Pirates starter James McDonald is pitching with a chip on his shoulder

Pittsburgh Pirates starter James McDonald pitched with a gigantic chip on his shoulder Saturday afternoon. McDonald went seven innings. McDonald walked nobody. McDonald struck out ten.

The Bucs right hander was just one whiff short of tying his career high in strikeouts.

He did it at the plate, too. He drew a walk to leadoff the third inning, and scored on a Neil Walker double. A 27 minute rain delay gave the Bucco ace a break, and he came back out just as strong the rest of the way.

Since the end of May, Pirates 2B Neil Walker is hitting over .300

Michael McKenry hit his seventh homer in the fourth. Pedro Alvarez got in on the fun with a 325 foot double off the very tip top of the left field fence to plate Andrew McCutchen for the Pirates third and final run.

The Pirates pitching staff did the rest. Jason Grilli was gross, just gross. He fanned the side in the eighth, pumping his strikeout number up to 52 on the year.

Joel Hanrahan closed it out for his 23rd save, getting some excellent glove work from ‘Always Smooth’ Clint Barmes.

King James smiled as the Jolly Roger was raised.  It certainly looks like he is getting the last laugh on being snubbed for the All-Star Game.

The Best of the Pittsburgh Pirates Photoshops

Pittsburgh Pirates photoshops is what we love to do.  So, we tried to wrangle up the best of the 2012 season thus far for you to enjoy. Which one is your favorite?

Stetson Allie was converted to a slugger,  sending reporters to question the decision making skills of the Pirates brass. Adding to the coolness of the entire situation, Allie came out swinging when he got a bat in his hand.

Pedro Alvarez. Fascinating. Wonderfully, frustratingly,  fantastic.

Kevin Correia generated more attention with how he looked on the bench.

Alvarez inspired a season-long “Pedro Bomb Watch” with this majestic blast that had an apex of 117 feet and traveled 403 feet.

Andrew McCutchen. The Reason.

Andrew McCutchen. The Reason.

The Rise of the Bucs gained national attention.

The slide by Rod Barajas was a classic.

Marty, Marty, Marty. You will never learn.

Ahh, poor Marty Brennaman

Pirates fans are still waiting for the Jose Tabata who looked so solid as a top of the order hitter.

The Bucco bullpen has been nasty.

Brandon Phillips was so nice to the Bucs, we felt the urge to send a letter.

We heart Nyjer.

We looked at some basic peripheral pitching stats back in May when the Bucs were rolling, and saw a cause for concern.  We wrote this post.  It sucks that it started turning out to be a reality.

The Pittsburgh Pirates starting rotation

Neal Huntington and the Buccos brass ignored everything and everyone, and took the best player available in the 2012 Draft.

Joel Hanrahan is closing out games with style.

Joel Hanrahan has piled up the strikeouts.

After eight starts, we called A.J. Burnett the ace stopper for the Pirates.

AJ Burnett had another dominant start for the Pittsburgh Pirates

We should sell this shirt.

The new Andrew McCutchen t-shirt

James McDonald, Big Pimpin’.

Pittsburgh Pirates Starter James McDonald had another solid outing.

We felt bad for lonely 3rd Base Coach Nick Leyva in our “How To Improve Social Media Night” post.

We showed our thanks to the Yankees.

Thanks Yankees

James McDonald is having a breakout season with the Pirates.

James McDonald deserves better from the Pirates offense

Our public service announcement to Altoona, Pennsylvania.

Joel Hanrahan? The Dictator. Prince Fielder? Not the Dictator.

Joel Hanrahan whiffed Prince Fielder to set up the rubber match today against the Tigers

The Hanrictator.

Joel Hanrahan is The Dictator or Hanrictator for short. Don't mess it up

Jason Grilli has been outstanding as the Pirates setup man.

Jason Grilli has become the Pirates set-up man by putting up some serious numbers in 2012

Clint Barmes has been anything but outstanding as the Pirates shortstop.

