in runs, they are getting timely hits in close games.There is also a little bit of luck involved, but luck is only notable if you take advantage of it or put yourself in a situation to benefit from it. The Bucs have done both.
The Manager also deserves some praise. Clint Hurdle is a kind of a d*ck. He's short, sarcastic, and smarmy in a lot of interviews. But he has the respect of the players and plays to win. He might run the team out of an inning here or there or sometimes have a slow hook, but the good outweighs the bad. He knows for a team lacking power to win, they need to steal bases and play good defense. He knows that for a team that isn't going to score a ton of runs, you may need to use 3 relievers in one inning to keep your opponent off the board. He knows a ball in play that can be fielded is better than trying to paint the corners and walk a ton of guys. And the best part is, he employs it all in every game. A manager might not improve a team's W/L total by more than a few games, but his decisions have earned us more victories 67 games into his first season than RoboRussell's did during his 3 years at the helm.
Right now, Hurdle needs to keep the training rolling and keep the guys focused on the future and not the past. Past Pirates teams would fall in the tank, realizing that they are not much different than the 105 loss team of a year ago. Not this team, not these Bucs.
The Impossible Dream?
In order to finish the 2011 campaign with a .500 record, the Pittsburgh Pirates would have to improve their W/L record by 24 games from the 2010 season. That is not at all impossible; the Tigers did exactly that from 2005 to 2006, going from 71 to 95 wins..The Rays improved by 31 games from 2007 to 2008, going from 66-96 to 97-65, making a 24 game turnaround look extremely possible. The 2006 Tigers increased their payroll from about $69 Million to $82 Million, $13 million dollars or so. The Rays shift in salary was far more drastic, nearly doubling the $24M spent in 2007 to almost $44M in 2008. The Bucs increased their payroll from $35 Million in 2010 to $45 million in 2011. Fairly comparable numbers, more on that later.
In Houston last night, the Bucs took another step towards proving they are extremely interested in making a notable turnaround. While the offense came in struggling a bit and Charlie Morton didn't have his best stuff, the Bucs took their 3rd straight W to move to 34-33 on the season. They did what a team playing for a winning season should do, dispatching a hapless Houston bunch who appears to be doing little more than collecting their paychecks. But in a tight division such as the NL Central every win is huge and none should be taken for granted. As we sit here now, the Bucs are currently in 4th place in the Central, but only 4.0 games out of first. The Bucs are in 5th place in the Wild Card chase, only 3.0 games out there. The NL Central, oft referred to as the Comedy Central, has 4 teams currently posting winning records. While it is the only division in all of baseball housing 6 teams, only the AL East is having a better overall season so far.
The Bucs struck first last night after Cutch drew a 2 out walk in the first and the Pride of PR drove him home with an RBI triple. Even while slumping, Walker is clutch and drives in big runs for this team. Morton found himself in trouble early, loading the bases in the bottom of the first, but he was able to get out of it untouched. The top of the 2nd featured the first MLB hit for newly acquiredSherman Tank catcher Michael McKenry. The ball he lined firmly into left field then became an innings long discussion between Walkie and Mr. Sunshine, explaining MLB authentication processes, who you can and can't trust with an authentic ball, where Walkie's ball from his first W is located, and so on, and so on, and so on, and so on, and so on. Honestly, this went for what seemed like weeks.
Morton looked more like his 2011 self in the bottom of the 2nd, mowing down the Astros in order. The Bucs added to their lead when batting vs lefty specialist, but only hitting .220 against lefties Matt Diaz drove a 1 out double down the LF line. Cutch popped out on what looked like a blooper that was going to drop, bringing up the Pride of PR with a RISP and 2 outs. Anybody who has been following this team knows exactly what happens next: Walker gets Diaz in with a single and the Bucs have a 2-0 lead. The bottom of the 3rd was a little bit rocky, with Morton surrendering back to back singles to start the inning before striking out the next 2 batters. Just when he appeared to pull another Houdini, Brett Wallace singled to to score the 'Stros first run of the series. After a Brandon Wood error, Morton had the bases loaded for the second time in 3 innings. Again, he didn't flinch, getting Clint Barmes to ground into an inning ending FC.
