Summer To Remember Part 4 - September Stretch Run

For once, the Pirates didn't go into a September swoon. They finished out at 15-12, beating the Brewers to break their two-decade losing streak, whipping Texas to ensure a winning year at long last, winning dramatically over the Cubs to take a wildcard spot and running the table on the Reds at GABP to get home field advantage in the elimination game. The Bucs ended the season with 94 wins, the fifth best total in MLB, two games behind the NL Central leaders, the St. Louis Cards.

• September 1 - The opening pitch was tossed out not by a human celebrity, but by a trebuchet (a catapult), designed by the Children's Museum of Pittsburgh. The first machine to ever toss a ceremonial ball at PNC Park, it delivered a strike to the designated catcher, the Pirate Pirate, 10 minutes before the game against the St. Louis Cards was to begin. The Bucs might have been better off keeping the contraption on the mound, as they lost to the Redbirds 7-2. 
• September 3 - Travis Snider’s ninth inning homer lifted the Pirates to a 4-3 win over the Milwaukee Brewers at Miller Park and gave Pittsburgh a two-game lead in the NL Central. It also snapped a 20-year losing streak by the franchise by earning the Bucs their 81st win, a run of futility unmatched by any other major professional sports team in North America. There were more contributors than Snider, though - Andrew McCutchen, Justin Morneau and Marlon Byrd combined to go 7-for-10 with three RBI and three runs scored, Mark Melancon picked up the save for Vin Mazzaro, and Gerrit Cole, who gave up a pair of first inning runs after just three batters, came back to put up zeroes through six innings and retired the last 12-of-13 hitters he faced. Cutch’s homer was his 100th, putting him in the Bucco 100 HR/100 steal club along with Barry Bonds, Al Martin, Andy Van Slyke, Dave Parker and Paul Waner. And in a final bit of irony, the Brewers had broken their club record 12 season losing streak at PNC Park in 2005, so it was fitting the Bucs returned the favor at Miller. 
• September 9 - The Pirates clinched their first winning season since 1992 with a 1-0 win over Yu Darvish and the Texas Rangers at the Ballpark in Arlington. Rookie Gerrit Cole went seven innings of three hit ball, walking a pair and striking out nine, with Tony Watson and Mark Melancon pitching two innings of one hit ball to seal the deal. The game was scoreless until two outs in the seventh when Marlon Byrd and Pedro Alvarez hit back-to-back doubles to produce the game’s only run. The win broke a four game losing streak and moved the Pirates within a game of first place St. Louis. 
• September 13 - Pedro Alvarez, Russ Martin and Garrett Jones hit back-to-back-to-back homers in the fourth inning off the Cubs’ Jake Arrieta, but a pair of two-run Chicago blasts carried the day as the Pirates fell 5-4. It was the first time that the Bucs had hit three consecutive homers at PNC Park and had an improbable degree of difficulty as Pedro’s was an inside-the-park shot. 
• September 20 - The Bucs started off on fire when Jose Tabata and Neil Walker led off the game with homers for the fourth time in club history, and the Pirates were cruising along when Francisco Liriano K'ed Chris Heisey in the eighth for his 1,000th strikeout, also setting the team record for K's at 1,193, breaking last year's mark. But the 5-2 lead wasn’t enough to hold off the Cincinnati Reds, who scored three unearned runs in the ninth keyed by a two out error by Jordy Mercer. Cincy won in the 10th on a wrong way home run by Joey Votto that just dropped over the fence and a few feet inside the LF pole to stun the Bucs at PNC Park 6-5 and tie the teams for second place in the NL Central and the home wildcard spot with eight games to go in the season. 
• September 21 - AJ Burnett struck out a dozen Cincinnati Reds in seven innings, becoming the first Pirate RHP to whiff over 200 batters in a season with 203 K, as the Bucs took a 4-2 decision at PNC Park. The big blow was a two run homer by Russ Martin, and the tying and go-ahead runs were set up by Marlon Byrd, who hit a sac fly to drive in Andrew McCutchen and move Justin Morneau to second, where he scored on a two-out knock by Pedro Alvarez. 
• September 23 - For the first time in 21 years, the Pirates clinched a playoff spot with a 2-1 win at Wrigley Field. Charlie Morton tossed seven innings of three hit ball through seven and was up 1-0 on Neil Walker’s first inning homer. The Cubs tied it in the eighth on a ball that scooted through a drawn up infield, but the Bucs retook the lead in the ninth on Starling Marte’s two out, two strike homer deep into the bleachers. The drama wasn’t quite over; with two outs and Nate Schierholtz on first, Ryan Sweeney blooped a ball into right that glanced off Marlon Byrd’s mitt. Schierholtz was waved around, but an Andrew McCutchen-to-Justin Morneau-to-Russ Martin relay and tag were just enough to give Mark Melancon the win and Jason Grilli the save. 
• September 28 - Behind a six home run barrage (Neil Walker-2, Andrew McCutchen, Pedro Alvarez, Marlon Byrd and Andrew Lambo), the Pirates won home field advantage for their wild card game against the Reds by defeating Cincinnati 8-3 at GABP. It was the first time since August, 2007, versus the Rockies at Coors Field that Pittsburgh banged out that many long balls in a game. For Walker, it was his first career multi-homer game, and for Lambo, his first career MLB homer.

The Beat Goes On: Storylines & Notes

The season's over, but Bucco baseball goes on...

• Four offseason storylines to watch: AJ - will he stay or will he go? The answer will affect how the Pirates look at both the FA and trade markets, as will storyline #2 regarding Wandy Rodrigiez's health. Will Marlon Byrd return? The Bucs will make a run, but we think he'll be looking for two or three years, and with Gregory Polanco on the 2015 horizon, that could be a deal buster. And will Clint Barmes come back at a utility player's salary? There really is no ready defensive replacement for him in the organization, but he could be looking for a starting gig.
• MLB Trade Rumors Steve Adams posts his free-agent facedown between Hiroki Kuroda and AJ Burnett.
• The Pirates starting playoff outfield of Cutch (8.2), Starling Marte (4.6) and Marlon Byrd (4.2) finished third, seventh, and ninth respectively among MLB outfielders in WAR.
• Tom Smith at Rumbunter has a couple of notes on young Pirate pitchers. First he notes that Keith Law of ESPN doesn't like Jamison's Taillon's fastball or change up, and later in the post says the Pirates didn't pull a Stephen Strasburg on Gerrit Cole this year because they emphasize limiting stressful innings of 30+ pitches rather than total innings pitched.
• Dave Cameron of Fangraphs doesn't think the Bucs are going away. He likes the offensive potential, but looks for regression from the Shark Tank.
• Jason St. Angelo of the Huffington Post has feel-good vids of 12 memorable moments of the past season.
• In Pittsburgh, Wednesday's NLDS Game Five pulled in a 31.1 rating, the second best on record behind last week's Wild Card game against the Reds.
• Before It's News wonders if Josh Johnson is this year's Francisco Liriano.
• Jason Grilli likes Pearl Jam and the Bucs; he combinesdboth at Consol last night, with a little speech and a little rock star air guitar. (an ear caution - Jason is due to pony up a donation into the Shark Tank swear jar):

Summer To Remember Part 3 - All Star Break Through August

Pittsburgh was hot in late July and early August, but cooled down as the weather heated up. Still, they went into September with a one game lead in the NL Central.

