Pitchers: Ivan Nova (7-6-1, 4.90) makes his Bucco debut against Homer Bailey (1-0, 3.18). Nova's SIERA is a more liveable 4.00, and a switch to the NL should perk up his stats a little. He's a swing-and-miss guy who doesn't walk many hitters with a solid 54% ground ball rate. But...you know there had to be a but, right?...he gives up gopher balls with regularity. So when Ivan keeps it in the park, he should be what the doctor ordered for the back end. This is Homer's second start since returning from TJ surgery, winning his first outing 3-2 over San Diego. In his 10 years as a Redleg, Bailey has 18 lifetime starts against the Pirates, and he's put up an 8-5, 3.28 line v Pittsburgh.
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| So long, Big Apple, hiya, Steel City (photo Associated Press) |
Lineup: Josh 2B, Starling Marte LF, Cutch CF, Matt Joyce RF, Freeser 3B, JJ 1B, Fran C, Jordy SS, Nova P. Looks like Gregory is still bothered by that shoulder.
- Arquimedes Caminero was dealt to the Seattle Mariners for a PTBNL & a conditional PTBNL. He was on revocable waivers, a common post-deadline tactic to test the trade waters, and Seattle won the claim on him, leading to the swap. The Pirates are expected to call up Curtis Partch, tho that's not official at this time. We're not at all sure what the motivation behind this deal was, although with Monday off, the Pirates can go with four starters next week. Still, seems like Cammy >Partch, so we'll see where this all leads.
I always liked Nova and thought he was a better pitcher than most think. Keeping in mind that he was probably pitching with a sore arm for some time before going under the knife, and making due allowance for some time to round back into form following his Tommy John procedure, seems to me he is a reasonable acquisition. The deal to get him would look a lot better if he had more than two months left on his contract, but maybe the Pirates think they can sign him after the season? As for Caminero, I think his bout of wildness earlier this year scared the front office and they believe they are selling high on him. I don't know if that's actually the case, but my guess is that's what they are thinking.
ReplyDeleteYou may be right, Will, Nova may be here on audition. As for Caminero, I'm surprised the FO got rid of a guy under control who was inconsistent but had a power arm & put up a decent line for a bridge reliever. I have no idea of the FO's bromance with Jeff Locke, who has badmouthed the way he's been getting handled and is the obvious DFA candidate. We'll see what they have up their sleeve; I'm not a fan of how they've handled the roster since the ASB. They came into the year knowing it would be a transitional season and don't seem to be handling it very well.
ReplyDeleteDidn't know that Locke has been running his mouth. Nothing like a guy who is delusional about how "good" he is. I'm totally with you about him. No idea whatsoever what the front office sees in him other than, I guess, that he's lefthanded.
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