The Bucco batters felt right at home at McKechnie Field, and it showed as they bombed the Minnesota Twins by a 15-5 tally. About time; they only scored thirteen runs total in the previous four games.
The pitching started off raggedy enough, with Ross Ohlendorf giving up a two-run homer in his two innings and Chris Jakubauskas not lasting that long, as he walked two and gave up three hits and three runs in his 1-2/3 frames.
But after that, it was lights out. Vinnie Chulk fanned five of the six batters he faced, and Anthony Claggett struck out the side in his inning (both gave up a hit). Ron Uviedo, Bryan Morris, and Ramon Aguero added hitless work, with Uviedo piocking up the win.
Bobby Crosby, who worked with Mark McGwire (on his swing, not his pharmaceuticals) during the off season, went 2-for-3 with four RBI, 2 runs, and a big three-run bomb into the wind. He started at first base, good for versatility, not so hot for challenging Ronny Cedeno. Oh, we forgot - he's not. That explains that.
Garrett Jones also went deep, while four other Pirates collected a pair of hits: John Raynor (double, triple), Pedro Alvarez (triple), Ryan Doumit and Hector Gimenez. Raynor and Delwyn Young (bases juiced double) both had 3 RBI.
The Pirates will send out split squads tomorrow to face the New York Yankees at home and the Tampa Bay Rays in Port Charlotte. Paul Maholm will make a three-inning start in the home contest, and Brad Lincoln will go against the Rays for the first two frames.
Sunday, March 7, 2010
Weekend Report
After the first few games at camp, the players look like they came to Bradenton ready to play. The positional rundown to date:
Outfield: Andrew McCutchen is off to a scorching start, and Lastings Milledge and Garrett Jones look ready to hold on to their positions. Ryan Church has been more than solid. Brandon Moss, 100% healthy, isn't ready to concede his roster spot. John Raynor and Jose Tabata are keeping themselves in the mix. Gorkys Hernandez hasn't shown anything, Brandon Jones remains a mystery man, and Delwyn Young has taken all his reps and innings at second base.
Starters: So who can tell with a two-inning limit and just once around the rotation to date? All the guys kept the ball down, and except for Charlie Morton and Kevin Hart, in the strike zone.
Fifth Starter: Daniel McCutchen and Kevin Hart weren't very sharp in their first outings. They're keeping Brad Lincoln in the race for that final spot, although both 2009 holdovers would have to go down in flames for Lincoln to have his MLB clock started in April.
Bullpen: Lookin' good, except for Steve Jackson and Virgil Vasquez. Jack Taschner has been a pleasant surprise, striking out five of the six batters that he's faced. Still, it's awfully thin until Octavio Dotel and Joel Hanrahan come back from injuries; both are supposed to be ready before camp ends. Until then, we won't find out if Dotel is the next Jose Mesa - or Solly Torres.
Shortstop: Ronny Cedeno continues to look like, well, Ronny Cedeno. Bobby Crosby has been solid in the field and at bat, but it is still Cedeno's job to lose, so say the suits (although GW has no idea why the spot isn't an open competition).
First Base: Jeff Clement has been making all the routine plays and making contact; so far, so good with the experiment.
Second Base: Aki Iwamura has been steady; he's shown the patience to hit in the two hole though he hasn't shown that he's a pull hitter who can take advantage of the second base hole yet. Range at second hasn't been great, but it's early and he does have a brace on his knee, so that will bear watching.
Third Base: Andy LaRoche is sharp so far; finding a place for him when Pedro comes up should be a Pirate priority.
Catcher: Ryan Doumit owns the spot. But Eric Kratz has been the camp surprise with his stick, and Tony Sanchez has lived up to his top gun selection in last year's draft. Jason Jaramillo hasn't gotten much work, and while we think he's set as a back-up, he'd be wise to pick it up with Kratz making some noise.
Bench: Way too early to speculate; the Bucs have several options and configurations available to them.
So it's been a good couple of weeks at camp so far; most players look up to the challenge. But there are still miles to go...
Outfield: Andrew McCutchen is off to a scorching start, and Lastings Milledge and Garrett Jones look ready to hold on to their positions. Ryan Church has been more than solid. Brandon Moss, 100% healthy, isn't ready to concede his roster spot. John Raynor and Jose Tabata are keeping themselves in the mix. Gorkys Hernandez hasn't shown anything, Brandon Jones remains a mystery man, and Delwyn Young has taken all his reps and innings at second base.