• July 21 - The Pirates snapped a three game losing streak with a 3-2 win over the Reds at GABP. Jeff Locke gave up one hit over six, but allowed a run on back-to-back walks, a bunt, and a two-out wild pitch. Mark Melancon gave up the other score, giving up a ground ball single sandwiched around a pair of walks with no outs, but gladly gave up the tally in exchange for a Joey Votto DP ball. The Pirates staff only surrendered three hits to Cincinnati, but seven walks gave the Reds plenty of scoring opportunities. The Buccos scored on a Garrett Jones solo homer and RBI knocks by Jordy Mercer and Jose Tabata. 
• July 22 - Jason Grilli was on the cover of Sports Illustrated, the poster boy for Ben Reiter’s story “The Playoff Bound Pirates and Their Sharknado Bullpen.” It was purely coincidental that he was injured pitching the same day, put on the DL, and out of action until September 3rd. 
• July 24 - Francisco Liriano and Stephen Strasberg hooked up in a 1-0 battle, with the Pirates up, going into the ninth. Both starters turned the game over to the bullpens, and that’s when the fun started. The Bucs put up a three spot on Drew Storen, with Mike McKenry’s two run knock being the big blow, and Washington came back at Nationals Park to score a pair off Justin Wilson until Jason Grilli came to the rescue in a 4-2 Pirate win. The only score in the first eight frames came on a second inning homer by Pedro Alvarez. 
• July 27 - Mike McKenry showed why MLB catchers are a different breed of cat. He caught the final three frames of a 7-4 win against Miami at Marlins Park after tearing the lateral meniscus in his left knee during a slide, an injury that required season-ending surgery three days later. It was hard to tell, as the reserve catcher, who soldiered through the game because starting catcher Russell Martin had tweaked his knee the previous night, went 4-for-5. The Fort was the battery mate of Charlie Morton, who took home the win after a save by Mark Melancon. 
• July 30 - The Pirates swept a doubleheader from the Cards by 2-1 and 6-0 scores at PNC Park to vault over them into first place in the NL Central. The opener went 11 innings, with the winning run scoring after Alex Presley’s apparent DP ball deflected off pitcher Kevin Siegrist’s glove and into left to plate Russ Martin. Vin Mazzaro got the win. The key blow in the nitecap was Andrew McCutchen’s two-run homer that bounced off Matt Holliday’s glove and into the second row of seats in left. Rookie Brandon Cumpton went seven frames for the win, tossing three hit ball. C Tony Sanchez took his MLB bow behind the dish and became one of seven Pirates to call a shutout in his first game; the last was Jason Kendall in 1996. 
• July 31 - The Pirates took their fourth straight game of the series over St. Louis with a 5-4 win at PNC Park. With Card ace Adam Wainwright on the hill, Pittsburgh rallied three times from early deficits to tie the game 4-4 in the fifth. The score stayed that way until the bottom of the eighth. Neil Walker opened with a single and tagged to second after Pedro Alvarez’s drive to left died in the corner for the second out. Russell Martin turned on a slider and lined it into short left center for the game winner. The Pirate bullpen tossed five scoreless innings in the victory, with Tony Watson getting the win and Mark Melancon earning the save.
• August 7 - Petrina McCutchen, Andrew’s mom, sang the National Anthem before the Miami Marlins’ game at PNC Park. Her son responded with a 2-for-3 night with a walk and a homer, and so did the team, as they won 4-2 behind Charlie Morton, Tony Watson and Mark Melacon. 
• August 9 - It wasn’t a very good day for the Bucs, who gave up nine runs in the first two innings on the way to a 10-1 drubbing at the hands of the Colorado Rockies at Coors Field. But it did plump up the resume of utilityman Josh Harrison, who came in the eighth with two out and two runners aboard to get the last out, using his 60-something MPH heat to coax a fly out from Corey Dickerson. Harrison related to Bill Brink of the Post Gazette that Clint Hurdle told him “All right, I never thought I would have to have this talk with you here on the mound. Go get them." 
• August 17 - The film “Baseball’s Last Hero: 21 Clemente Stories” premiered at the Strand Theater in Zelienople. The movie was written by West View native Richard Rossi. It had its initial showing in Hollywood, but Rossi edited the film into its final version for the hometown viewing. 
• August 27 - Looking to strengthen the roster down the stretch, the Pirates pulled off a waiver deal with the NY Mets for OF Marlon Byrd, C John Buck and $250K for minor league IF Dilson Herrera and a player to be named later (RHP Victor Black). 
• August 28 - Newly acquired Marlon Byrd hit a homer and tallied three RBI in his first game with the Bucs to ice Pittsburgh’s 7-1 win over the Milwaukee Brewers at PNC Park, with Charlie Morton getting the victory. According to the Elias Sports Bureau, Byrd was the third Pirate player to hit a home run and have at least three RBI in his first game with the team after playing for another MLB team earlier in the season. Derrek Lee hit two dingers and had three RBI on August 1st, 2011 after being traded from the Orioles and Shawon Dunston hit two long balls and drove in four runs on September 2nd, 1997 after being acquired from the Cubs. 
• August 30 - The Pirates defeated the St. Louis Cards 5-0 at PNC Park behind Francisco Liriano’s two hitter and a 3-for-4 night by Garrett Jones, who had four RBI and was a triple short of the cycle. The HR was #100 of his career. Pittsburgh moved back into a Central Division tie for first with the Redbirds in front of a sellout crowd of 38,036.

Summer to Remember Part 2 - June to All-Star Break

The Pirates were strong in June, tearing off a nine game winning streak late in the month. At one point in July, they led the NL Central by two games, and went into the All Star break just a game behind.

• June 1 - Francisco Liriano tied the franchise record by striking out seven consecutive Reds, but Mike Leake won the duel at PNC Park by a 2-0 count. Liriano went six innings, giving up a run on four hits and a walk, punching out 11. Not a ball left the infield in the inning he surrendered the run, and only a disputed two-out call at first allowed Cincy to score at all off The Cisco Kid.
• June 2 - The Reds raced to a 4-0 first inning lead against Jeanmar Gomez, and the righty was yanked after the frame with forearm tightness. But the Pirate bullpen piled up 10 scoreless frames, allowing just five hits, while Pedro Alvarez and Garrett Jones homered - Jones became the first Pirate to reach the Allegheny on the fly with his 463’ blast - to send the game into extra innings at PNC Park. The Pirates took it in the eleventh on Travis Snider’s soft two-out liner that scored Russell Martin from second for a walk off 5-4 win. 
• June 6 - The Pirates picked high school OF Austin Meadows (#9) and C Reese McGuire in the first round of the draft. 
• June 11 - First overall pick of the 2011 draft, RHP Gerrit Cole, made his MLB debut at PNC Park and picked up an 8-2 win over the SF Giants in front of 30,614 fans. Cole pitched to contact, giving up two runs on seven hits with two K in 6-1/3 innings, needing just 81 pitches and registering 99 on the gun a couple of times during the evening. Pedro Alvarez went 3-for-3 with a homer, two runs scored and three RBI to spark the attack.
• June 12 - The Pirates collected their 10,000th franchise win when they beat the Giants 12-8 at PNC Park. 236 wins were collected as the Alleghenys of the American Association and 9,764 W were notched in the NL (which are the only ones the team officially recognizes). The top of the Pirate order (Starling Marte - Jordy Mercer - Andrew McCutchen - Gaby Sanchez) propelled the win against SF, going 13-for-19 and scoring eight runs while driving in four. It marked the fourth time in the last 59 seasons that the top four hitters in the Bucs starting lineup each had at least three hits (the previous being in 2004), and Marte became only Pirate leadoff hitter since 1916 with a four-hit, four-run, two-steal day. 
• June 18 - After a defeat at Cincy during which Andrew McCutchen was HBP and Neil Walker was knocked down, Charlie Morton plunked the first Red to step to plate and then led the Bucs to a 4-0 win at GABP. Morton and three relievers combined on a four hitter. The Bucs never looked back, scoring three times in the first, keyed by a two run, bases loaded knock by Pedro Alvarez. 
• June 23 - It ain’t over ‘til it’s over. Angel pitchers had sat down 16 straight Pirates and went into the ninth with a 6-3 lead at Angel Stadium with closer Ernesto Frieri on the hill. But the battlin’ Bucs tied the game on a double by Russell Martin and single by Starling Marte, both with two strikes and two outs. Then they scored four more in the 10th. But LA decided to not mail it in; they scored three times in their half off Bucco closer Jason Grilli and had runners on second and third with two out and Mike Trout up; Grilli got him swinging. The hitting heroes were Martin and Andrew McCutchen. Both were scheduled for off days, but played the last two innings, going a combined 3-for-4 with two runs scored and three RBI. It was also the MLB debut for a pair of Pirate rookies, C Tony Sanchez, who doubled in his first at bat, and RHP Duke Welker, who worked a frame and got his first big league punch out. It was a series sweep for the Pirates, their first road interleague sweep ever. 
• June 25 - The Bucs banged five homers for the first time since 2009 and rolled to a 9-4 win over the Seattle Mariners at Safeco Field. Starling Marte led the Pirates' offense with a pair of home runs, his first career multi-homer game, and a triple. Russell Martin, Brandon Inge and Gaby Sanchez also homered. The Pirates went long three times in the second inning off Joe Saunders; Inge and Marte went back-to-back. Jeff Locke coasted to the win. 
• June 28 - Gerrit Cole, the first overall pick of the 2011 draft, became the first Pirate rookie since Nick Maddox in 1907 to win the first four games he started when the Bucs shellacked the Brewers 10-3 at PNC Park in front of 36,875. Cole went six frames for the win, supported by Andrew McCutchen and Starling Marte, who each had three hits. Cutch had a double, homer, three RBI and a run while Starling added a double, triple, two runs and two RBI. 
• June 29 - A life-size statue of Roberto Clemente was unveiled at the 25-acre Roberto Clemente State Park along the Harlem River in the Bronx. The likeness, sculpted by Maritza Hernandez, was the first in New York to honor a person of Puerto Rican heritage, according to the park's director. 
• June 30 - The Pirates won their ninth straight game 2-1 in 14 innings over the Brewers at PNC Park. The game was delayed in the second inning for nearly 2-1/2 hours, and the bullpens took over with Milwaukee ahead 1-0. Andrew McCutchen tied the game in the eighth when his two out knock drove in Starling Marte. The Pirates left the bases loaded in the 13th to miss a golden chance, but Russell Martin, the last Pirate position player remaining, singled home Gaby Sanchez, who had an infield knock and stolen base to open the frame, with the game winner in the following go-around. Tony Watson got the win after three scoreless innings. He followed five other Pirate relievers, and ensemble the group tossed 12 innings of two-hit, shutout ball without issuing a walk, led by Vin Mazzaro’s perfect five inning stint. It was the first time in franchise history that the bullpen put up that many consecutive zeroes in one game.
• July 16 - Andrew McCutchen, Pedro Alvarez, Jason Grilli, Mark Melancon and Jeff Locke were selected for the All-Star game. It was a homecoming of sorts for Alvarez, as the game was played in CitiField near his Manhattan home of Washington Heights, and he also participated in the home run derby. El Toro went 0-for-1 and McCutchen 0-for-2, while Grilli tossed a scoreless inning of relief. Melancon didn’t get in the game, and Locke was injured. It was the first time since 1972 that the Pittsburgh Pirates had sent five representatives to the game.

Summer To Remember: Part 1 - Opening Day to June

We thought we'd take a look at that wild ride that was the 2013 Pirate season, broken into bite-seized bits.