The top of the 4th didn't feature much outside of a Cedeno single but in the bottom of the 4th, the Astros tied it at 2. After a leadoff walk to the 8 hitter J.R. Towles, pitcher JA Happ sacrificed him to second and Michael Bourn singled him home, advancing to second on the throw. Bourn, the MLB leader in steals, swiped third but was stranded there as Morton retired the next 2 batters. The Bucs threatened in the 5th, with Cutch smacking a 1 out double and the Pride of PR drawing an IBB. Overpaid grounded into an FC that put runners on 2nd adn 3rd and Wood walked to load the bases for McKenry. Unfortunately, he could not duplicate his earlier feat and left the bases loaded, contributing to the 13 runners LOB, 9 in scoring position. The Astros took a 3-2 lead in the bottom of the 5th when Barmes doubled in Chris Johnson.
The Bucs took the lead right back in the top of the 6th, though. Xavier Paul, pinch hitting for Morton, doubled to LCF and Tabata followed with a single but couldn't get the speedy Paul home. GI Jones then replaced Diaz and rewared Jake Taylor with an RBI single to tie it at 3-3. Cutch reached on an error, scoring Tabata and giving the lead back to the good guys, 4-3. Walker's sac fly scored Jones and the Bucs had a 5-3 lead and 2 extra runs courtesy of the Astros Free Runs Charity!
The Guy Who Cried came on to the pitch a scoreless bottom of the 6th and Paul hit a 2 run HR in the top of the 7th to open the lead to 7-3. That would do it for the scoring on the night, as the Guy Who Cried worked scoreless 7th and 8th innings as well. Future All Star Chris Resop started the 9th by fanning Carlos "Land Mass" Lee, but allowed the next 2 batters to reach, forcing Jake Taylor to lower the Hammer. As has been the case for all of this season, Hanrahan got it done and earned his 19th save in 19 attempts. Dude is FLAT OUT money. Final count, Bucs 7, 'Stros 3.
Player of the Game- Neil Walker ( pronounced Nill in proper Pixburghese). 2 for 3 with 3 RBI , 2 of them with 2 outs, He added a sac fly and walk, with four very productive at bats in 5 attempts. Xavier Paul was 3 for 3 off the bench with 2 RBI, 2 runs and a HR.
Head Scratcher of the Game- Did the Bucs equipment manager get McKenry the ball he actually hit or just pull a spare out of the bag? The world may never know, but Walkie and Mr. Sunshine were all over it.
Face Palm of the Night: More Astro's errors = more Pirates runs. That team is absolutely awful and this is coming from a guy who has been a Pirate fan since birth in 1983, even the last 19 years!
Overall, winning when you're not at your best is important. It's one thing to win a game when everybody is firing on all cylinders, because that is what should happen. The Bucs left a lot of guys on base last night and Morton struggled: 5 IP, 3 ER, 8H, 2 BB, 3K. His WHIP was 2.00, well above his season average of 1.44 (which is still high due to walks). The offense had Charlie's back and showed up when we needed it. Can't say enough about Cutch and Walker's contributions. Cutch is hitting .293 with 10 HR and 38 RBI, translating to 24 HR and 92 RBI, also on pace to score 94 runs. Walker's 45 RBI in 67 games are good for 8th in the NL and he is on pace for 21 HR and 109 RBI. That kind of production from those 2 guys is good enough by itself, let alone if there was a guy who could whack 30-35 HR in there somewhere.