Starters: So who can tell with a two-inning limit and just once around the rotation to date? All the guys kept the ball down, and except for Charlie Morton and Kevin Hart, in the strike zone.
Fifth Starter: Daniel McCutchen and Kevin Hart weren't very sharp in their first outings. They're keeping Brad Lincoln in the race for that final spot, although both 2009 holdovers would have to go down in flames for Lincoln to have his MLB clock started in April.
Bullpen: Lookin' good, except for Steve Jackson and Virgil Vasquez. Jack Taschner has been a pleasant surprise, striking out five of the six batters that he's faced. Still, it's awfully thin until Octavio Dotel and Joel Hanrahan come back from injuries; both are supposed to be ready before camp ends. Until then, we won't find out if Dotel is the next Jose Mesa - or Solly Torres.
Shortstop: Ronny Cedeno continues to look like, well, Ronny Cedeno. Bobby Crosby has been solid in the field and at bat, but it is still Cedeno's job to lose, so say the suits (although GW has no idea why the spot isn't an open competition).
First Base: Jeff Clement has been making all the routine plays and making contact; so far, so good with the experiment.
Second Base: Aki Iwamura has been steady; he's shown the patience to hit in the two hole though he hasn't shown that he's a pull hitter who can take advantage of the second base hole yet. Range at second hasn't been great, but it's early and he does have a brace on his knee, so that will bear watching.
Third Base: Andy LaRoche is sharp so far; finding a place for him when Pedro comes up should be a Pirate priority.
Catcher: Ryan Doumit owns the spot. But Eric Kratz has been the camp surprise with his stick, and Tony Sanchez has lived up to his top gun selection in last year's draft. Jason Jaramillo hasn't gotten much work, and while we think he's set as a back-up, he'd be wise to pick it up with Kratz making some noise.
Bench: Way too early to speculate; the Bucs have several options and configurations available to them.
So it's been a good couple of weeks at camp so far; most players look up to the challenge. But there are still miles to go...
Saturday, March 6, 2010
Sister Smoochin'
The Bucs and Phils took it ten innings, and in Grapefruit League reckoning, that's more than enough. They called it quits tied 3-3.
Kevin Hart walked four and allowed one hit in the seven Phillies batters he faced, and gave up a pair of runs in his single inning, saved from a complete trainwreck by a timely DP ball. Steve Jackson gave up the other run
The rest of the staff was sharp. D.J. Carrasco struck out two, walked one and allowed one hit in his two innings of work. Brendan Donnelly struck out two batters in his inning, and Jack Taschner allowed one hit and struck out the side in his frame.
Justin Thomas had a perfect inning, as did Jeff Sues, who notched a K. Donnie Veal and Jean Machi put up a goose egg, each yielding a hit.
Jeff Clement drove in the first run in the opening frame, doubling home Andrew McCutchen, who had singled and stolen second (McCutch was 2-for-2 with a walk, and 1-for-2 stealing). Ryan Church followed with a homer, the first of his two hits, and that was it for the Buccos.
Bobby Crosby made a couple of sweet plays at short, and the DP ball that saved the game was snagged by a diving Ramon Vazquez, who started the twin killing on his tummy from second base.
Oh, and plaudits to McCutch's mom Petrina, who the beat guys said did a bang-up job belting out the National Anthem to start the game.
Pittsburgh will host the Twins at McKechnie Field on Sunday at 1:05 PM. Ross Ohlendorf will make the start for the Pirates, and throw the first two innings, followed by Chris Jakubauskas, Vinnie Chulk, Justin Thomas, Bryan Morris and Virgil Vasquez.
Kevin Hart walked four and allowed one hit in the seven Phillies batters he faced, and gave up a pair of runs in his single inning, saved from a complete trainwreck by a timely DP ball. Steve Jackson gave up the other run
The rest of the staff was sharp. D.J. Carrasco struck out two, walked one and allowed one hit in his two innings of work. Brendan Donnelly struck out two batters in his inning, and Jack Taschner allowed one hit and struck out the side in his frame.
Justin Thomas had a perfect inning, as did Jeff Sues, who notched a K. Donnie Veal and Jean Machi put up a goose egg, each yielding a hit.
Jeff Clement drove in the first run in the opening frame, doubling home Andrew McCutchen, who had singled and stolen second (McCutch was 2-for-2 with a walk, and 1-for-2 stealing). Ryan Church followed with a homer, the first of his two hits, and that was it for the Buccos.