 The Pirates werepredicted by the local baseball blogosphere to be an 80-85 win club going into the season, with decent pitching and an improved, but still sub par, attack. Pittsburgh lost 5-of-6 to open the year, but fueled by winning 11-of-13 in a two-week span in May, were just two games off the pace on May 31st. Some notable moments in that stretch:

• April 6 - Clayton Kershaw won a pitching duel against AJ Burnett 1-0 at Dodger Stadium. Burnett gave up the only run in the third on an infield single, stolen base and two-out grounder through the SS hole. Four Buc pitchers combined for 11 K, but Kershaw and friends spun a two-hitter. 
•  April 17 - AJ Burnett had a no-hitter going against the Cards at PNC Park, carrying the no-no into the seventh before Carlos Beltran banged a double. It was a big day for AJ; he also went over the 2,000 mark in career strikeouts. The Bucs won 5-0. 
• April 19 - Wandy Rodriguez tossed seven innings of one hit ball as the Bucs beat the NL leading Atlanta Braves 6-0 at PNC Park. The Bravos ended up with two hits, and both were erased on DP balls. There were no walks or errors, so the three Pirate hurlers (Wandy, Mark Melancon, Vin Mazzaro) faced the minimum 27 batters. 
• April 25 - The Bucs beat the Phillies for the third straight time at Citizen’s Bank Park by a 6-4 score. It’s the first time in eighteen occurrences that Cole Hamels, Roy Halladay and Cliff Lee threw back-to-back-to-back games and lost all three. The Pirates were beat in the first match of the four game set by Jonathan Pettibone, who was making his first MLB start.
• May 8 - After being DFA'ed on April 30th. LHP Jonathan Sanchez, who broke camp with the Pirates as a fifth starter after a rash of injuries felled the other contenders, was released.  He went 0-3 with a 11.85 ERA, giving up 25 hits, including seven home runs, in 13-2/3 IP.
• May 11 - After sitting out with an off-season broken arm, Francisco Liriano got plenty of help in winning his first game as a Pirate, an 8-2 victory over the NY Mets at CitiField. He lasted 5-⅓ innings and whiffed nine, supported by Jose Tabata’s 4-for-5 day with a homer, double, three runs scored and three driven home. Mike McKenry chipped in with three more RBI and Jordy Mercer banged out a pair of solo long balls. 
• May 14 - The Bucs snapped a five game home losing streak to the Brewers at PNC Park, thanks to six innings of shutout work from the bullpen and Andrew McCutchen’s walk off homer off Mike Fiers in the twelfth frame to take a 4-3 victory over Milwaukee. Cutch ended a frustrating night that saw two of his balls caught at the fence with the breeze from the river blowing in. That wasn’t nearly as frustrating as the Pirate hitters, who went 0-for-15 with RISP. Vin Mazzaro picked up the W with two innings of scoreless ball. 
• May 17 - The Bucs overcame a 4-1 deficit to defeat the Astros 5-4 at PNC Park when two Astro fielders ran into each other with two down in ninth, allowing Russ Martin’s pop to drop and Andrew McCutchen to score the walk-off run. There were some legit efforts by Pittsburgh. Tony Watson, Vin Mazzaro and Justin Wilson tossed 4-1/3 frames of scoreless ball and Pedro Alvarez cranked a 462’ shot into the Allegheny on one hop off the Riverwalk. The eighth inning, game tying two run shot fell a foot short of Matt Lawton’s 2005 drive against Jamey Wright of Colorado of becoming the longest homer ever hit at PNC Park. 
• May 21 - The Cubs scored first and last, but the Bucs scored enough in the middle, keyed by a sixth inning Travis Snider grand slam, to eke out a 5-4 win. Snider’s grannie was his first ever and the first Buc pinch hit slam at PNC Park since 2003, rallying the Pirates from a 3-0 hole to a 5-3 win. 
• May 22 - Francisco Liriano outdueled the Cubs Jeff Samardzija 1-0 at PNC Park; the only run scored in the first, when with two outs Andrew McCutchen doubled and Garrett Jones singled him home. Liriano gave up two hits, a walk and K’ed nine in seven innings. It was only the second time in Pirate history that a pitcher began his Pittsburgh career by allowing a run or less in his first three outings, the other being Dave LaPoint in 1988. 
• May 25 - The Bucs hit four homers, two by Pedro Alvarez, and Jeff Locke ran his scoreless streak to 14 frames in a 5-2 win at Milwaukee’s Miller Field. For Locke, it was his sixth start out of the last seven giving up three or fewer hits. 
• May 28 - The Bucs rode strong pitching and an eleventh inning home run by Neil Walker off Jose Ortega to edge the Tigers at Comerica Park 1-0, despite striking out 14 times. Jeanmar Gomez and Rick Porcello started the game while Jason Grilli finished it in style with swinging strikeouts of Motown’s Torii Hunter, Miguel Cabrera and Prince Fielder in order to earn his 21st save and Mark Melancon’s first win as a Pirate. 
• May 30 - For the second time in three days, the Pirates defeated the Detroit Tigers, 1-0 in 11 innings. The Bucs used four pitchers and a Neil Walker homer to win at Comerica Park on the 28th (see above), then flew home to PNC Park and won behind six pitchers and a Russell Martin walk off single off the wall. It was the club’s fourth 1-0 win in an 11 game span.

Bucs Sweep Reds 4-2 For Win #94

It wasn't an ideal start for Greg Reynolds; an infield knock by JT, a walk to Pedro and a John Buck single put the Bucs up 1-0. Brandon Cumpton started strong, with a 1-2-3 frame.

The second didn't get a lot easier for Reynolds; Jordy Mercer dinked a ball to right, Jay Bruce made a dive to snare it and missed, and the ball rolled to the wall while Mercer steamed around the base paths with an inside-the-park homer without so much as a throw home. After a single by Josh Harrison, Reynolds put down the order while Cumpton tossed another clean frame.

Pedro got plunked in the hip with a hook with one away in the third - he's just playing in hopes of another HR in his long ball title quest, and we'll see with Dusty's starters in if this leads to anything - and Buck's short hop bounded past a fairly disinterested Zack Cozart to put Bucs on first and second. But Garrett Jones hit into a 4-6-3 DP, and Reynolds had his first scoreless frame. Cesar Izturis cued a single past a diving Pedro, the only mark against Cumpton after three.

Mercer led off the fourth with a triple, and a couple of singles by Harrison (for the RBI) and JT made it 3-0. After two down for the Reds, Jay Bruce walked, but Todd Frazier flew out; so far, so good for Brandon. A light drizzle is falling now; we hope for Cumpton, JT, Josh and Mercer's sake that another complete inning gets played (it ended up off-and-on showers all day). And there shouldn't be any beanball wars (no targets) as Dusty pulled Joey Votto, Bruce and Frazier.

Reynolds pitched a tidy fifth frame. Cozart opened the Reds' half with a double, but a pair of grounders to the left side and a pop up to short center kept him anchored. Ryan Ludwick and Cozart took a seat, and Curtis Partch worked the sixth. Except for a four pitch walk to Cumpton (who has a perfect day, with two sacs and a free pass, even if he doesn't have an official at bat) tossed a routine inning. Cumpton was at 65 pitches and replaced by Stolmy Pimentel (Andrew Lambo and Gaby - he took Pedro's place at 3b - also joined the fray), and Stolmy hurled a 1-2-3 frame.

Partch got three groundouts from the Bucs in the seventh, and it was three up, three down for Stolmy, too. Nick Christiani got the call in the eighth. With an out, Jones took him deep to right center to make it 4-0, and Mercer followed with his third knock, a liner to center. His only out was a ball that deflected off the pitcher's foot. Harrison hit one sharply, but on one hop to short to start a 6-4-3 DP. Jeanmar Gomez came on, and got roughed up. He gave up a single and back-to-back doubles,  followed by a walk an out later. Gomez escaped the frame with just two runs scored thanks to a Neftali Soto 6-4-3 DP to end the inning.

Zach Duke took the ball in the ninth, and was nicked only by Lambo's soft infield knock. Kyle Farnsworth came in looking for his second Bucco save. Chris Heisey opened with a jam shot just past Mercer, and after getting ahead of Jack Hannahan 0-2, Farnsworth ran the count full. But there was no comeback for the Reds today; Hannahan spanked a hard one hopper to Josh, and even with the runner going it was an easy 4-6-3 DP. Henry Rodriguez whiffed swinging, and the Bucs had the win.

94 wins is a pretty sweet season, and sweeping the Reds before the wild card will knock down their swagger a notch or two. Now it's a day off and a win or go home game Tuesday at PNC Park.

• Bob Walk's Root Sport's three keys to the game: 1) don't get hurt; 2) don't break your favorite bat and 3) don't miss the bus. 
• Brandon Cumpton now has a 15 inning scoreless streak. 
• Garrett Jones' homer was his 100th as a Pirate.
• The Bucs have swept the Reds twice this season, once at PNC Park and once at GABP. The Reds enter the wild card game on their longest losing streak of the year, five games.
• Pittsburgh's 94 wins are the most since Jimmy Leyland's 1990-92 clubs, which won 95, 98 and 96 games.
• Jeff Locke, who many assume was going to pitch today, has been shut down by the Bucs and will not be part of the post-season roster. AJ Burnett and Charlie Morton will not be on wild card roster; but rest assured they'll be on the playoff roster. The team hasn't announced Tuesday's game roster yet.
• John Sickels of Minor League Ball released his end-of-the-season Top 75 Prospects. The Bucs had six: pitchers Jameson Taillon and Tyler Glasnow, outfielders Gregory Polanco and Austin Meadows, IF Alen Hanson and C Reese McGuire.

Cumpton v Reynolds In Funday Season Finale

Brandon Cumpton (1-1, 2.45) will try to sweep the Reds against Greg Reynolds (1-2, 5.55) this afternoon. The starters are a bit of a changeup, with Gerrit Cole and Johnny Cueto originally penciled in should the game have playoff implications; the Bucs took care of that matter yesterday. Now the Pirates have Cole rested and the Reds have Cueto set to take the hill for Tuesday's one-and-out clash.