Go Clint

Casey McGehee’s struggles were very apparent early in the season.

Casey McGehee bounces his helmet at homeplate.

James McDonald was outstanding in our Nation’s capital.

Pirates fans have shown up in a big way on the road.  EasyasPieMan and Mike Shaeffer led the #DCInvasion.

#DCInvasion

Andrew McCutchen: CEO of NatsPark.

BUCN

M(ay)VP

Andrew McCutchen is having a May.

Neal Huntington took some heat for the offensive woes, as fans demanded an early season trade.

Pittsburgh Pirates GM Neal Huntington addressed the Bucs woeful offense

Team Zoltan

The Pirates and Marlins each have some swagger heading into the series

The Rod Barajas walk off homer ignited Team Zoltan

Andrew McCutchen’s 4-for-4 performance on May 10 against the Nats set the team up for a possible sweep, but Stephen Strasburg had other ideas.

Andrew McCutchen had a big night for the Bucs

Erik Bedard was solid for the Bucs in April and May.

Erik Bedard leads the Pirates in their pursuit of a series win against the best team in the NL

On May 9, Pedro Alvarez had his streak snapped; he had reached base safely in 12 straight games.

Pedro Alvarez had his 12 straight game streak of reaching base safely snapped last night against the Nats

We admire Bryce Harper so much, we dug deep for our inner hairstylist.

Bryce Harper is a hair thief

The Snoop?

The Bieber?

Bieber and Mayweather by HollywoodGrind.com

The Brady?

Bryce Harper with the new Tom Brady 'do?

The Grandma next door?

Bryce Harper. Washington Nationals. You like this 'do?

The Coolio?

Bryce Harper as Coolio/Weird Al

Why in the hell did we think we could help Harper? Let’s just call it what it is…

Bryce Harper Hair Thief

Clint Barmes and Rod Barajas were easy targets

We are thinking about selling these Rod Barajas bumper stickers for the same price as his batting average...

We believe.

The 2012 Great Awakening Tour starring Pedro Alvarez is the hottest show in MLB.

Carlos Beltran and the Cardinals destroyed A.J. Burnett

Carlos Beltran had a monster night against A.J. Burnett

JMac was impressive.

James McDonald struck out ten Atlanta Braves in a big Pirates victory

After a 1-for-21 start, Neil Walker got red hot.

Neil Walker has been on a tear since a 1-for-21 start to his 2012 season

We couldn’t get enough of JMac.

James McDonald fired a gem in his last start.

First Round

Mark Appel RHP Stanford University

Has gone 10-1 with a 2.27 ERA and 127 strikeouts so far this year at Stanford…Has struck out at least 10 batters in eight starts…His 127 strikeouts ranks first among all Pac-12 pitchers…His 2.27 ERA currently ranks third among Pac-12 starters and his .210 batting average against is tops in the conference among starting pitchers…Was named a First-Team All-American by Collegiate Baseball and also to the First-Team All-Pac-12…Was named the 2012 Stanford Regional Most Outstanding Player…Is also a semifinalist for both the Dick Howser Trophy and the Golden Spikes Award…Is the first Stanford 10-game winner since Jeff Gilmore in 2005…Has a career record of 18-9 with a 3.10 ERA (267.1ip/92er) and 239 strikeouts in 56 games (35 starts) at Stanford…Was rated by Baseball America as having the third-best “Fastball” among college players in this year’s draft.

Supplemental

Barrett Barnes OF Texas Tech University

Hit .325 (67-for-206) with 17 doubles, six triples, nine home runs, 49 RBI, 53 runs scored and 19 stolen bases in 55 games this year with Texas Tech…Was rated by Baseball America as the 21st best position player in the draft and as having the “Best Raw Power” in the Big 12 in 2012…Became only the second player in Texas Tech history to bat .300, record 500 at bats, score 150 runs, collect 200 hits, 50 doubles, 30 home runs, 100 RBI, 100 walks and 50 stolen bases, joining Texas Tech alum Clint Bryant from 1993-96…Ranks fifth in school history in doubles (51), runs (171) and total bases (371), sixth in walks (113), seventh in at bats (637), ninth in home runs (33) and tied for ninth in hits (203)…Also became the fourth player in school history to earn All-Big 12 honors in three consecutive seasons.