Bobby Crosby made a couple of sweet plays at short, and the DP ball that saved the game was snagged by a diving Ramon Vazquez, who started the twin killing on his tummy from second base.
Oh, and plaudits to McCutch's mom Petrina, who the beat guys said did a bang-up job belting out the National Anthem to start the game.
Pittsburgh will host the Twins at McKechnie Field on Sunday at 1:05 PM. Ross Ohlendorf will make the start for the Pirates, and throw the first two innings, followed by Chris Jakubauskas, Vinnie Chulk, Justin Thomas, Bryan Morris and Virgil Vasquez.
Friday, March 5, 2010
Off The Schneid...
Hey, the Bucs came from behind to take a 5-3 win from the O's tonight, their first of the Grapefruit campaign, led by last year's top pick, Tony Sanchez.
He was a late inning replacement for Ryan Doumit, and homered in his only at-bat after fighting off some pitches, gunned down a would-be base stealer, and threw out a runner when he pounced on a drag bunt. Nice way to open camp.
Zach Duke and Daniel McCutchen started, and both gave up a run in two innings of work; not much to be analyzed in their opening act except that it looked like their first start. Jeremy Powell gave up the other run without surrendering up a hit or walk. A boot by Aki Owamura, a roller that went through Ronny Cedeno's wickets, and a low throw by Neil Walker did the damage.
The last four innings were Oriole goose eggs thanks to Javier Lopez, Evan Meek, Ramon Aguero, and Ron Uviedo, each tapped for a hit in an inning of work. Aguero got the W; Uviedo the save.
The RBIs went to Iwamura, Garrett Jones, Sanchez, Delwyn Young, and Jose Tabata, with Young and Tabata doing the honors in the ninth against Rhymin' Alfredo Simon to bring home the bacon.
Notable performances included stolen bases by Young, Walker, and Cedeno. Walker went one-for-two with two walks and a pair of runs; Rule 5 OFer John Raynor went 2-for-4. Bummers were those three errors and twelve Ks collected by the Bucco lineup.
Tomorrow, the squad opens its McKechnie Field schedule against the Phils at 1:05 PM, broadcast by 104.7 FM WPGB. Bradenton Mayor Wayne Potson will throw out the first pitch, and Andrew McCutchen's mother, Petrina, will sing the national anthem.
The Pirates will start off with Kevin Hart and DJ Carrasco (2 innings/45 pitches), Brendan Donnelly, Donnie Veal, Jack Taschner, Steve Jackson, and Jean Machi (inning apiece).
He was a late inning replacement for Ryan Doumit, and homered in his only at-bat after fighting off some pitches, gunned down a would-be base stealer, and threw out a runner when he pounced on a drag bunt. Nice way to open camp.
Zach Duke and Daniel McCutchen started, and both gave up a run in two innings of work; not much to be analyzed in their opening act except that it looked like their first start. Jeremy Powell gave up the other run without surrendering up a hit or walk. A boot by Aki Owamura, a roller that went through Ronny Cedeno's wickets, and a low throw by Neil Walker did the damage.
The last four innings were Oriole goose eggs thanks to Javier Lopez, Evan Meek, Ramon Aguero, and Ron Uviedo, each tapped for a hit in an inning of work. Aguero got the W; Uviedo the save.
The RBIs went to Iwamura, Garrett Jones, Sanchez, Delwyn Young, and Jose Tabata, with Young and Tabata doing the honors in the ninth against Rhymin' Alfredo Simon to bring home the bacon.
Notable performances included stolen bases by Young, Walker, and Cedeno. Walker went one-for-two with two walks and a pair of runs; Rule 5 OFer John Raynor went 2-for-4. Bummers were those three errors and twelve Ks collected by the Bucco lineup.
Tomorrow, the squad opens its McKechnie Field schedule against the Phils at 1:05 PM, broadcast by 104.7 FM WPGB. Bradenton Mayor Wayne Potson will throw out the first pitch, and Andrew McCutchen's mother, Petrina, will sing the national anthem.
The Pirates will start off with Kevin Hart and DJ Carrasco (2 innings/45 pitches), Brendan Donnelly, Donnie Veal, Jack Taschner, Steve Jackson, and Jean Machi (inning apiece).
Friday Frisbee
-- Ya know, we've made mention that we're a little leery of the way the Bucs treat their wounded. Guys like Brandon Moss and Paul Maholm tell us that they played basically one-legged last season (and may we quickly add, by their own choice).