Cumpton hasn't tossed for a while, but he's faced the Reds twice before, the last time on September 22nd, going eight innings and giving up eight hits and two runs overall. A good outing will help his jockeying position for a back-end job in 2014. The Bucs haven't seen Reynolds, who will make his fifth start of the season. He's been off since September 18th, so both guys will have some rust to shake loose.

Another point: according to @BiertempfelTrib - It's cloudy today in Cincy, and there is talk of a possible delay in the game. The umps might not wait too long to bang it, if it rains. So there's that.

The game starts at 1:10 and will be aired on TBS, Root Sports and 93.7 The Fan.

Pirate lineup: Felix Pie CF, Jose Tabata LF, Travis Snider RF, Pedro Alvarez 3b, John Buck C, Garrett Jones 1b, Jordy Mercer SS, Josh Harrison 2b and Brandon Cumpton P.

As expected, the irregulars are getting their day in the sun.

Reds lineup: Shin-Soo Choo CF, Ryan Ludwick LF, Joey Votto 1b, Jay Bruce RF, Todd Frazier 3b, Zack Cozart SS, Derin Mesoraco C, Cesar Izturis 2b and Greg Reynolds P.

Obviously Dusty doesn't consider this an off-day; he's got his big boy lineup going.

• The wild card game at PNC Park will be played Tuesday at 8:07 PM and aired on TBS. 
• Neil Walker has a career high 16 HRs this season, the most by a Pirate second baseman since Bill Mazeroski hit 16 in 1966. 
• Francisco Liriano, A.J. Burnett, Gerrit Cole and Jeff Locke are the first quartet of Pirates pitchers to reach double digits in wins since 1997, when Francisco Cordova led the way with 11 wins followed with 10 each by Jon Lieber, Esteban Loaiza and Jason Schmidt.
• Dunno that we'd write home about it, but the Pirates have posted a 14-12 record this month. Even being so-so sure beats the past few Septembers!

Charlie v Bronson Arroyo, Lineup, Notes

Charlie Morton (7-4, 3.14) takes on Bronson Arroyo (14-11, 3.60). In his last two starts, Ground Chuck has given up one run on five hits over 15 innings, but didn't get a decision in either contest when the pen couldn't hold the leads he had left them.

Arroyo has been steady all this year, and he's well rested for this game. His last start was September 22nd against the Pirates. He won at PNC Park, though not in shutdown style, allowing three runs on five hits and two walks in five innings.

Tomorrow's contest starts at 1:05 and is the Fox game; 93.7 The Fan will air it on radio.

Pirate lineup: Starling Marte LF, Neil Walker 2b, Andrew McCutchen CF, Justin Morneau 1b, Marlon Byrd RF, Pedro Alvarez 3b, Russ Martin C, Clint Barmes SS and Charlie Morton P.

Clint Barmes is getting the lion's share of work; he and Russ Martin are the defensive heart of the infield, but are kinda brutal at the back end of the order.

Reds lineup: Shin-Soo Choo CF, Ryan Ludwick LF, Joey Votto 1b, Brandon Phillips 2b, Jay Bruce RF, Todd Frazier 3b, Zack Cozart SS, Ryan Hanigan C and Bronson Arroyo P.

Ludwick remains misplaced in the two hole, though the Reds don't have many candidates for the spot.

• More on Pedro: His 35 HR are the club's most since Jason Bay hit 35 in 2006, and his 99 RBI are most since Bay got 109 in 1996, per @BiertempfelTrib. He's one RBI away from 100; Jay Bay was the last Buc to reach that standard in 2006.
• Pittsburgh caught the Reds at a good time. Cincinnati has scored a total of six runs in their last four games.
• Last night the Pirates held an opponent to one run or fewer for the 40th time this season. It’s the first time the Pirates accomplished that since 1977.
• Clint Hurdle has won 243 games in his three years as Pirate manager, the most in that span by a Bucs skipper since Jimmy Leyland's 289 wins between 1990-92. That’s also the most victories by a Pirates manager in his first three full seasons since Chuck Tanner won 282 games from 1977-79.
• If the Pirates get one more win, they'll host a playoff game for the first time since October 11th, 1992, when they beat the Atlanta Braves 7-1 at TRS.
• It's like old days with Pittsburgh and Cincy as the wild card teams. The Bucs and Reds have faced each other five previous times (1970 NLCS, 1972 NLCS, 1975 NLCS, 1979 NLCS and 1990 NLCS) in postseason play. The 20 games vs. the Reds in the playoffs are the most against any opponent for the Pirates.
• The winner of the Pirate-Reds wild card game will meet the NL division winner with the best record, either St. Louis or Atlanta (they're tied going into today), on Thursday.

AJ & The Byrd Too Much For The Reds In 4-1 Victory; One Step To Go For Home Field

Fairly quiet opening frame. Homer Bailey got it over with quickly, beaning Neil Walker with an out. he went to second and stayed there as Cutch grounded out and Justin Morneau lined one to right into the glove of Jay Bruce. AJ gave up a two out knock, and it was zeroes after a frame. With two down in the second, Russ Martin walked and Clint Barmes singled, but AJ whiffed to end the party. Burnett went out, walk, out, single out and it remained goose eggs.

The plate began to move on Bailey in the third. Marte was HBP in the back on an 0-2 count and stole second; Walker lined out to center. Cutch and Morneau drew walks, and Marlon Byrd cashed in a pair with a single just past a diving Cozart through the left side. Pedro proved a party pooper, banging into a 4-6-3 DP, but the Bucs had an early 2-0 lead. AJ tossed a 1-2-3 frame thanks to a beaut of a diving grab by Marte on Joey Votto to close out the inning.

The bottom of the order was pretty meek in the fourth. Martin sat down looking on three pitches, Barmes had the green light on a 3-0 pitch and hit a dribbler in front of the plate, and AJ rolled out to second. After a pair of soft ground outs - one a nice tag play by Morneau on an off-line toss by Pedro - AJ left a heater on the inside half above the belt to Todd Frazier, and he rang it off the LF foul pole to make it 2-1. Zack Cozart chopped a 3-2 pitch up the middle, but Burnett got Ryan Hanigan on a hopper to short.

Marte became the second straight Pirate leadoff hitter to sit down on three pitches by looking at a third strike fastball in the fifth. The Bucs got a two out walk from Cutch, but a Morneau grounder ended the frame. With one down, Shin-Soo Choo did what he does; he slapped a tailing fastball the opposite way into left. No sweat; Ryan Ludwick rolled over on a pitch away and bounced into a 6-4-3 DP.

The Byrd almost opened the sixth with a dinger; his ball hit the edge of a raised cutout beside the bullpen and stayed in play for a reviewed and upheld double, it kissed the corner by the length of the ball. No review for Pedro; Bailey tried to sneak a two strike fastball past him, and El Toro crushed it into straight center halfway up the batter's eye  to make it 4-1. Dusty gave Alfredo Simon the ball after that blast. He walked Martin on four pitches, K'ed Barmes and Burnett, and got an at 'em ball off Marte's bat, a liner to short. AJ shutdown the 4-5-6 hitters on a pair of lazy flies and a Bruce grounder into the shift.

Simon tempted fate in the seventh, but balls hit by Walker and Morneau were both corralled deep on the track in right and left center. AJ cruised, getting a pair of grounders and a whiff, and at 89 pitches may have another inning left. With lefties due up for the Reds, Clint has a lot of options.

Logan Ondrusek took the hill, and was greeted by back-to-back knocks by Byrd and Pedro. But the bottom of the order lived up to their name. Martin fouled out, Barmes whiffed, and with Travis Snider swinging a bat and Tony Watsom heating up, Clint instead sent up AJ, who went down looking. But no worries about an inning too long this time; Burnett mowed the Reds down and has retired 10 in a row.

JJ Hoover got the call for the ninth. The top of the lineup did a fine imitation of the bottom, striking out twice around a one hopper to second. AJ was done after eight, giving up a run on five hits, a walk and K'ing six, using 99 pitches. Jason Grilli came out looking for this 33rd save against the heart of the Red order.

He struck out Joey Votto on a check swing - Joey was walking back to the dugout - but Laz Diaz at third blew the call, and three pitches later Votto singled. Jason made it moot, though, as Phillips slowly grounded the next pitch to Pedro, who still turned it into a 5-4-3 to erase Diaz's mistake. Jay Bruce bounced out to Morneau, and the Bucs were one step away from a home playoff game Tuesday.

Nice win; enough hitting to go with an excellently pitched and defended game. While Russ Martin continues in his funk, The Kid continues to square up and in the last couple of games, Justin Morneau has begun to stay on the ball instead of pulling off, and his bat would be a welcome addition if the Bucs are to make a playoff run.

Charlie Morton faces Bronson Arroyo tomorrow afternoon.

• Pedro's 35th homer set a new club record for long balls by a third baseman, topping Aramis Ramirez's mark of 34 in 2001.
• AJ's tenth win gives him double-digit victories for the ninth consecutive season.
• Homer Bailey hasn't beat the Pirates since he no-hit them last September.
• The Braves recently asked Sid Bream if he would throw out the ceremonial first pitch if they faced the Pirates in the playoff — and he turned them down. “Whatever their motive was, I don't want to be involved,” Bream said.
• Local politicos have declared Monday "Black and Gold" day to honor the Bucs, and the festivities will kick off with a rally at Market Square starting at 11:30.
  
  
  

AJ v Homer, Lineup, Notes

AJ Burnett (9-11, 3.39) opens the final regular season series of the year against Homer Bailey (11-11, 3.40) as the Bucs and Reds jockey for home field in the wild card game. AJ is 1-1 with a 3.38 ERA against Cincinnati this Campaign. Bailey has started three times versus the Pirates this season, and gone 0-2 with a 3.50 ERA. Oh - AJ's last start was a 4-2 victory in seven innings of work against Bailey.

