 |
| AJ Burnett's Up and Down Season Continues... |
San Francisco Giants - 4
WP - Vogelsong
LP - AJ Burnett
Before the Pirates embarked on this 7 game road stretch, I said that if they came back to PNC Park 4-3 I would be happy. I stand by my word. As fans you can't let the past 2 games ruin what was a fairly successful road trip. The Pirates haven't been the best road team this season, and for them to bring home more wins than losses and still be tied for 1st in the NL Central is a good road trip, in my opinion. Granted, would 5-2 have been better? Obviously, but the fact of the matter is that the Pirates have a golden opportunity awaiting them at PNC Park starting Tuesday. Before I get to that, I should recap the game on Sunday...even as ugly as it was.
This might be one of the shorter recaps, because the Pirates were held to 3 hits on Ryan Vogelsong's blistering 90mph fastball (sarcasm). For whatever reason, the Pirates simply couldn't get clued in to Vogelsong's rhythm and the bats were silenced. The 3 hits? "Cutch", Lambo, and Pie...no, I'm not joking. Those were the 3 registered hits, and ladies and gentlemen...thats your Pirates offense.
AJ Burnett didn't pitch poorly, but it wasn't his best stuff either. It was the typical "Burnett gets ZERO run support" outing for the Pirates veteran flame thrower. Burnett pitched 7 1/3 innings surrendering 8 hits, 6 strike outs, and 3 walks. He allowed 4 earned runs, and the majority of the damage came in the 8th inning when he gave up 3 runs. Burnett's W-L record now moves to 6-9, and although it isn't 100% indicative of how he has pitched this season, it certainly doesn't scream consistency. I talked about consistency with the Pirates offense (a key that they still haven't found), but the pitching staff which was once solid as a rock needs to do the same thing. Consistency down the stretch will push the Pirates forward, or have them fall back into mediocrity clinging to a possible Wild Card spot.
The Pirates limp back to PNC Park for a 6 game stretch that could play huge dividends in the NL Central. 3 vs the Brewers, then 3 vs the Cardinals. Then the Pirates essentially pull a "home and home" with those 2 teams as they travel to the Brewers for 3 and then to St. Louis for 3 vs the Cardinals. Important 6 games at PNC Park, and I know the place will be going crazy. I hope the bats show up...
8/27/13 - Pirates vs Brewers - 7:05pm - Locke vs. Lohse
8/28/13 - Pirates vs Brewers - 7:05pm - Morton vs Gorzelanny
8/29/13 - Pirates vs Brewers - 7:05pm - Cole vs Gallardo
No comments:
Post a Comment
Note: Only a member of this blog may post a comment.