Any number of pitchers have reported minor twinges, and the next thing we know is that they're out for six weeks, followed by a visit by the knife. Now Nate McLouth tells the beat writers that he's wearing contacts in 2010. The Pirates, to paraphrase Nate the Great, gave an eye exam that a blind man could pass.
Hey suits - evaluating and amassing talent is job one, but trying to keep them on the field is pretty important, too. You might want to sharpen up your player diagnostics a bit.
-- Chuck Finder of the Post Gazette shakes a stick at the Pirates mob of outfielders.
-- Scott Miller of CBS Sports has the annual Pirate preview.
-- Tim Marchman of SI's Inside Baseball rated the MLB GMs, and here's what he had to say about Neil Huntington (whom he ranked #20):
"There's something to be said for aggressively trying to clean up a disaster. The Pirates have gone longer without winning than any team ever has, and while they won't turn that around any time soon, Huntington's program of getting rid of any veteran of any value in exchange for whatever young talent he can get is absolutely the right one."
Any number of pitchers have reported minor twinges, and the next thing we know is that they're out for six weeks, followed by a visit by the knife. Now Nate McLouth tells the beat writers that he's wearing contacts in 2010. The Pirates, to paraphrase Nate the Great, gave an eye exam that a blind man could pass.
Hey suits - evaluating and amassing talent is job one, but trying to keep them on the field is pretty important, too. You might want to sharpen up your player diagnostics a bit.
-- Chuck Finder of the Post Gazette shakes a stick at the Pirates mob of outfielders.
-- Scott Miller of CBS Sports has the annual Pirate preview.
-- Tim Marchman of SI's Inside Baseball rated the MLB GMs, and here's what he had to say about Neil Huntington (whom he ranked #20):
"There's something to be said for aggressively trying to clean up a disaster. The Pirates have gone longer without winning than any team ever has, and while they won't turn that around any time soon, Huntington's program of getting rid of any veteran of any value in exchange for whatever young talent he can get is absolutely the right one."
Thursday, March 4, 2010
Bucs Get Chopped
Two Pirate pitchers, Charlie Morton and Brian Burres, combined for a line of four innings, three runs, two hits, seven walks, and two hit batters. Maybe Joe Kerrigan needed to set up his pink strings for the duo.
The Pirates banged out four hits total (one an Andy LaRoche dinger), and the Buccos dropped their second spring outing by a 4-2 score.
But there was a silver lining, at least in the field. Jeff Clement again looked adequate at first, and the much maligned Delwyn Young was part of three DPs, starting one and turning a pair. Lastings Milledge threw a guy out at third and came within a gnat's eyelash of robbing Chipper Jones with a dive that came up just short in the fifth.
And Brad Lincoln got his first taste of the bigs. He got through his inning unscathed, but not unbloodied. He gave up a pair of knocks, but with runners on second and third and two away, he K'd Matt Diaz on three pitches. Kinda nice to have the ability to miss a bat when the chips are down, no?
Jeff Karstens worked a perfect frame, Anthony Claggett struck out a pair and walked one in his inning, and Vinnie Chulk gave up the fourth Brave run by yielding a hit and two walks in his appearance.
Bobby Crosby singled in the Bucs other run, while Ryan Church and Young also added singles. The Pirates left a dozen on base, although only four got into scoring position.
Tomorrow, they visit the O's in Sarasota. The game is scheduled to begin at 7:05 PM and will be radio-only, broadcast on 104.7 FM, WPGB.
Zach Duke and Daniel McCutchen will start and are slated for two innings of work apiece. Virgil Vasquez, Evan Meek, Javier Lopez, Jeremy Powell, and Claggett are scheduled pitch an inning each.
It should be another Bomb Squad extravaganza; the Pirates home opener is against the Phils on Saturday afternoon at 1:05 PM, and JR is expected to trot out his starting lineup then, the same one he used against the Yankees.
The Pirates banged out four hits total (one an Andy LaRoche dinger), and the Buccos dropped their second spring outing by a 4-2 score.
But there was a silver lining, at least in the field. Jeff Clement again looked adequate at first, and the much maligned Delwyn Young was part of three DPs, starting one and turning a pair. Lastings Milledge threw a guy out at third and came within a gnat's eyelash of robbing Chipper Jones with a dive that came up just short in the fifth.
And Brad Lincoln got his first taste of the bigs. He got through his inning unscathed, but not unbloodied. He gave up a pair of knocks, but with runners on second and third and two away, he K'd Matt Diaz on three pitches. Kinda nice to have the ability to miss a bat when the chips are down, no?