Second Round

 Wyatt Mathisen C Calallen (TX) High School

Hit .433 with 13 home runs and 40 RBI as a senior…Was ranked by Baseball America as the 25th-best position player and 47th-best prospect overall in this year’s draft…As a junior, was named to the All-State Tournament team, a District 31-4A MVP, a Max Prep All-American, Perfect Game USA All-American, the South Texas Player-of-the-Year and was a member of the Texas Rangers Area Code Team.

Third Round

Jonathan Sandfort RHP Winter Springs (FL) High School

Posted an 8-1 record along with a 0.92 ERA and 72 strikeouts in 68.2 innings of work as a senior this year…Was named a Rawlings third-team preseason All-American this yearand a Rawlings and Perfect Game preseason Florida Regional High School Senior First Team entering 2012.

Fourth Round

Brandon Thomas OF Georgia Tech University

Is hitting .360 (76-for-211) with 15 doubles, five triples, five home runs, 44 RBI, 12 stolen bases and 57 runs scored as a junior this year at Georgia Tech…Was a first team All-ACC pick, a member of the ACC All-Tournament team and a Capital One Academic All-America second team selection this year…Hit .307 with 12 doubles, two triples, six home runs and 29 RBI in 60 games (60 starts) as a sophomore…Was originally selected by Colorado in the 37th round of the 2009 First-Year Player Draft.

Fifth Round

Adrian Sampson RHP Bellevue (WA) Comm. College

Was named the Most Valuable Pitcher on his Bellevue Community College team after going 11-0 with a 1.36 ERA (79.1ip/12er) with 107 strikeouts in 13 games (12 starts) this year…Led the Northwest Athletic Association of Community Colleges in strikeouts and wins this year…Was named the No.1 junior college prospect in the country by Perfect Game and was the starting pitcher in the West Coast Collegiate League All-Star Game in 2011…Has signed a letter of intent to play at the University of Oregon in 2013…Was originally selected by Florida in the 16th round of the 2011 First-Year Player Draft.

Sixth Round

Eric Wood INF Blinn (TX) College

Hit .318 with 13 doubles, four home runs, 39 RBI and a .425 on-base percentage in 53 games this year at Blinn College…Was originally selected by Oakland in the 37th round of the 2011 First-Year Player Draft.

Seventh Round

Jacob Stallings C University of North Carolina

Hit .297 (62-for-209) with 21 doubles, four home runs, 36 RBI and 41 runs scored in 55 games as a senior this year at the University of North Carolina…Earned All-ACC second-team honors this season…Is the first UNC catcher to earn an All-ACC mention since Tim Federowicz was named to the second team in 2008…His father, Kevin, is the head men’s basketball coach at Vanderbilt University…Threw out 32 would-be base stealers as a junior, which ranked third in the country among NCAA backstops…Was also selected by Cincinnati in the 42nd round of the 2011 First-Year Player Draft.

 Eighth Round

Kevin Ross INF Niles West (IL) High School

Was a Rawlings preseason Central All Region first-team selection this year…Hit .436 with four home runs, 30 RBI and 16 stolen bases as a junior at Niles West High School…Was an all-state and all-conference selection his junior season…Hit .538 in the Area Code Games in 2011 and received the New Balance Kevin Youkilis “Heart and Hustle” Award for his Area Code Games performance and was named to the All-Area Code team at third base…Played for the Chi-Town Cream summer baseball team in 2010-11 as well as the White Sox’ Area Code team and the Chicago Scouting team…Posted the highest batting average for Niles West during his sophomore season.