At 34-33, the Bucs are playing solid baseball right now and if they can continue at this pace, I think we will all be able to rejoice. But HONESTLY, who can say they really expected this to be the year this team turned it around? The addition of $10 Million to payroll was mostly in the form of acquiring Snyder at the trade deadline last year and signing Overpaid. Snyder is alright, but is as injury prone as No-Mitt. Overpaid is streaky and lacks HR power, batting .229 with 5 HR and 25 RBIs. Obviously, the pitching is getting it done and the key addition there was a $4M journeyman, Correia, who looks like a bargain steal right now.
You don't have to completely break the bank to compete, but you have to put the money in the right place. Having $12 million dedicated to 2 catchers who are fairly average, and both injury prone, is probably not wise. The team needs a power bat, and I understand that is supposed to be Alvarez, but while his annual hit is currently $2M, we can certainly afford to add another big stick in there to protect the other hitters. Oh, and our payroll is still 27th out of 30.
Tonight, the Bucs have a good chance to complete the sweep and head to the Mistake by the Lake 2 games above .500. J-Mac needs to pick up where he left off saturday and get over the hump of a 4-4 record.The offense needs to convert RISP into runs and after my complaining about lack of XBH, they notched 6 last night. Here's to hoping this is the beginning of a power surge that pushes the Bucs closer in the playoff chase.
In Houston last night, the Bucs took another step towards proving they are extremely interested in making a notable turnaround. While the offense came in struggling a bit and Charlie Morton didn't have his best stuff, the Bucs took their 3rd straight W to move to 34-33 on the season. They did what a team playing for a winning season should do, dispatching a hapless Houston bunch who appears to be doing little more than collecting their paychecks. But in a tight division such as the NL Central every win is huge and none should be taken for granted. As we sit here now, the Bucs are currently in 4th place in the Central, but only 4.0 games out of first. The Bucs are in 5th place in the Wild Card chase, only 3.0 games out there. The NL Central, oft referred to as the Comedy Central, has 4 teams currently posting winning records. While it is the only division in all of baseball housing 6 teams, only the AL East is having a better overall season so far.
The Bucs struck first last night after Cutch drew a 2 out walk in the first and the Pride of PR drove him home with an RBI triple. Even while slumping, Walker is clutch and drives in big runs for this team. Morton found himself in trouble early, loading the bases in the bottom of the first, but he was able to get out of it untouched. The top of the 2nd featured the first MLB hit for newly acquired
Morton looked more like his 2011 self in the bottom of the 2nd, mowing down the Astros in order. The Bucs added to their lead when batting vs lefty specialist, but only hitting .220 against lefties Matt Diaz drove a 1 out double down the LF line. Cutch popped out on what looked like a blooper that was going to drop, bringing up the Pride of PR with a RISP and 2 outs. Anybody who has been following this team knows exactly what happens next: Walker gets Diaz in with a single and the Bucs have a 2-0 lead. The bottom of the 3rd was a little bit rocky, with Morton surrendering back to back singles to start the inning before striking out the next 2 batters. Just when he appeared to pull another Houdini, Brett Wallace singled to to score the 'Stros first run of the series. After a Brandon Wood error, Morton had the bases loaded for the second time in 3 innings. Again, he didn't flinch, getting Clint Barmes to ground into an inning ending FC.
The top of the 4th didn't feature much outside of a Cedeno single but in the bottom of the 4th, the Astros tied it at 2. After a leadoff walk to the 8 hitter J.R. Towles, pitcher JA Happ sacrificed him to second and Michael Bourn singled him home, advancing to second on the throw. Bourn, the MLB leader in steals, swiped third but was stranded there as Morton retired the next 2 batters. The Bucs threatened in the 5th, with Cutch smacking a 1 out double and the Pride of PR drawing an IBB. Overpaid grounded into an FC that put runners on 2nd adn 3rd and Wood walked to load the bases for McKenry. Unfortunately, he could not duplicate his earlier feat and left the bases loaded, contributing to the 13 runners LOB, 9 in scoring position. The Astros took a 3-2 lead in the bottom of the 5th when Barmes doubled in Chris Johnson.