Jeff Karstens worked a perfect frame, Anthony Claggett struck out a pair and walked one in his inning, and Vinnie Chulk gave up the fourth Brave run by yielding a hit and two walks in his appearance.
Bobby Crosby singled in the Bucs other run, while Ryan Church and Young also added singles. The Pirates left a dozen on base, although only four got into scoring position.
Tomorrow, they visit the O's in Sarasota. The game is scheduled to begin at 7:05 PM and will be radio-only, broadcast on 104.7 FM, WPGB.
Zach Duke and Daniel McCutchen will start and are slated for two innings of work apiece. Virgil Vasquez, Evan Meek, Javier Lopez, Jeremy Powell, and Claggett are scheduled pitch an inning each.
It should be another Bomb Squad extravaganza; the Pirates home opener is against the Phils on Saturday afternoon at 1:05 PM, and JR is expected to trot out his starting lineup then, the same one he used against the Yankees.
Wednesday, March 3, 2010
Bombers vs Bucs
Here's the starting lineup for the Yankee exhibition. It looks like the one the Pirate suits hope to begin the year with (except for the DH). If Clement doesn't cut it, just switch him and Church, with Church in RF and Garrett Jones at first; ditto with Cedeno and Crosby at short.
1. Andrew McCutchen, CF
2. Aki Iwamura, 2B
3. Garrett Jones, RF
4. Ryan Doumit, C
5. Ryan Church, DH
6. Lastings Milledge, LF
7. Jeff Clement, 1B
8. Andy LaRoche, 3B
9. Ronny Cedeno, SS
Paul Maholm and Ross Ohlendorf started for Pittsburgh, followed by a motley mix-and-match crew.
It was a scoreless battle until the sixth, proving that pitchers are ahead of hitters in the early spring, with ground balls abounding. Iwamura and Clement looked fine in the field, and Dandy Andy LaRoche made a couple of nice plays at third.
However, Aki didn't look like a two hitter in his first Bucco effort; he had the patience, but an inside-out swing makes him unlikely to hit behind a runner. But there is still lots of time to see how that works out; it's the first time GW has seen Iwamura swing a bat.
Then came the scrubs for both sides. The Bucs replaced the starters with Steve Pearce (1B), Delwyn Young (2B), Argentis Diaz (SS), Pedro Alvarez (3B), John Raynor (LF), Gorkys Hernandez (CF), Jose Tabata (RF), and Eric Kratz/Hector Gimenez (C).
The Yanks jumped ahead 3-0 when Steve Jackson left a couple of pitches belt high and down the middle. One left the park while the other kissed the fence. Still, he could have gotten away with a single tally except Young and Diaz played bounce outs into hits, and Hernandez made a peg home that was positively Barry Bonds-esque.
But the Bomb Squad had an answer. Young got plunked, Tabata blooped a single, and Kratz doubled them in - maybe Jason Jaramillo will have some competition - and went to third on a bad relay, scoring on Church's slow roller to tie it.
Virgil Vasquez worked the ninth, briefly. A line single up the middle, a ground ball single through the second base hole, and a base-clearing walk-off blast to right center gave the Yankees a 6-3 win.
For the most part, the Pirate pitchers - Maholm, Ohlendorf, Brian Bass, D.J. Carrasco, Jack Taschner, Jean Machi (he struck out a pair and hit 94 on the gun) worked quickly and threw strikes; only Jackson and Vasquez got thumped while Chris Jakubauskas had some control issues.
So hey, the game is finally afoot. And in another month, they'll count.
1. Andrew McCutchen, CF
2. Aki Iwamura, 2B
3. Garrett Jones, RF
4. Ryan Doumit, C
5. Ryan Church, DH
6. Lastings Milledge, LF
7. Jeff Clement, 1B
8. Andy LaRoche, 3B
9. Ronny Cedeno, SS
Paul Maholm and Ross Ohlendorf started for Pittsburgh, followed by a motley mix-and-match crew.
It was a scoreless battle until the sixth, proving that pitchers are ahead of hitters in the early spring, with ground balls abounding. Iwamura and Clement looked fine in the field, and Dandy Andy LaRoche made a couple of nice plays at third.
However, Aki didn't look like a two hitter in his first Bucco effort; he had the patience, but an inside-out swing makes him unlikely to hit behind a runner. But there is still lots of time to see how that works out; it's the first time GW has seen Iwamura swing a bat.