 Ninth Round

Douglas Crumlich INF Univ. of California – Irvine

Was named a 2011-12 Big West Male Scholar Athlete of the Year…Was a three-time Big West Scholar-Athlete…Voted the 2012 Big West Defensive Player-of-the-Year and was All-Conference second-team for the second consecutive year…Ranked second in the conference in assists with 160 and seventh after turning 28 double plays.  Led his University of California-Irvine team in hits (72), batting average (.324), runs (39) and doubles (16)… Ended his collegiate career with a .296 average and ranked fourth in the UCI records with 139 runs scored and tied for fifth with 45 doubles.

 Tenth Round

Pat Ludwig RHP Yale University

Is the highest selected player at Yale since the Boston Red Sox drafted catcher Ryan Lavarnway in the sixth round (202nd overall pick) in the 2008 Draft… Earned All-Ivy League Second Team honors, went 1-5 in nine starts and shared the team’s Ducky Pond Pitching Award, a career award for pitching excellence and character …Also led the team in strikeouts (64), ERA (2.73), and innings pitched (62.2)… Led all Ivy League pitchers in strikeouts and was third in ERA, third in innings pitched and seventh in opposing batting average (.256).

11th Round

Christopher Diaz INF North Carolina State University

Hit .356 (90-for-253) with 25 doubles, two triples, one home run, 55 RBI and 54 runs scored in 61 games as a junior this year at NC State…Earned Louisville Slugger second team All-American honors this year…Finished second in the ACC in hits (84) and tied for sixth in RBI (50)…Was also an All-ACC first-team selection this year.

12th Round

Dalton Friend LHP Jefferson (MO) College

Went 11-0 with one save, a 2.94 ERA and 68 strikeouts in 46.0 innings this year at Jefferson College.

13th Round

Thomas Harlan LHP Fresno State University

Went 7-7 with one save, a 2.78 ERA (106.2ip/33er) and 85 strikeouts in 21 games (16 appearances) as a senior this year at Fresno State…Also took home second-team All-WAC honors in 2012…Posted a career record of 14-10 with four saves, a 3.93 ERA and 170 strikeouts in 90 games (29 starts) during his collegiate career.

 14th Round

Walker Buehler RHP Henry Clay (KY) High School

Was rated by Baseball America as the 50th-best prospect in the draft…Was named a 2012Rawlings second-team All-American…Took a 16-12 career record, 2.11 ERA and 234 strikeouts into Kentucky’s High School Region Tournament.

 15th Round

 Jonathan Youngblood OF Meridian (MS) Comm. College

Hit .277 with four doubles, one triple, one home run, 19 RBI and a .379 on-base percentage in 53 games this year…Tied for 15th in NJCAA Division I with 29 stolen bases…Recorded a .981 fielding percentage after being charged with two errors this season…Was originally selected by Atlanta in the 30th round of the 2011 First-Year Player Draft.

 16th Round

Max Moroff INF Trinity Prep (FL) School

Was a 2012 preseason All-Region first-team selection by Rawlings…Hit .458 with 11doubles, four home runs and 19 stolen bases as a junior at Trinity Prep School and .348 with four doubles, one triple and five home runs as a sophomore.

 17th Round

Hayden Hurst RHP The Bolles (FL) School

Was named an Under Armour All-American and a Perfect Game Underclass First-Team All-American.

18th Round

 John Kuchno RHP Ohio State University

Went 8-4 with a 4.38 ERA (74.0ip/36er) and 59 strikeouts in 17 appearances (10 starts) as a sophomore this year at Ohio State…Posted a 9-8 record and 77 strikeouts in 27 appearances (17 starts) at Ohio State.

19th Round

Michael Peterson RHP St. Francis (CA) High School

Went 1-1 with a 2.40 ERA and 16 strikeouts in six appearances (11.2ip) as a senior this year at St. Francis High School …Was named a 2012 Rawlings and Perfect Game USA pre-season California Region honorable mention.