Hey, nice way to end the season, but sorta anti-climatic. Home field is a big advantage, but to us, this series is pretty much a filler until Tuesday night and the play-in contest; that's the big game. And if you recall, both road teams (St. Louis @ Atlanta & Baltimore @ Texas) won last year's one-and-done games, so being in front of the faithful in a one-game, winner take all isn't a necessarily a ticket to ride.

The game starts at 7:10 and will be aired on Root Sports and 93.7 The Fan.

Pirate lineup: Starling Marte LF, Neil Walker 2b, Andrew McCutchen CF, Justin Morneau 1b, Marlon Byrd RF, Pedro Alvarez 3b, Russ Martin C, Clint Barmes SS and AJ Burnett P.

Reds lineup: Shin-Soo Choo CF, Ryan Ludwick LF, Joey Votto 1b, Brandon Phillips 2b, Jay Bruce RF, Todd Frazier 3b, Zack Cozart SS, Ryan Hanigan C and Homer Bailey P.

Not too surprisingly, it's the big boy lineups for both teams.

• This is AJ's last shot at 10 wins; he's gone eight straight seasons with double-digit victories. 
• Cutch’s 59 multi-hit games this season are the most by a Pirate since Freddy Sanchez had 60 while winning the batting title in 2006.
• Dave Cameron of Fangraphs has an idea for the playoff game: start Francisco Liriano, give him three or four innings, and let the bullpen finish.
• The NL Central has three teams with at least 90 wins for the first time since the division was created in 1994. It's the first time a NL division has had three 90+ winners since 2002 in the NL West.
• This vid is ESPN's Baseball Today breakdown of the Buc-Reds series.
• What are the Buccos worth to the town? The Pittsburgh Business Times' guess: "Ticket sales and related spending for the team's 81 home games meant more than $199 million to the region's economy." President Frank Coonelly says the team makes every effort to spend locally.
• Mike Petriello of Fangraphs wonders if all Vic Black needs is an opportunity.
• Tim Dierkes of MLB Trade Rumors thinks that FA Nate McLouth is in line for a 2 year, $10M deal during the off season.

Opportunity Knocks; Bucs Don't Answer In 4-2 Loss

Starling Marte singled and stole second to open the game against Jake Arrieta. Neil Walker, who has been hot as a firecracker, laid on down, we assume looking for a drag hit, and popped out. Cutch went the other way, flying out, and Justin Morneau hit one on the nose, but Starlin Castro made the play to end the frame.

The Cubs put up a run in the first off Francisco Liriano when Darwin Barney doubled (actually, a single and a Cutch bobble) with an out and came around on Anthony Rizzo's knock. The Bucs went down quietly in the second. Darnell McDonald opened with a double and went to third on a bouncer, but Frankie tightened up and K'ed the 8-9 hitters.

The Pirates had a little two out lightning strike in the third. Marte singled and stole second, and Bucs were on the corners after Walker's soft roller turned into an infield knock. Back-to-back walks of Cutch and Morneau tied the game. But Garrett Jones couldn't keep the good times going, rolling out to second.

Darwin yanked a grounder into left with an out, and the Pirates gave him second again when Tony Sanchez set up outside and couldn't glove a fastball inside for a passed ball, Rizzo grounded back to the box and off Liriano for an infield knock to put Cubs on the corners. Frankie rallied to whiff Murphy swinging on a 3-2 pitch, with Rizzo going to second, which was left uncovered by the Bucs, who opted to play straight up D. Junior lake popped out to keep the Cubs off the board, but The Cisco Kid isn't real sharp in the early going, and his pitch count is at 66 offerings.

The Cubs all but gave the Bucs a run in the fourth, but in Pirate fashion, they refused to take it. Pedro lined a ball off Castro's mitt for an E6, and the ball carried to the track. El Toro was in second, and when LF Lake bobbled the ball and then ho-hummed picking it back up and getting it in, allowing the hustling Pedro to easily storm into third. Tony Sanchez hit a soft flare to short for the first out, and after popping a suicide squeeze attempt foul, Clint Barmes lined to third; Murphy was a step from the bag and doubled up Pedro.

McDonald, who had two doubles coming into today's game, led off with his second two-base knock. He helped Frankie, though, when he was caught trying to go to third on a grounder to short and was easy pickings, 6-5. He whiffed JC Boscot and Arrieta again to keep it at 1-1.

With an out in the fifth, Marte was nicked by a pitch. After a fly out, he stole second, his thrid swipe of the game, but was left when Cutch hit a comebacker. Liriano was back on his game this frame, retiring the top of the Chicago order on nine pitches.

The Cubs keep trying to hand Pittsburgh the go ahead run, but just can't do it. Morneau led off with a single and got to second when the ball hit off a diving Lake (who is making the transition from SS to the outfield) and his throw missed the base, going all the way to first. Jones gave himself up with two strikes and moved him to third on a roller to first. With the infield in, Pedro hit a single hop to first, freezing Morneau, and Tony Sanchez went down looking. The Bucs are back to their old tricks, as they're 1-for-11 with RISP after just six innings.

Murphy singled through the left side to open the Cub half and stole second, then Lake drew a 3-2 walk. Frankie was at 100 pitches, but Clint Hurdle kept him in, even with the righty McDonald up, who already has two doubles. He smoked a 2-1 heater into the stands for his first HR of the season, and it was 4-1 Cubs. Vin Mazzaro came on a batter late to clean up the frame.

Justin Grimm put the Bucs away neatly in the seventh. Bryan Morris came on, and gave up a single, intentional walk and wild pitch, but kept the Cubbies off the board. Pedro Strop worked the eighth, giving up a two out single to Morneau but otherwise keeping the Bucco bats muted. Jeanmar Gomez worked a solid frame, allowing a runner when a ball got under Morneau's glove. Kevin Gregg took the ball for Chicago. With an out, Castro bobbled Tony Sanchez's roller, and it cost when JT followed with a triple to right center.  The Bucs had the tying run at the dish, but got no further. Marlon Byrd came up hacking and went down on strikes; Marte watched three balls at the knees on the outside black go by, and that was it.

The Bucs had every opportunity to make their road a little easier, but the things that frustrated fans during this playoff run popped back up: wasted runners (1-for13 with RISP, stranding a runner at third with less than two outs four times; four fly balls and the Bucs win) and a pitching change one batter late.

A day off, and then the last series against Cincinnati. Whoever takes two out of three is the home team for the one-and-done playoffs. AJ Burnett and Homer Bailey match up Friday in a key opening contest.

• Marte is the first Pirate to steal three bases in a game since Cutch in 2010, and the first Buc to reach 40 swipes since Tony Womack in 1998 (he had 58).
• In Pirate team history, the only players with 25+ 2B, 10+ 3B, 12+ HR, & 40+ SB in a season are Starling Marte, Kiki Cuyler (1925) and Jake Stenzel (1894).
• The Pirates are 3-4 at GABP, splitting a four game set in June and losing 2-of-3 in July.
• Francisco Liriano will almost certainly be the starter for the playoff game, unless Gerrit Cole doesn't go in the Red finale, which could happen if one team or the other takes the first two games.
• St. Louis swept the Nats 4-1 and the Mets beat the Reds 1-0 at GABP. The Pirates had a golden opportunity to just need one win at Cincy to clinch a home playoff game; now they need to take 2-of-3. St. Louis is all but in; they finish with the Cubs, and the only way the Pirates can take the division is to have the Redbirds lose all three while they sweep Cincinnati, eliminated from the title chase today. And even that would result in a one-game tiebreaker game, not an outright crown, though it would be played in Pittsburgh.

Liriano v Arrieta

Fancisco Liriano  (16-7, 2.88) takes on Jake Arrieta (4-4, 5.06) as the Bucs go for the sweep at Wrigley. Frankie's had some problems on the road, but Chicago has been good to him, as he's 2-0 with a 1.13 ERA by the lake. It's been a tough year for Arrieta, though he was strong in his last outing, a three hit effort against the Brewers. All in all, it's a good match up on paper for the Pirates.

The game begins at 2:20 and will be aired by WGN, Root Sports and 93.7 The Fan.

Pirate lineup: Starling Marte LF, Neil Walker 2b, Andrew McCutchen CF, Justin Morneau 1b, Garrett Jones RF, Pedro Alvarez 3b, Tony Sanchez C, Clint Barmes SS and Francisco Liriano P.

Garrett Jones gives The Byrd a day off as Clint loads up with lefties as best he can against Arrieta.

Cubs lineup: Starlin Castro SS, Darwin Barney 2b, Anthony Rizzo 1b, Donnie Murphy 3b, Junior Lake LF, Darnell McDonald RF, Ryan Sweeney CF, JC Boscan C and Jake Arrieta P.

