New Pirates

Yesterday there was two moves, I was pretty happy to see. Daniel McCutchen was called up to the majors, and Brian Bixler was optioned back down to Indianapolis. I was very happy to see this, because I want to see how Daniel can do in the majors. He did very well in AAA, but who knows if he can keep it up in the MLB. He did have a decent 1st start as he took on the Reds yesterday, he went 6 innings, struckout 5, let up 3 runs, and got a No-Decision. Im very happy to see Bixler go, because he is the worst player, him and Salazar could make a run for worst player. Bixler can't hit, field, or do anything. Two more players were called up today, Neil Walker and I'm not to happy to say this, Virgil Vasquez. Virgil Vasquez is awful, thats all I have to say. Im glad to see Neil up, he hasn't had a debut yet and I'd like to see how well he can do. He has been dominating in AAA lately, and I really hope he can be good, cause Andy LaRoche is really strugglin. Hopefully we will see something good from atleast 1 of these 3 new Buccos.

Andrew McClutchen

There is no other player on the Pirates who is loved more in Pittsburgh then Andrew McCutchen. This rookie sensation has been a clutch, and just an outstanding player this year. Once again Andrew became a hero as he hit a walk-off home run to beat the incredible Phillies. So here is a quick run down, the Pirates had the lead going into the 9th, 3-2, thanks to another solid outing by Ross Ohlendorf. Ohlendorf threw 6.1 innings, allowed 2 runs, and struck out 6. Doumit and Pearce also helped get that lead as they hit home runs. Doumit got a solo shot in the 2nd inning, and Pearce got a 2-run blast in the 6th inning. Well in the top of the 9th someone blew a save, can you guess who? The obvious answer is the Big Bull Rider himself, Matt Capps. Ben Francisco and Shane Victorino knocked in 2 runs off of Capps, as he got his 4th blown save, and it looked like his 8th loss. Then another pitcher blew a save, can you guess who? Another obvious answer, Pat Lidge. After Bixler got home on a Brandon Moss single, and Jayson Werth error, Andrew McCutchen stepped into the box. He took a ball deep to center field, it looked like it might be caught at the warning track, but it carried right into the seats. By the way Capps better have taken him to dinner and gotten him anything he wanted as he gave Capps the win, and he did not deserve it. McCutchen, Rookie of the Year?

August 25th Wrap Up

Indy won in walk-off fashion vs Columbus, 8-7.

• Daniel McCutchen went 6 innings and allowed 4 runs.(ERA: 3.47)
  
• Erik Kratz went 2-3 with a solo blast and a double.(HR: 10)
  
• Jose Tabata went 1-4 with a double, run, and an rbi.
• Argenis Diaz went 0-3, he continues to be awful.(avg: .194)
  

Altoona took down Trenton, 4-3.

• Tim Alderson got the W (9-1) as he went 7 innings, and allowed only 1 ER.
• Ray Chang went 3-4 and scored a run.
• Pedro Alvarez went 1-4 with an rbi double.

Lynchburg lost to Wilmington, 4-2.

• Ronald Uviedo went 5 innings and allowed 2 runs.(ERA: 3.53)
  
• Nathan Adcock threw 4 innings of relief, allowed 2 runs, and picked up a loss (3-1).
• Chase d'Arnaud went 2-4 with a double, a triple, and 2 runs.
• Josh Harrison went 1-4.(avg: .287)

West Virginia beat Bowling Green, 3-1.

• Brett Lorin threw 5 shut-out innings and got the Win (1-1).(ERA: 1.93)
• Casey Erickson threw 4 innings of relief, allowed 1 run, and got his 5th save.(ERA: 1.81)
• Robbie Grossman went 2-5.(avg: .270)
• Tony Sanchez went 1-4 and scored a run.(avg: .336)

Spikes crushed the Jammers, 8-1.

• Aaron Baker went 2-4 with a triple, 2 rbi's, and 3 runs.
  

2-Straight

The Buccos won their second straight game last night as they beat Milwaukee, 5-2. I am shocked, we don't do this anymore, we are lucky to win one game let alone two. Usually if we have a streak going it's a large losing streak, which in my mind is good. Am I crazy? No, because I want the #1 draft pick, I want Bryce Harper. The kids ridiculous I'll do a story on him later, but lets get to this game. Ross Ohlendorf showed once again that he is getting better and better every day. He threw a solid 7 innings, allowed 1 run, only let up 5 hits, struck out 5 batters, and got his 11th win. I really like Ohlendorf, he is the only Pirate pitcher that has been consistently good. Another interesting note, Lastings Milledge hit his 1st home run as he knocked a 2-run jack. Delwyn Young also crushed a home run. I'm happy to see that our guys are progressing, I hope to see more of it, but I still want to get Harper.