The Bucs took the lead right back in the top of the 6th, though. Xavier Paul, pinch hitting for Morton, doubled to LCF and Tabata followed with a single but couldn't get the speedy Paul home. GI Jones then replaced Diaz and rewared Jake Taylor with an RBI single to tie it at 3-3. Cutch reached on an error, scoring Tabata and giving the lead back to the good guys, 4-3. Walker's sac fly scored Jones and the Bucs had a 5-3 lead and 2 extra runs courtesy of the Astros Free Runs Charity!
The Guy Who Cried came on to the pitch a scoreless bottom of the 6th and Paul hit a 2 run HR in the top of the 7th to open the lead to 7-3. That would do it for the scoring on the night, as the Guy Who Cried worked scoreless 7th and 8th innings as well. Future All Star Chris Resop started the 9th by fanning Carlos "Land Mass" Lee, but allowed the next 2 batters to reach, forcing Jake Taylor to lower the Hammer. As has been the case for all of this season, Hanrahan got it done and earned his 19th save in 19 attempts. Dude is FLAT OUT money. Final count, Bucs 7, 'Stros 3.
Player of the Game- Neil Walker ( pronounced Nill in proper Pixburghese). 2 for 3 with 3 RBI , 2 of them with 2 outs, He added a sac fly and walk, with four very productive at bats in 5 attempts. Xavier Paul was 3 for 3 off the bench with 2 RBI, 2 runs and a HR.
Head Scratcher of the Game- Did the Bucs equipment manager get McKenry the ball he actually hit or just pull a spare out of the bag? The world may never know, but Walkie and Mr. Sunshine were all over it.
Face Palm of the Night: More Astro's errors = more Pirates runs. That team is absolutely awful and this is coming from a guy who has been a Pirate fan since birth in 1983, even the last 19 years!
Overall, winning when you're not at your best is important. It's one thing to win a game when everybody is firing on all cylinders, because that is what should happen. The Bucs left a lot of guys on base last night and Morton struggled: 5 IP, 3 ER, 8H, 2 BB, 3K. His WHIP was 2.00, well above his season average of 1.44 (which is still high due to walks). The offense had Charlie's back and showed up when we needed it. Can't say enough about Cutch and Walker's contributions. Cutch is hitting .293 with 10 HR and 38 RBI, translating to 24 HR and 92 RBI, also on pace to score 94 runs. Walker's 45 RBI in 67 games are good for 8th in the NL and he is on pace for 21 HR and 109 RBI. That kind of production from those 2 guys is good enough by itself, let alone if there was a guy who could whack 30-35 HR in there somewhere.
At 34-33, the Bucs are playing solid baseball right now and if they can continue at this pace, I think we will all be able to rejoice. But HONESTLY, who can say they really expected this to be the year this team turned it around? The addition of $10 Million to payroll was mostly in the form of acquiring Snyder at the trade deadline last year and signing Overpaid. Snyder is alright, but is as injury prone as No-Mitt. Overpaid is streaky and lacks HR power, batting .229 with 5 HR and 25 RBIs. Obviously, the pitching is getting it done and the key addition there was a $4M journeyman, Correia, who looks like a bargain steal right now.
You don't have to completely break the bank to compete, but you have to put the money in the right place. Having $12 million dedicated to 2 catchers who are fairly average, and both injury prone, is probably not wise. The team needs a power bat, and I understand that is supposed to be Alvarez, but while his annual hit is currently $2M, we can certainly afford to add another big stick in there to protect the other hitters. Oh, and our payroll is still 27th out of 30.
Tonight, the Bucs have a good chance to complete the sweep and head to the Mistake by the Lake 2 games above .500. J-Mac needs to pick up where he left off saturday and get over the hump of a 4-4 record.The offense needs to convert RISP into runs and after my complaining about lack of XBH, they notched 6 last night. Here's to hoping this is the beginning of a power surge that pushes the Bucs closer in the playoff chase.