• Today is Chicago's last home game. After an off day, the Cubbies visit St. Louis for a season-ending three game set.
• The rotations for the weekend Buc-Red series aren't set yet, but it points to a Francisco Liriano - Mat Latos throwdown for the play-in game if St. Louis holds on the first place. The Bucs have AJ Burnett set in stone for Friday, probably followed by Charlie Morton and Gerrit Cole; Jeff Locke is out of the equation unless the last game is meaningless. Cincy will counter with Homer Bailey, Bronson Arroyo and Johnny Cueto.
• Gerrit Cole became the first Pirate rookie to win 10 games since 2002 when Josh Fogg won 12, and the first to come through the Pirate organization since Kris Benson won 10 in 1999.
• Neil Walker was named the XVal Player of the week, which recognizes how much value a player brings to his club. (thx to @BiertempfelTrib)
• Cutch has 59 multi-hit games this season, second in the NL behind St. Louis’ Matt Carpenter, who has 63. McCutchen’s 59 multi-hit games are the most by a Pirate since Freddy Sanchez had 60 while winning the batting title in 2006. 
• Ron Cook of the Post Gazette has a nice piece on Clint Hurdle, focusing on the man rather than the manager.
• Starling Marte's 137 knocks from the leadoff spot are the most hits for a Pirates leadoff hitter since Jason Kendall had 155 in 2004.
• RHP Vic Black, who was traded to the Mets as part of the Marlon Byrd deal, gave his old teammates a boost yesterday when he notched his first MLB save against the Reds.
• The Pittsburgh Post Gazette column The Digs mentions how the 1992 Pirates won the division but saw attendance drop by over 230,000 fans. The reason - the newspaper strike, which GM Ted Simmons said "killed us" because it made it hard for people to follow the team. That, of course, was before bloggers and social media provided a Plan B for the faithful.

Bucs Tame Bruins 8-2

Good starts for Chris Rusin and Gerrit Cole; 1-2-3 frames for them both, and each with a K. The second was considerably livelier. Marlon Byrd opened the second with a single and Gaby walked. A Russ Martin fly to center moved The Byrd to third, and he scored when Pedro lined a ground rule double to right (it got caught in the ivy), forcing Gaby to stop a the hot corner. Josh Harrison grounded out, freezing the runners. Cole took matters in his own hands, ripping a ball into left to make it 3-0.

Dioner Navarro and Nate Schierholtz singled to open the Cub half, but a screw up on the bases cost them; Navarro made a turn and returned to second, while Schierholtz took a turn a continued to second, where he was thrown out. Donnie Murphy followed with another single to put Cubs on the corners, but Cole bore down and got Brian Bogusevich to bounce one to second for a 4-6-3 DP.

Jordy Mercer led off the third by crushing a homer to left center; yum, yum lefties. After an out, Byrd singled off 3B Murphy's glove and Gaby doubled him to third. That was it for Rusin, as Brooks Raley came on. He kept the Bucs from adding on - runners on third and less than two outs is kryptonite to this club - as Martin and Pedro whiffed. The Cubs got a run when Logan Watkins opened with a bloop knock, was bunted to second, and was chased home when Starlin Castro's ball was knocked down by Mercer, but rolled far enough into the outfield for the run to come in. Cole again had an answer, getting Junior Lake on a comebacker and 1-6-3 DP.

After K'ing a pair of Bucs in the fourth, Marte banged a broken bat knock into center, but was left when Mercer's soft liner to right hung up. The Cubs went down quietly. Chang-Yong Lim took the hill for Chi-town. Cutch singled through the SS hole, then Byrd and Gaby walked. True to Pirate form, Martin whiffed, but Pedro cued a 3-2 curve away and hopped it over third; with the shift on, it rolled into left for a two-run double. Harrison was yanked for Neil Walker, who was intentionally walked. That was it for Lim as Blake Parker took the bump. He K'ed Marte on a check swing foul tip. The Bucs have six runs, but left a lot of ducks circling the Wrigley pond. Cole wasn't counting ducks, though, as he struck out the side.

Pittsburgh went down in order in the sixth. It looked like the wheels were coming off for Cole after a jam shot to left, a single to right and a walk loaded the sacks. Mercer lost the handle on a slow roller, threw late to second and everyone was safe. Dioner Navarro was up 3-0 when Cole decided it was time to go to the heat. He K'ed him, then Luis Valbuena, and escaped when Murphy's drive to right was hauled in at the wall by Byrd - thankfully, the wind was blowing in tonight - to keep the score 6-2. He tossed over 30 pitches that frame, so Cole is probably done, but it was a great Houdini act by the young righty.

Alberto Cabrera took the ball in the seventh and worked a routine inning. Justin Wilson struck out the first two Cubbies he faced, then Pedro threw away a slow roller. Wilson took the opportunity to get Castro on a slider in the dirt to strike out the side.

The Bucs tacked on another pair in the eighth. With an out, Garrett Jones doubled to the track in left center. A pick off attempt that Watkins short-armed moved pinch runner Felix Pie to third, and he came in when Starling Marte's grounder to short with the infield in went off Castro's backhand stab into short left, and Marte dashed into second. He scored on Cutch's two out, two strike liner to left to make it 8-2. Bryan Morris got the call. With an out, Anthony Rizzo rolled a ball to left against a shift, followed by a walk. Morris whiffed the next pair, and it was on to ninth.

Zac Rosscup got the Bucs 1-2-3 when Bogusevich ran down Pedro's gap shot; the wind giveth and taketh away. Kyle Farnsworth climbed the bump. He got two quick outs, then the game dragged on a bit; a grounder got under Gaby for a knock, followed by a walk. Junior Lake whiffed, and the Bucs had notch #91 added to their belt.

Despite the score, it wasn't a very pretty game, with shoddy fielding, 23 strikeouts, seven walks, 22 hits and 17 stranded runners between the two teams. But hey, a win is a win, and in September they're all gems.

Francisco Liriano takes on Jake Arrieta tomorrow afternoon to close out the series.

• From @DavidManel - Gerrit Cole now has gone 5+IP and allowed less than four runs in every start (19) for the third longest streak to start a career in history.
• With 41 road wins, the Bucs have their first winning season as road warriors since 1992.
• The Pirates have posted 29 wins in one-run games this year. That’s the most wins in one-run contests since the 1993 club also won 29 games.
• Pittsburgh won 12 games this year scoring two or fewer runs, the most wins by the team scoring two or fewer since the 1992 Buccos won 13 times.
• The Cards won 2-0 over Washington and the Reds lost 4-2 to the Mets, so Pittsburgh is still two behind the Redbirds but now one ahead of Cincinnati.

Cole v Rusin

Gerrit Cole (9-7, 3.23 ERA) and Chris Rusin (2-5, 3.52) get it on tonight as the Bucs head toward the regular season finish line.Cole, who will face the Cubs for the second time in 11 days, tossed seven innings against them in a 2-1 victory September 14th at PNC Park, then dazzled San Diego five days later.

Young lefty Rusin has pitched well for the Cubbies, although he ran into problems in his last outing against the Brewers, when he surrendered an first inning grand slam. In his only start against the Bucs, on September 12th, he was sharp over seven innings, holding Pittsburgh to a pair of runs.

The game starts at 8:05 and will be aired by Root Sports and 93.7 The Fan.

Pirate lineup: Starling Marte LF, Jordy Mercer SS, Andrew McCutchen CF, Marlon Byrd RF, Gaby Sanchez 1b, Russ Martin C, Pedro Alvarez 3b, Josh Harrison 2b and Gerrit Cole P.

Pretty typical LHP lineup, especially now that Marte appears to healthy and Clint figured out that Justin Morneau doesn't hit lefties.

Cub lineup: Starlin Castro SS, Junior Lake LF, Anthony Rizzo 1b, Dioner Navarro C, Nate Schierholtz RF, Donnie Murphy 3b, Brian Bogusevic CF, Logan Watkins 2b and Chris Rusin P.

• Jason Grilli's save last night gave the Pirates 53 in 2013, a club record since saves became an official statistic in 1969. The previous saves high was 52 by the 1979 Buccos, led by Teke.
• David Schoenield of ESPN's The Sweet Spot sees trouble ahead for the Buccos because "the offense is struggling, and the ninth inning is suddenly a question mark." 
• Dave Cameron of Fangraphs examines the concepts that built the Bucs.
• ESPN Stats & Info: 435 different players suited up in the black and gold for the Pirates since their last postseason berth in 1992.
• The Cards, Reds and Pirates are all guaranteed NL playoff spots; the next five games will be spent jockeying for position.
• OF Austin Meadows and C Reese McGuire were named Baseball America's top two prospects from this year's GCL class.

Abso - BUCN - lutely!

In case you missed the ninth inning last night...

Bucs In Playoffs After Dramatic 2-1 Win

Neil Walker got the Bucs going; with one out, he lifted a Jeff Samardzija offering the other way, clearing the wall in left center. Cutch followed with a bloop single, but was left. Ground Chuck did his thing, getting a quiet inning with a couple of balls hit in the dirt.

The Bucs had another of their innings in the second. With an out, Russ Martin walked and Jordy Mercer's hot shot to third went off Luis Valbueno's mitt into left to put Bucs at first and third. Morton bunted, Martin took a peek and headed home, where he was DOD; looked like he went on his own on a bad read. The sad part is that if it was a straight squeeze, it probably would have worked. JT bounced out, and the Bucs left another couple of runners aboard.

The Cubs tried to conjure some two out juju. Ryan Sweeney walked on a 3-2 pitch that looked like strike three, and Brian Bogusevich, who owns Morton, dropped a soft chalk kisser in right, played well by Marlon Byrd to hold the lead runner at third. Darwin Barney worked the count to 3-1 and got a ball over the dish that he was all over, but his liner to left was hauled in by JT. Sam worked a quiet third, as did Charlie.

Pedro singled with an out in the fourth and moved to second on Martin's tapper. Mercer was intentionally walked with first open, and Morton went down on three pitches. In the Cub half, it was three up, three grounders, three down. With two away in the fifth, Cutch and Justin Morneau walked, but Byrd grounded the first pitch he saw to short; the Bucs have stranded seven over five frames. Charlie struck out the side, interrupted with two outs by bopping Barney with a 1-2 curve.

Martin singled with an out in the sixth; Morton blopped a broken bat single with two outs. By JT whiffed going after high heat, and the Buc pond is just filled with ducks looking to come home. Morton faced the top of the Chi-town order, and Morneau handled the action.He smothered Starlin Castro's one hopper, but it got under him for a knock. Valbuena got ahead 3-0, took a strike and hit a one bouncer up the line; Morneau stepped and first and threw to second for the tag DP. Rizzo bounced to first, and the big guy erased him unassisted.