20th Round

Kyle Haynes RHP Virginia Commonwealth University

Posted a career record of 13-14 with a 4.34 ERA in 43 games (41 starts) during threeyear career at VCU…Ranks tied for seventh in school history in games started…Went 4-4 with a 4.45 ERA and a team-leading 15 starts and struck out 73 batters while walking only 30 over 93.0 innings as a senior this year…Finished his junior season 6-7 with a 3.36 ERA while recording 57 strikeouts in 80.1 innings pitched … Was named a 2009 Rawlings and Perfect Game USA pre-season Atlantic Region first-team selection.

 21st Round

Jordan Steranka INF Penn State University

Ranks second in Penn State history with 292 hits, just three hits shy of the all-time record…Ranks first in program history in at-bats (867) and total bases (471) and doubles (59) as well as second in RBI (183), third in triples (12) and fourth in home runs (32)…Hit .363 (82-226) with 20 doubles, 11 homers, 40 RBI, a .395 on-base percentage and .615 slugging percentage in 56 games played at PSU this year…Led the Nittany Lion squad in batting, doubles, slugging, on-base and total bases (139)… Has posted a .337 career average (292-867) in four years at PSU…As a junior, finished third in the Big 10with 57 RBI and second in the conference with five triples and fifth with eight homers and a .544 slugging percentage…Was also selected in the 2011 First-Year-Player draft by the Houston Astros…Was an All-Big 10 Third-Team in 2009 and All-Rookie team selection in 2009…The Pittsburgh native collected over 100 hits, 16 home runs, 20 doubles, 80 RBI and 25 stolen bases at Mt. Lebanon High School and was named to the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette’s All-Star South Team all three years.

 22nd Round

Taylor Hearn LHP Royse City (TX) High School

Was a 2012 Rawlings and Perfect Game pre-season Texas All-Region second-team selection.

23rd Round

Lance Breedlove RHP Purdue University

Was named a second-team All-Big Ten starting pitcher in 2012 while also being named to the Big Ten All-Tournament Team…Went 8-6 with a 3.33 ERA (97.1ip/36er) in 16 starts as a senior this year and 11-7 with a 3.39 ERA in 40 appearances (20 starts) during two-year career at Purdue…Was named to the initial College Baseball Hall-of-Fame Pitcher-of-the-Year Award watch list…Became the first Purdue player to be named Big Ten Pitcher-of-the-Week three times in the same season this year.

 24th Round

Tyler Gaffney OF Stanford (CA) University

Played both baseball and football at Stanford…Is hitting .240 (44-for-183) with nine doubles, one triple, two home runs and 17 RBI in 52 games (47 starts) this year for Stanford…Has a .300 career average (174-for-580) in three-year career with the Cardinal…Played running back for Stanford for each of the last two years, including the 2011 Cardinal football team that beat Virginia Tech in the Orange Bowl.

 25th Round

Josh Smith LHP Wichita State (KS) University

Went 6-4 with a 3.10 ERA (95.2ip/33er) and 77 strikeouts in 16 starts as a senior this year at Wichita State.

26th Round

Jimmy Rider INF Kent State (OH) University

Is a career .334 (338-1013) with 338 hits, 74 doubles, 12 homers and a .401 on-base percentage at Kent State…This year he hit .367 (99-270) with 27 doubles, five homers, 32 walks and 53 RBI in 61 games at shortstop…Paced the team in doubles, runs scored(63), hits (99), total bases (143), on-base percentage (.435), plate appearances (311), at bats (270), games and extra-base hits (29)…His 27 doubles ranked second in all of NCAA DI baseball…Was a 2012 team captain and named a 2009 second-team All-MAC and All-MAC Tournament Team…Ranks third on school’s career records list with 541 assists…Pittsburgh native…Played shortstop for Peters Township High School and helped the Indians to a WPIAL Class AAAA state championship in 2007…Named to the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette All-Section Team his sophomore and junior high school seasons.

 27th Round

Jake Johansen RHP Dallas Baptist (TX) University

Went 3-1 with one save and 40 strikeouts in 20 appearances (four starts) this year at Dallas Baptist University.