Wednesday, June 15, 2011
Joey Bats
Ever since this blog started one of the projects I've been working on is a comprehesive overview of "the one that got away" Jose Bautista. Jeff Passan just beat me to the punch with a great piece you can find right here: Number Crusher: How Jose Bautista Went From Baseball Vagabond To The Game's Best Slugger
Imagine what the Pirates lineup could look like today if they had nurtured and developed this guys talent instead of casting him aside for a spare part of a spare part. I maintain that if they had the Jose Bautista we are seeing in Toronto, and had drafted Matt Wieters instead of Daniel Moskos, they could be contending not for .500 right now, but for 1st place in the division. With the pitching they are getting and a few more legit bats, its not hard to imagine.
Some highlights from the article include the Pirates not protecting him in the Rule-5 Draft and allowing him to wilt on the vine for a year of his development before reacuiring him as part of the Kris Benson salary dump. But my favorite is the section that explains his exit from Pittsburgh as another case of Pirate management thinking they know whats best for everyone and giving a very cold shoulder if you dare to defy their 'plan.'
"Bautista fell in and out of favor over the next four years with Pittsburgh, the prime of most players' careers. The Pirates batted him toward the bottom of the order and suggested he try to hit the ball to the opposite field. He chafed at the idea, and the sour relationship reached its nadir Aug. 13, 2008, when the team demoted Bautista to Triple-A. He went to Pirates GM Neal Huntington and suggested the team place him on waivers so it could shed the remainder of his $2.4 million salary and he could start over."
Here the Pirates had in their grasp one of the 5 best power hitters to emerge in the last decade, and they let him slip away. All it took was a swing adjustment and a new mental approach in Toronto, and he went from utility guy to Home Run King. How can we trust this Pirate management to build for the future at present when they have been so oblivious to such talent in the past? They had 8 years (from when they drafted him) to figure this guy out and they pissed it away. Toronto turned him into an All Star in less then 2. That math, not the salary cap disparity so often cited, is what damns us in this city to losing baseball for a unforeseeably long forsaken future.
Imagine what the Pirates lineup could look like today if they had nurtured and developed this guys talent instead of casting him aside for a spare part of a spare part. I maintain that if they had the Jose Bautista we are seeing in Toronto, and had drafted Matt Wieters instead of Daniel Moskos, they could be contending not for .500 right now, but for 1st place in the division. With the pitching they are getting and a few more legit bats, its not hard to imagine.
Some highlights from the article include the Pirates not protecting him in the Rule-5 Draft and allowing him to wilt on the vine for a year of his development before reacuiring him as part of the Kris Benson salary dump. But my favorite is the section that explains his exit from Pittsburgh as another case of Pirate management thinking they know whats best for everyone and giving a very cold shoulder if you dare to defy their 'plan.'
"Bautista fell in and out of favor over the next four years with Pittsburgh, the prime of most players' careers. The Pirates batted him toward the bottom of the order and suggested he try to hit the ball to the opposite field. He chafed at the idea, and the sour relationship reached its nadir Aug. 13, 2008, when the team demoted Bautista to Triple-A. He went to Pirates GM Neal Huntington and suggested the team place him on waivers so it could shed the remainder of his $2.4 million salary and he could start over."
Here the Pirates had in their grasp one of the 5 best power hitters to emerge in the last decade, and they let him slip away. All it took was a swing adjustment and a new mental approach in Toronto, and he went from utility guy to Home Run King. How can we trust this Pirate management to build for the future at present when they have been so oblivious to such talent in the past? They had 8 years (from when they drafted him) to figure this guy out and they pissed it away. Toronto turned him into an All Star in less then 2. That math, not the salary cap disparity so often cited, is what damns us in this city to losing baseball for a unforeseeably long forsaken future.