Carlos Villanueva took the ball in the seventh and worked a routine frame. Dionner Navarro singled to left center to open. Charlie whiffed Nate Schierholtz, then  got Sweeney to hit a slow roller to second. Navarro stopped to avoid the tag midway down the line, then The Kid went to first for the force and Morneau's throw to second completed the second tag 'em out DP of the game for the Bucs.

Hector Rendon worked a 1-2-3 eighth, with a couple of sharply hit grounders finding leather instead of grass. Charlie was done after seven scoreless, giving up three hits, a walk and collecting five whiffs after 89 pitches. Clint Barmes came on to play short and Mark the Shark climbed the hill.

And it continued. Bogusevich got a call on a two strike check swing and used the reprieve to single to center. A barney chop off the middle went off Melancon's mitt; he could just get the out at first. A wild pitch moved the runner to third, and a routine grounder by Donnie Murphy, with Pedro playing well in front of the bag, maybe losing his positioning even with the infield in, went under the third baseman's mitt to tie the game. A fly out and K - with a foul that just wrapped outside the RF pole by Valbuena - ended the frame.

Kevin Gregg worked the ninth, and struck out the side. He did have a two-out burp, though - he hung a curve to Starling Marte and the new papa pounded it halfway up the bleachers in left to give the Bucs the lead again at 2-1. Now it's on Tony Watson, with lefty Rizzo due up and Jason Grilli getting a late start on loosening in the pen. Rizzo hit a one hopper over third; Pedro was in a no-double D, made the play, and short hopped the throw to first, which was nicely picked by Morneau. Now it's Grilli time.

And what a finish. Navarro walked on a 3-2 pitch, again looking a lot like strike three. Schierholtz hit a broken bat roller toward first. Morneau, playing the line, fully extended his 6'4" frame, gloved the ball and got the force at second. With two strikes, Sweeney blooped a single to right with the OF playing deep, and Byrd had the ball glance off his glove. Cutch was there for the backup, and as Schierholtz made a mad dash home, Cutch's relay hit Morneau, who got the ball to Martin a step ahead of the runner, and Russ made the tag, raised the ball for the ump, and the Bucs had win #90.

Not much offense, but Charlie Morton was spectacular again, and two homers were just enough. Justin Morneau's defense at first was unbelievable tonight; his bat might have been quiet, but his glove had as much to do with the win as the homers. And if the mark the Shark doesn't find his mojo soon, he may find himself flipped with Tony Watson.

Oh - the win clinches a playoff spot. The wait is over; now the question is when and where. So there's still work to be done, and it goes on tomorrow night when Gerrit Cole takes on Chris Rusin.

• The Reds and Cards won by a run tonight, too, so the numbers are the same as yesterday - St. Louis up by two, with Cincinnati and Pittsburgh tied for second and the top wildcard spot.

Morton v Samardzija

Charlie Morton (7-4, 3.35) is opening the Cub set at Wrigley Field against Jeff Samardzija (8-12, 4.42). Charlie has won six of his eight decisions since the All Star break, and when he can keep it on lefties' hands, he's a guy to be reckoned with. He's faced the Cubs twice this year and not had much success, going 0-1 with a 5.73 ERA. Samardzija was a long time Pirate nemesis, but this year is 1-3 against Pittsburgh, but with a decent 3.33 ERA and 27 K in 27 IP.

This is a big series, leading up to the final showdown at Cincy over the weekend, and the Bucs shouldn't sit on their clippings. Chicago lost 3-of-4 at PNC Park last week, but three games were decided by a run and the other by two, so this set should be yet another grind. Then again, aren't they all?

The game starts at 8:05 and will be aired by Root Sports and 93.7 The Fan.

Pirate lineup: Jose Tabata LF, Neil Walker 2b, Andrew McCutchen CF, Justin Morneau 1b, Marlon Byrd RF, Pedro Alvarez 3b, Russ Martin C, Jordy Mercer SS and Charlie Morton P.

Jordy is back in the saddle again.

Cub lineup: Starlin Castro SS, Luis Valbuena 3b, Anthony Rizzo 1b, Dioner Navarro C, Nate Schierholtz RF, Ryan Sweeney CF, Brian Bogusevic LF, Darwin Barney 2b and Jeff Samardzij P.

Throwing six lefties at Charlie.

• Russell Martin is the first Pirate catcher to hit 15 home runs in a season since Ryan Doumit did it in 2008. He's got a shot at the club season record of 17, set by Jim Pagliaroni in 1965.
• The Pirates have gone 10-6 against the Cubs this season. The team went 7-3 at PNC Park and 3-3 at Wrigley Field. Pittsburgh is 4-6 in its last 10 games, and the only other NL Central team with a losing record over that span is the Cubbies, going 3-7.
• Pittsburgh magic # for the playoffs is two.
• San Diego started Pittsburgh on a bad stretch, and it was probably the baseball gods payback for what the Bucs did to Texas. The Pirates launched them on a seven-game losing streak and 10 losses in the last 13 games. The Rangers went from two games behind Oakland to 8-1/2 in the division, and from two games up in the wildcard to 1-1/2 games out of the playoff mix as of today.

Locke Rocked; Pen Pummeled As Bucs Fall 11-3

With one gone in the first, Chris Heisey singled off Clint Barmes' mitt and Joey Votto followed with a four pitch walk. Then Jeff Locke lost Brandon Phillips on a 3-2 count. He's not been spraying the ball, but like last night, it's a tight strike zone and he's on the wrong side of the black.

Jay Bruce got a fastball, inside half at the knees, and cleared the bases with a soft double to the gap in front of The Notch. The Bucs and walks just don't mix. They don't sit well with fans, either, as the boos rained down. After a wild pitch, Todd Frazier went yard to left center off a heater, dropping the ball into the first row beside the bullpen, and Locke is digging the Pirates a Grand Canyon sized hole. He got a ground out, then Barmes booted one to keep the inning alive. The lefty got Bronson Arroyo looking, but it sure seems like this will be Locke's last 2013 appearance on the hill for the Bucs.

With an out in the first, Neil Walker drew a 3-2 free pass off Arroyo. Cutch popped out after a long at bat, and Justin Morneau followed with a four pitch walk. The Bucs couldn't make Arroyo pay for his walks, though they tried as Marlon Byrd flew out to the track in right center.

No surprise here; Jeanmar Gomez took the bump in the second. Billy Hamilton bunted for a single and stole second, with the Bucs getting a double whammy of the ump missing the strike call when Martin got up to throw. Not much diff; Heisey doubled to left to chase him home, followed by a Votto knock to put Reds on the corners. Phillips got a sinker down Broadway, and his sac fly to deep center made it 7-0. Bruce lined out the opposite way to JT and Frazier bounced out, but Pittsburgh is behind by a TD already.

Pedro and Barmes singled around a Martin K. Lambo came up to swing for Gomez, and went down chasing a diving slider. Ditto for JT, who went after a slider that was running away. The Bucs are swinging from their heels (Arroyo struck out the side), and that's not the way to nickle and dime their way back in the game. Let's see - down by seven, four runners stranded, and on their third pitcher (Brandon Cumpton) going into the top of the third...sheesh!

Cozart greeted him with a bloop to right. He was bunted to second an out later, and Hamilton put Redlegs on the corners with an infield knock to third; a ball on the ground is a hit for him. Byrd ran down Heisey's fly along the line, and the Reds had their first goose egg. Walker got Pittsburgh on the board when he yanked a change just above the knees over the Clemente Wall, but the next trio of Buccos grounded out.

Cumpton worked a quiet fourth, giving up a single to Phillips. The Bucs spent another frame trying witout success to hit the ball out of the infield. John Buck came in to catch, as Martin reported some discomfort in his left knee, the one that's been bothersome over the past several weeks. The bottom of the Red order went down quietly in the fifth.

Travis Snider grabbed a bat and planted an Arroyo delivery into the shrubs in center. JT was HBP, and The Kid doubled him to third. Cutch inexplicably looked at a pair of strikes, then popped a slider way off the plate to first; it was a rare thrown away at bat by McCutchen. Morneau lifted a sac fly to right before Byrd flew out. Arroyo has given the Bucs ample opportunity to make the game at least interesting, but the Pirates won't take advantage.

Stolmy Pimentel took the bump in the sixth. Barmes made his second error of the game by throwing away Hamilton's grounder to open the frame; his speed really rushes everyone's routine. He stole second and moved to third on a wild pitch with two down, a ball that was thrown behind Phillips, triggering a warning to the benches. A groundout ended the frame and the fans had a little something to buzz about, even giving Stolmy some love when he left the mound. Dusty nursed Arroyo through five, enough to qualify for the win, and brought on Alfredo Simon who tossed a clean frame. The Reds went quietly in the seventh. After two fly outs, Walker drew a walk, and Cutch, after another long at bat, smoked a one-hopper to third.

Vin Mazzaro took his turn in the eighth. After two routine outs, Hamilton dropped a liner into LC and ended up on second. He came in when Heisey poked a single into center. Votto brought Heisey home with a double; the last three balls have been hit pretty solidly by the Reds, and Jared Hughes was sent in. he almost hit Phillips in the knee with a pitch, but he turned enough to bang it into left to put Reds on the corners. Bruce singled in another run before the mayhem ended to make it 10-3. Manny Parra tossed a clean frame.

In a nice move for both Cutch and the home crowd, Clint Hurdle sent McCutchen to center in the ninth, then pulled him for Starling Marte so the fans could give him a last regular season ovation as he jogged to the dugout to the chant of "MVP."

