Wednesday, March 6, 2013

Bucs - Red Sox, One More Time

The Pirates visit the Red Sox in Fort Myers, as Jeff Locke takes the bump against Jon Lester. He had a rough time against them last week in a 5-2 loss. The fun begins at 1:35 and will be aired on The Fan 93.7

Lineup: Strarling Marte LF, Travis Snider RF, Andrew McCutchen CF, Pedro Alvarez 3b, Neil Walker 2b, Garrett Jones 1b, Brandon Inge DH, Mike McKenry C and Clint Barmes SS.

Odd stat: Travis Snider is hitting .357, but only has a .313 OBP, not very strong for a guy that's hoping to become a top-of-the-order hitter. Still, there is no sample size yet - the leading Bucco batters only have 15 AB so far this spring.

Pitchers: Jeff Locke, Phil Irwin, Jonathan Sanchez, Bryan Morris, Jared Hughes and Vin Mazzarro.

Jonathan Sanchez could stand a decent outing; his last two starts have lasted just 2-2/3 frames with a 13.50 ERA. Locke's getting a good look; his 6 IP are already the team's most.

  • Dejan Kovacevich of the Tribune Review has what the Pirate lineup would be if the season opened today, and it looks right on.
  • The Pirates are shooting for Russell Martin to get back behind the dish this weekend.
  • Happy Birthday, Pops. Willie Stargell was born in Earlsboro, Oklahoma, in 1940 on this date. Also on this day: In a 1973 spring exhibition game against the Bucs, the Twins’ Larry Hisle became the first DH in MLB history. He did a good job, too, hitting 2 HR and collecting 7 RBI. It was the first year the rule was in effect, and five teams used a DH that day. And in 2001, Billy Mazeroski was voted into the Hall of Fame by the Veterans Committee. He was inducted on August 5th, tearing up during his speech and tucking his handwritten notes away, saying "I think you can flush these 12 pages down the drain."

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