Back In the Saddle
I am back from a little bit of sick time and just in time for the Bucs to return to .500!
Last night, the Bucs took down the struggling 'Stros by a final count of 1-0. It was a typical 2011 Bucs W. Great pitching, little hitting, no XBH's, no manufacturing runs, a little bit of luck, and the other team helping the Bucs win.
Monday night, the Bucs caught a MAJOR break when Jose Tabata was thrown out at 3rd base but ruled safe after a ridiculous "runner interference" call on Jose Reyes allowed Tabata to take 3rd and eventually score the 1st run in a 3-1 victory. Last night, the Bucs got the only run of the evening when GI Jones singled in the Pride of Pine Richland after he had singled and moved to second on a wild pitch. All in all, the team left 9 men on base and 4 in scoring position, notching 6 hit, all of which were singles. GI Jones and the Pride of PR led the way with 2 hits each and Cutch extended his hitting streak to 13 games. Ronny Cedeno batted 2nd and went 0 for 4, lowering his season average to .221 and his June average to .143. I don't care if he was 5 for 10 life time against Bud Norris, he should never be batting second unless there is some drastic turnaround in his hitting skills and plate discipline.
Jeff Karstens was outstanding yet again. For a guy who is constantly pegged as the long relief specialist, he is 4-4 with a 2.66 ERA, good for 5th in the NL. Not bad for a guy who the braintrust couldn't find a spot in the rotation for. Karstens went 6 2/3 scoreless innings, allowing 3 hits and 0 walks again. For some reason, Karstens seems to be on a limited pitch count and was pulled with 1 on and 2 out in the 7th. All-Star Candidate Chris Resop came on the get the final out of the 7th and was replaced by Tim Wood to start the 8th. After getting the first out of the inning, Tony Watson replaced Wood but allowed a single and a walk to put 2 on and 1 out. Jose Veras was called upon the put out the fire and he was up to the task, retiring Jason Michaels and Michael Bourn. Hanrahan worked a perfect 9th to earn his 18th save in 18 tries and it was the time RTJR! Final score Bucs 1, Astros 0.
Player of the Game- Jeff Karstens, 6.2 IP, 0R, 3 H, 3K, 0 BB
Head Scratcher of the Night: GI Jones was successful in his first steal attempt but was nailed the second time, appearing to slide early and in slow motion. It looked like he had the base stolen but the slide took forever. Also, I think sending Jones to steal twice in a row was perhaps going to the well 1 too many times.
Face Palm of the Night: The Astro's are a very charitable bunch. The WP in the first setup our only run and throwing a ball into CF when Cutch stole second was also very helpful. 54 Errors on the season for the Stros.
All in all, the Bucs are .500 once again and that is a great thing. They should beat the Astros more often than not even if the Astros are a better offensive team. The Bucs continue to get great pitching while the offense continues to do very little on a consistent basis. That former #1 in June offense has now scored 19 runs in the last 8 games, 8 coming in one game against the Dbacks. They have not scored more than 3 since. The Bucs have a total of 46 runs in the month of June, but as I have previously stated, 17 came in the first 2 games. Thats 29 runs in the next 10 games. The team is 5th in the NL in batting avg. for June but tied for last in HR's and 11th in XBH. Not good enough. For the season, we are 14th in AVG, 14th in Runs, 11th in HR, 15h in SLG %, 12th in OBP, and 14th in XBH.
The pitching has been a completely different story: 5th in ERA and boasting 3 starters in the Top 12 in ERA for the entire NL. This trend needs to continue and the bats needs to awaken. Cutch is doing his part pushing his average to .292 and Walker may be sneaking out of his slump. Tabata's average may be down, but his OBP is .360. We need to drive in more runs, that is the bottom line.
The Bucs have a chance to move to 34-33 tonight, the first winning record this late in a season in what seems like eons. Facing the awful Astros, this is an attainable goal and the Bucs need to pounce on this weak Houston team.