It didn't impress the Reds much as Cozart opened with a double off Hughes, Cincy's 15th hit. An out later, Derrick Robinson singled him home to close out the Cincinnati scoring. Logan Ondrusek drew the mop up duty and struck out a pair in a 1-2-3 finish.

It's kinda scary how closely Jeff Locke's 2013 campaign is an image of James McDonald's 2012 season; from All-Star to afterthought. Let's hope Locke can find the key that J-Mac couldn't. The Buc bats could have hung around early; Arroyo was up in the hitting zone the entire game, maybe having an off day or maybe just pumping strikes with a big lead, but the Bucs couldn't come up with a big hit to make a run. Too bad they couldn't make fan appreciation day a little more competitive.

The Reds unveiled rookie Billy Hamilton, and he's the real deal from what we've seen in this set. We don't know how his body will hold up to an MLB schedule, but his wheels are difference makers. We'll be seeing a lot of him next season, we suspect.

OK, six to go, and it'll be a fight. The Buc rotation will be a four-man gig now, with Thursday off, and those guys haven't backed down from a challenge yet. It's off the the Windy City for three, with Charlie Morton opening against Jeff Samardzija.

• Neil Walker went 2-for-2 with HR, 2B, and two walks.
• Some thought that if the weather had cooperated, PNC park might have drawn its first 40,000 crowd yesterday. Not that close today, but a good showing, nevertheless. The attendance of 38,699 made the weekend total of 116,064 the second largest crowd for a three-game series ever at PNC Park. Pittsburgh sold out its 23rd game of the year to bring the season attendance total to 2,256,862, an average of 28,211 and the second highest turnout in Pirate history.
• The Bucs magic # for a playoff spot is two as the Nats dropped the opener of a DH to Miami 4-2.
• On his Sunday radio show, GM Neal Huntington said the Pirates will have Jeanmar Gomez stretched out and in the mix for a rotation spot in 2014.

Locke v Arroyo in Rubber Match

Jeff Locke (10-6, 3.27) goes in the rubber match against Bronson Arroyo (13-11, 3.56). It's a classic battle of an young up-and-down guy against a veteran Mr. Consistency. Locke is 2-0 with a 1.19 ERA in four career starts against the Reds. Arroyo is 6-7 with a 3.70 ERA against Pittsburgh, including 3-4 with a 3.38 at PNC.

So keep your defibrillator close at hand (we prefer a cold beer in its stead) and enjoy some meaningful September baseball. The series-deciding clash begins at 1:35, and will be aired by Root Sports and 93.7 The Fan.

Pirate lineup: Jose Tabata LF, Neil Walker 2b, Andrew McCutchen CF, Justin Morneau 1b, Marlon Byrd RF, Pedro Alvarez 3b, Russ Martin C, Clint Barmes SS and Jeff Locke P.

Looks like LF is JT's to lose during crunch time. Starling Marte doesn't look like he's going to be one of the walking wounded to return full-time.

Reds lineup: Billy Hamilton CF, Chris Heisey LF, Joey Votto 1b, Brandon Phillips 2b, Jay Bruce RF, Todd Frazier 3b, Zack Cozart SS, Ryan Hanigan C and Bronson Arroyo P.

Billy Hamilton gets the start with Choo banged up; the Human Bullet would be a good guy for Locke to throw strikes at. Her is 10-for10 in stolen bases and has scored seven times in nine games with only one start.

• The big news is the return of the bullpen to its original shape. Jason Grilli is closing, Mark the Shark is back in his set up role, and Justin Wilson has joined Tony Watson to provide some more back end glue. The two storylines: Clint looks like he's going to give the guys extra recovery time, and yesterday he mixed and matched pitchers, a strategy he hasn't shown before.
• The Pittsburgh writers voted Cutch as the team MVP and Francisco Liriano as the Most Outstanding Pitcher.
• Jeff Zimmerman of Fangraphs notes the correlation between Starling Marte getting plunked and two strike counts. Even with the bad premise of him missing time due to HBP, since the injury was caused by a slide, it's still an interesting read.
• Pittsburgh's magic number is three and Cincinnati's is four. Washington plays a DH today, so it's conceivable, though unlikely, that the Bucs could clinch a playoff spot at home.
• Scott Miller of CBS Sports writes "...the past couple of seasons, the Pirates wilted. Now, they're resilient. They've grown up. They wear big boy pants now."
• Travis Sawchik of the Tribune Review features the Bucs' data analysis mystic, Dan Fox. 
• If you're heading to the North Shore today, keep calm because it will be a zoo between the Pirates big home finale and the Steeler's Sunday night game.
• Here's how the MLB playoff race shapes up, going into today.

Bucs Rebound Behind AJ 4-2

A rainbow broke out over PNC Park as the game began; let's hope it's a good omen. If so, it wasn't apparent in the first. After an out, Brandon Phillips bounced one up the middle, and Joey Votto walked. It called for a ground ball, and Ryan Ludwick hit one sharply to short; Clint Barmes missed the shorthop on the backhand and it went into left for an RBI single. Jay Bruce got with the program and rolled one to Neil Walker for the 4-6-3 DP, but a batter late as the Reds broke on top 1-0.

JT opened off Homer Bailey with a Baltimore chop single over the mound. Both Neil Walker and Cutch tried out Jack Hannahan at third; he back handed both their bullets, leading to a force and an around the horn DP to close the frame.

Zack Cozart ripped AJ's first pitch of the second, a heater on the inside half, over the fence in left; this one isn't starting off very well. After a K, Burnett walked Ryan Hanigan; he's not having much luck getting the outside corner called his way so far tonight. No matter; he whiffed Bailey, who was trying to bunt, and Derreck Robinson. Justin Morneau opened the Bucco half with a walk, but Marlon Byrd followed by banging a fastball right down the middle to short for a 6-4-3 DP. Pedro hopped one to Votto; he dropped the ball on the transfer and never could find the handle for an error. A costly one at that; Russ Martin got the same pitch Cozart did earlier in the inning, and did the same thing with it, losing it in the LF stands to tie the game.

In the third, AJ gave up an opposite way bloop single to Votto that JT got a slow break on, sandwiched around a couple of whiffs, and retired Bruce on a liner to second - to Pedro, who was shifted there against the lefty. Pittsburgh went down in order, without a ball exiting the infield.

The Reds went down 1-2-3 in the fourth. Bailey struck out the Pirate side, interrupted only by a two-out Byrd single. AJ tucked Cincy away quietly in the fifth, and except for inexplicably walking AJ, Homer had an easy frame. The beat continued for Burnett in the sixth; a couple of strikeouts and a grounder, although a walk and wild pitch did allow Ludwick to get to second with two down. Bailey's control hurt him badly in the Bucco half.

After an out, he walked Cutch, and a pickoff toss went between a diving McCutchen and Votto. The ball got away, and the Pirate CF ended up on third. Morneau walked behind him to put runners on the corners, and The Byrd came through, lifting a fly to center that was just a step from the fence, scoring Cutch and moving Justin to second. That was big when Pedro, now facing Zach Duke, lined a 3-2 slider that stayed over the plate into left to chase Morneau home. JJ Hoover got Russell on a bouncer, but the Pirates were up 4-2.

AJ put Cincinnati down without a peep in the seventh, his last frame. Burnett went seven, giving up two runs on four hits, three walks and a dozen K, tossing 107 pitches. Alfredo Simon took to the hill for Dusty Baker. With two down, JT chopped a single to third that Hannahan could only knock down. Starling Marte came on and stole second ahead of a walk to The Kid, but Cutch popped out to take the game into the eighth and Bryan Morris.

He got a ground out to third, followed by a walk to Phillips. That brought in the well rested Justin Wilson to face Votto. The count ran 3-2 when a grounder to short started a 6-4-3 DP close out the frame. Heckuva a time for Clint to start playing match-up with his pen with Mark the Shark and Tony Watson available, but it worked this inning. And the rest seemed to work for Justin; he was rusty but hit 98 on the radar again.

Sean Marshall threw a clean eighth, and on came Jason Grilli to reclaim his closer role. Ludwick poked a two strike slider, down and away, into left to start the inning and stir up some bad memories. But Grilli got Jay Bruce to bounce one softly to second, and the Bucs turned the 4-6-3 DP. With two outs, a grounder was rolled to short by Cozart, and this time the connection clicked as the Bucs rebounded with a 4-2 win.

AJ was masterful with a nasty hook working today, and a different look bullpen saved the day. Russ Martin's homer was huge. And give The Byrd big props; his deep sac fly not only scored the winning run, but set up the insurance score; not every hit has to fall to be productive.

Jeff Locke takes on Bronson Arroyo tomorrow afternoon in the rubber match.

•  AJ's dozen strikeouts are the most he's had in a game since 2009 (as a Yankee v Texas), and puts him at 203 this season. He became the first Pirate RHP ever to pass the 200 mark, overtaking Marcus Baldwin's mark of 197 set in 1891.
• Jason Grilli's save was his first in exactly two months. The last was on July 21st, and it was against Cincinnati, too.
• Tonight's crowd was 39,425, the 22nd sellout of the season.
• Cutch is calming the beanball seas. He told the media about yesterday's plunking that "He (Sam LeCure) wasn't trying to hit me," though he did mention earlier that he was tired of being beaned by the Reds. And Hurdle said his beef last night was that if the ump thought Cutch was being thrown at, he should have ejected the pitcher instead of issuing a warning that only served to inhibit his pitchers from working inside.
• Everything old is new again. Jason Grilli is back as closer (in pencil), with Mark the Shark returning to his setup role.
• Next Saturday's Pittsburgh - Cincy game at the GABP has been changed to 1:05 from 4:05. It will be the Fox national broadcast.