28th Round

Tommy Mirabelli INF St. Edwards (OH) High School

Is the son of John Mirabelli, who is the Cleveland Indians Vice President of Scouting Operations…Hit .509 while helping his team win the Division I state championship in Ohio in 2009.

29th Round

 Jake Post RHP Chesterton (IN) High School

Went 6-3 with 85 strikeouts in 58 innings as a junior in high school…Has signed a letter of intent to play baseball at Ohio State University.

 30th Round

Chase McDowell RHP Rice (TX) University

Went 0-0 with a 4.50 ERA (10.0ip/5er) in nine appearances (two starts) this year at Rice.

 31st Round

Jack Moffit RHP Flower Mound (TX) High School

Was a 2012 Rawlings and Perfect Game pre-season Texas All-Region firstteam…Committed to Navarro Junior College…Was 3-0 with a 0.72 ERA in 11 appearances and struck out 48 over 39 innings pitched…Was named a 2012                 District 8-5A First Team All-District.

 32nd Round

Max Rossiter C Arizona State University

Hit .326 (45-for-138) with nine doubles, one triple, two home runs, 18 RBI and 22 runs scored as a junior at Arizona State…Played previous two years at Central Arizona College…Following the 2010 season was named First-Team All-Region, First-Team All-Conference, ACCAC Defensive Player-of-the-Year and was named to the JuCo All-Star team and NJCAA Team USA…Was named the 2011 Central Arizona Student Athlete of the Year…Also led Central Arizona to two conference titles and a JuCo World Series runner-up finish.

 33rd Round

Carlos Leal C East Central (MS) Comm. College

Hit .311 with six doubles, four home runs and 26 RBI in 40 games this year at East Central Community College.

34th Round

Ryan Rand OF Langham Creek (TX) High School

Was a second team All-District 17-5A selection at first base after hitting .356 with 26 RBI and 23 runs in 2011…Was recognized as a Top 500 National Player by Perfect Game USA.

 35th Round

Jackson McClelland RHP Redlands E. Valley (CA) HS

Was named a First Team All-Citrus Belt League as a junior in 2011..Finished with an ERA of 1.53 and a record of 7-1 during junior season…Signed a letter of intent to play at Pepperdine University.

 36th Round

Brody Russell INF Centennial (CA) High School

Hit .358 with 12 home runs, 25 RBI, a .518 on-base percentage and .889 slugging percentage as a senior at Centennial High School…Was the winner of the 2011 New Balance Kevin Youkilis “Heart and Hustle” Award…Signed a letter of intent to play at Fresno State…Was a 2011 First-Team All Area and First-Team All -State as a junior…Was also named the 2011 Centennial High School and Kern County Most Outstanding Player…Played in the 2011 Area Code Games.

 37th Round

Jacob Waguespack RHP Dutchtown (LA) High School

Signed letter of intent to play baseball at Ole Miss…Was a Rawlings and Perfect Game 2012 pre-season Southeast All-Region Second Team selection…Recorded an 8-0 record as a junior with a 1.83 ERA in 55.1 innings of work with 73 strikeouts…Tossed a complete game two-hitter and struck out 12 in the 5A regional playoffs last month.

 38th Round

Matthew Pope RHP Science Hill (TN) High School

Signed a letter of intent with Kentucky University…Was named a 2012 Al-Big 8 Conference Baseball Team honorable mention…Was also named a 2012 National Top 500 Prospect by Baseball America.

 39th Round

 Jared West LHP North DeSoto (LA) High School

Led his team to their first ever trip to the LHSAA/State Farm Baseball State Tournament into spot in the Class 3A state championship game…Is a University of Houston signee…Was a 2010 and 2011 Under Class High Honorable Mention.

 40th Round

Zarley Zalewski INF Valley (PA) High School

Hit .574 with a WPIAL-best eight home runs and 36 RBI this season…Was named the WPIAL Baseball Coaches Association Class AAA Player-of-the-Year in 2012…Has signed a letter of intent to play at Kent State…