August 12th Wrap Up

Pirates get shut-out 8-0 by the Rockies.

• Kevin Hart: 5.1 innings, 5 earned runs, and got the loss (3-2).

Indy beat Columbus 2-1.

• Virgil Vasquez went 7 innings, allowed 1 run and got the W (7-2).
• Jeff Clement went 1-3 with a solo homerun (6).
• Argenis Diaz 0-3.

Altoona got dominated by Portland, 13-4.

• Pedro Alvarez went 1-5.
• Jason Delaney went 2-4 with a homerun (7), 3 rbi's, and a run.

Lyncburg beat Kinston, 6-5.

• Bryan Morris went 6.2 innings, allowed 2 runs, and got the win (3-6).
• Chase d'Arnaud: 3-5, 1 double, 2 runs, 1 stolen-base, 1 home run, and 5 rbi's.
• Josh Harrison 3-5.
• Jose De Los Santos went 3-4 and scored 2 runs.

West Virginia beat Lexington, 9-2.

• Robbie Grossman went 1-5 with a double, a run, and an rbi.
• Quincy Latimore went 1-5 with a triple, and 2 rbi's.
• Tony Sanchez went 2-4 with a double, and 2 rbi's.
• Greg Picart went 2-3 with 3 runs, an rbi, and a stolen-base.

August 11th Wrap Up

MLB: The Buccos broke the streak as they beat the Rockies, 7-3.

• Ohlendorf picked up the win (10-8) as he went 6 innings and allowed 3 er.
• Doumit, McCutchen, Milledge, and LaRoche hit a double each, and Garrett Jones hit 2 doubles.

AAA: Indy lost to Columbus, 4-2.

• Phil Dumatrait got his 1st loss as he threw 6 innings and allowed 1 er.
• Jeff Clement went 0-4 and made an error.

AA: Altoona pounded Portland, 10-3.

• Pedro Alvarez went 3-4, hit a double, scored a run, and got 2 rbi's.

A: Lynchburg lost to Kinston, 5-2.

• Josh Harrison went 2-4.
• Chase d'Arnaud went 3-5 with a double and a run

Low-A: Power swept the Crawdads as they won, 6-3.

• Starling Marte went 2-5 with 2 runs and an rbi.

A Short Season: Spikes crushed the Tigers, 9-4.

• Brock Holt went 2-4 with a hr, 2 runs, and 4 rbi's.
  

8 Straight

The Pirates lost to the Cardinals, 5-3 to make it 8 straight losses. The game was definitely in the Pirates favor as Steve Pearce hit a 2-run homer, and Delwyn Young singled in Andrew McCutchen to make it 3-0 going into the 4th. The Cards where then able to score 1 run in the 4th and the 7th, and made it a close 3-2. In the 8th, Matt Capps (I think you see what is going to happen) came in with 1 on and gave up a 2-run shot to Skip Schumaker. Then Capps drilled Pujols in the ribs and was ejected immediatley. Jesse Chavez didn't help either, after Capps was gone he gave up 2 runs. Matt Capps was hit with his 7th loss this year, and just seems to blow it EVERY SINGLE TIME. During this 8 game lossing streak the bullpen lost 4 of the 8. Not to mention Chris Bootcheck let up 4 after a solid outing from Morton that we could have possibly won. The bullpen has struggled immensley not only have they lost 4 but have blown 3 save oppurtunities, plus a very large 7.86 ERA. I'm getting very sick of this, every year we are awful and we rebuild. We have been rebuilding for 17 years, and I'm happy with the talent we have and I understand wins don't matter at this point. Still, who doesn't want to see the Pirates actually win atleast few games? I have a proposed idea, we have a payroll of a little over 25 million, in the offseason we should sign some big names, that are still in their prime. No more Burnitz or Randa's. Huntington won't do it though he will say we have talent in the making, but why not get some already developed talent. Lets talk about a few guys, Steve Pearce will not be a MLB caliber player, he is a 4-A ball player. Paul Maholm, he is not a bad pitcher, but let's face it he isn't an Ace, maybe a #2, but I see him as a #3 starter. Jeff Salazar, garbage. Brandon Moss, backup at best, he isn't an every day player, he is way too inconsistent. Ramon Vasquez, why did we sign him? He is awful, never had a good year. I want a solid pitcher to be signed, someone who is an Ace, and I want a power hitting first-baseman. I have already come to the conclusion it won't happen, but I want to hear some of your thoughts leave a comment.