Archive for June, 2009

        We had finally made it to the Gateway Clipper fleet.  A picture perfect evening at PNC Park was winding down as the Bucs trailed 5-0 in the bottom of the ninth.  Another game against formidable Cleveland Indian southpaw pitcher in David Huff who brought his 7.09 ERA to the yard and simply challenged the Pirates.  The Bucs had no answer all evening. The family had made the rounds, twice to the corporate suite, twice to the other seats and finally….the playground.  We made it a little bit longer than Brody’s first game.  Brody enjoyed the game [...]

The following was paid for by the Friends of Andrew McCutchen, Best Center Fielder on Planet Earth.   Andrew McCutchen is the best player on the Pirates.  Period.  Stop talking.  He better be on the field July 14 in St.Louis.  You can help make it happen. As I write this on the world’s slowest computer, I am staring at a collectible two-ball set from the 2006 All-Star Game.  It was a great time for the city of Pittsburgh.  The All-Stars were of course Jason Bay and Freddy Sanchez.  It certainly appears that Sanchez is going to be gone.  So why does he [...]

The Altoona Curve have a record of 24-45.  Thankfully, the Nationals are worse.  Or the Pirates AA farm team would be the worst team in baseball. Don’t fear  Virginia Altoona there is a Santa Claus and his name is Pedro Alvarez.  And the second half of the season is one you will remember for a long time. Your Altoona Curve just got a whole lot better today.  The worst team in minor league baseball could make a turn around as sharp as the horseshow curve itself.   The Altoona Curve announced that Pedro Alvarez joins the club today along with guest stars [...]

The Bucs were swept by the hottest team in the league.  Nothing clicked all weekend as each facet of the game failed.  No hitting.  Good hitting-poor bullpen and again NO KILLER INSTINCT.  Good pitching-no defense and again NO KILLER INSTINCT.  With opportunities to take two of three from the white-hot Rockies the Pirates failed.  It isn’t a lack of effort, this team just doesn’t seem mentally strong enough to put the opponent away.   It happens to the average players, average managers and average teams throughout the league.  The Pirates are an average team right now.  It is nothing to be embarassed [...]

The Pirates lost to Jim Tracy’s surging Colorado Rockies 7-3 last evening.   Ross Ohlendorf gave up 6 runs in 5 innings for the loss. The loss has the Bucs 6.5 games back in the NL Central. Andrew McCutchen is doing his job so well, I wonder how much better he can get?  Another double.  Another triple.  Another RBI.   If Nyjer can bust out of this slump, 0-for-4 last night, we could really have something as Freddy Sanchez went 2-for-4 again for the Bucs. Tracy told the PG’s DK that the Pirates need talent in this interview.He also feels ‘the Rockies are [...]

It’s the toughest job in America. And for some reason I can’t seem to find it on the website for NBC’s America’s Toughest Jobs. I see the Episode guide and I scan through Mountain Rescue, Logging, Monster Trucking, Bridge Crew, Bullfighting, Trucking, Oil Drilling, and Gold Digging (no comment). But no where can I find what I feel is the toughest job. In my humble opinion the toughest job in America has to be selling Pirates Tickets. I am not being a wise ass. Don’t you agree? Let me list some of the reasons why I feel this way: 1. [...]

How the North was won.  A nice story by Chris Lang on the Hillcats  [News Advance] Doumit moving from behind the plate?  Read carefully [PG] Former skip Jim Tracy on losing the team  [Denver Post] Brooks Pounders signed yesterday, here is Wilber Miller’s thoughts [wm] Don Long rescues Moss  [Trib] Robbie Grossman had a monster night for the WV Power Pedro is hitting .243 and leads the Carolin League with 55RBI after another Lynchburg win Hacker proved he can hack in Indy’s loss 

The Pirates fell today to the Twins 5-1.  The Pirates scored their lone run in the ninth inning, but for eight innings the offense, was well offensive.  With the division glaringly up for grabs as all teams continue to struggle, the Pirates aren’t gaining ground. Starting pitcher Zach Duke again failed to get the run support as he suffered his fifth loss of the year to go with seven victories.  His ERA is now 3.18. Nick Blackburn (6-2) fired a six-hitter at the Bucs, allowing the Twins to get back to .500 on the season.  Blackburn threw his first complete game of his [...]

Zach Duke has had a remarkable turnaround season for the Pirates. He makes his 14th start of the season and is 7-4 with a 3.10ERA. In 93 IP he has given up 88 hits and 21 walks. He has had tremendous run support from the Pirate offense during his seven victories with 54 runs being scored for the lefthander, a 9.1 average. When he has been the losing pitcher, he has received a total of just 10 runs of support from his teammates. Duke has tossed two complete games this season. He entered the year with only three in his [...]

The Pirates were victorious over the Twins 8-2 last night behind homers from Andrew McCutchen, and the LaRoche Brothers.  Ian Snell improved to 2-7 after a Jekyll and Hyde performance on the mound. McCutchen is living up to the billing of a future star.  He is now hitting .339 with nine RBI.  He crushed a Francisco Liranio 2-2 fastball into centerfield for his first home run in the majors. Snell seemed to find his stuff after Joe Kerrigan visited the mound in the third inning.  Kerrigan came out after Snell had thrown over 30 pitches in the inning.  Snell went [...]