Last night, the Bucs took down the struggling 'Stros by a final count of 1-0. It was a typical 2011 Bucs W. Great pitching, little hitting, no XBH's, no manufacturing runs, a little bit of luck, and the other team helping the Bucs win.
Monday night, the Bucs caught a MAJOR break when Jose Tabata was thrown out at 3rd base but ruled safe after a ridiculous "runner interference" call on Jose Reyes allowed Tabata to take 3rd and eventually score the 1st run in a 3-1 victory. Last night, the Bucs got the only run of the evening when GI Jones singled in the Pride of Pine Richland after he had singled and moved to second on a wild pitch. All in all, the team left 9 men on base and 4 in scoring position, notching 6 hit, all of which were singles. GI Jones and the Pride of PR led the way with 2 hits each and Cutch extended his hitting streak to 13 games. Ronny Cedeno batted 2nd and went 0 for 4, lowering his season average to .221 and his June average to .143. I don't care if he was 5 for 10 life time against Bud Norris, he should never be batting second unless there is some drastic turnaround in his hitting skills and plate discipline.
Jeff Karstens was outstanding yet again. For a guy who is constantly pegged as the long relief specialist, he is 4-4 with a 2.66 ERA, good for 5th in the NL. Not bad for a guy who the braintrust couldn't find a spot in the rotation for. Karstens went 6 2/3 scoreless innings, allowing 3 hits and 0 walks again. For some reason, Karstens seems to be on a limited pitch count and was pulled with 1 on and 2 out in the 7th. All-Star Candidate Chris Resop came on the get the final out of the 7th and was replaced by Tim Wood to start the 8th. After getting the first out of the inning, Tony Watson replaced Wood but allowed a single and a walk to put 2 on and 1 out. Jose Veras was called upon the put out the fire and he was up to the task, retiring Jason Michaels and Michael Bourn. Hanrahan worked a perfect 9th to earn his 18th save in 18 tries and it was the time RTJR! Final score Bucs 1, Astros 0.
Player of the Game- Jeff Karstens, 6.2 IP, 0R, 3 H, 3K, 0 BB
Head Scratcher of the Night: GI Jones was successful in his first steal attempt but was nailed the second time, appearing to slide early and in slow motion. It looked like he had the base stolen but the slide took forever. Also, I think sending Jones to steal twice in a row was perhaps going to the well 1 too many times.
Face Palm of the Night: The Astro's are a very charitable bunch. The WP in the first setup our only run and throwing a ball into CF when Cutch stole second was also very helpful. 54 Errors on the season for the Stros.
All in all, the Bucs are .500 once again and that is a great thing. They should beat the Astros more often than not even if the Astros are a better offensive team. The Bucs continue to get great pitching while the offense continues to do very little on a consistent basis. That former #1 in June offense has now scored 19 runs in the last 8 games, 8 coming in one game against the Dbacks. They have not scored more than 3 since. The Bucs have a total of 46 runs in the month of June, but as I have previously stated, 17 came in the first 2 games. Thats 29 runs in the next 10 games. The team is 5th in the NL in batting avg. for June but tied for last in HR's and 11th in XBH. Not good enough. For the season, we are 14th in AVG, 14th in Runs, 11th in HR, 15h in SLG %, 12th in OBP, and 14th in XBH.
The pitching has been a completely different story: 5th in ERA and boasting 3 starters in the Top 12 in ERA for the entire NL. This trend needs to continue and the bats needs to awaken. Cutch is doing his part pushing his average to .292 and Walker may be sneaking out of his slump. Tabata's average may be down, but his OBP is .360. We need to drive in more runs, that is the bottom line.
The Bucs have a chance to move to 34-33 tonight, the first winning record this late in a season in what seems like eons. Facing the awful Astros, this is an attainable goal and the Bucs need to pounce on this weak Houston team.
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