Then came the scrubs for both sides. The Bucs replaced the starters with Steve Pearce (1B), Delwyn Young (2B), Argentis Diaz (SS), Pedro Alvarez (3B), John Raynor (LF), Gorkys Hernandez (CF), Jose Tabata (RF), and Eric Kratz/Hector Gimenez (C).
The Yanks jumped ahead 3-0 when Steve Jackson left a couple of pitches belt high and down the middle. One left the park while the other kissed the fence. Still, he could have gotten away with a single tally except Young and Diaz played bounce outs into hits, and Hernandez made a peg home that was positively Barry Bonds-esque.
But the Bomb Squad had an answer. Young got plunked, Tabata blooped a single, and Kratz doubled them in - maybe Jason Jaramillo will have some competition - and went to third on a bad relay, scoring on Church's slow roller to tie it.
Virgil Vasquez worked the ninth, briefly. A line single up the middle, a ground ball single through the second base hole, and a base-clearing walk-off blast to right center gave the Yankees a 6-3 win.
For the most part, the Pirate pitchers - Maholm, Ohlendorf, Brian Bass, D.J. Carrasco, Jack Taschner, Jean Machi (he struck out a pair and hit 94 on the gun) worked quickly and threw strikes; only Jackson and Vasquez got thumped while Chris Jakubauskas had some control issues.
So hey, the game is finally afoot. And in another month, they'll count.
Spring Sampler
-- In Yahoo Sport's Big League Stew blog, Nyjer Morgan - who now goes by the nom d' guerre T-Plush - gets some puck love, and blasphemously picks the Cap's Alex Ovechkin as the NHL's alpha dog over Sid the Kid. It also has a vid of Nyjo's hockey days.
In other Nyjer news, the Nats are trying to get him to slide feet-first after he broke his wrist last season, according to Ed Chigliak of Federal Baseball.
-- Paul Sullivan of the Chicago Tribune has a piece on John Grabow and his veteran status in a bullpen full of puppies in Wrigley.
-- Nick Piecoro of the Arizona Republic talked to Adam LaRoche about the big deal he rejected from the Giants; LaRoche claimed it wasn't all it was cracked up to be.
-- Luke Adams of MLB Trade Rumors has an item on Pirate and Duquesne grad Joe Biemel's waiting game as a free agent.
-- Once upon a time, long, long ago Pirate Tim Wakefield is sharing his knuckleball secrets with Eri Yoshida, an 18-year-old who became the first female drafted by a Japanese professional team, according to USA Today. A knuckleball throwing teen age girl? And you thought the Nippon League was tradition-bound?
-- Maury Brown of the Biz of Baseball moonlighted a bit for Baseball America, and did a piece on the competitive balance of baseball. From the article:
"Complicating the argument is that most fans have only a rudimentary understanding of how revenue-sharing even works, and they don't see that baseball does have a salary cap, of sorts. While management and union leaders debate the fine points of both revenue sharing and the luxury tax, fans have a more basic question: Do they promote competitive balance?
The answer seems to be yes, and no. You need to spend to go to the postseason with regularity, but if the true barometer for baseball is winning the World Series, then being hot at the right time can get you to the promised land, regardless of where your payroll sits."
-- Twelve Angry Mascots doctor a Sarah McLachlan vid pushing animal adoption into a plea to pick up a free agent ("for only $18 a month"):
In other Nyjer news, the Nats are trying to get him to slide feet-first after he broke his wrist last season, according to Ed Chigliak of Federal Baseball.
-- Paul Sullivan of the Chicago Tribune has a piece on John Grabow and his veteran status in a bullpen full of puppies in Wrigley.
-- Nick Piecoro of the Arizona Republic talked to Adam LaRoche about the big deal he rejected from the Giants; LaRoche claimed it wasn't all it was cracked up to be.
-- Luke Adams of MLB Trade Rumors has an item on Pirate and Duquesne grad Joe Biemel's waiting game as a free agent.
-- Once upon a time, long, long ago Pirate Tim Wakefield is sharing his knuckleball secrets with Eri Yoshida, an 18-year-old who became the first female drafted by a Japanese professional team, according to USA Today. A knuckleball throwing teen age girl? And you thought the Nippon League was tradition-bound?
-- Maury Brown of the Biz of Baseball moonlighted a bit for Baseball America, and did a piece on the competitive balance of baseball. From the article:
"Complicating the argument is that most fans have only a rudimentary understanding of how revenue-sharing even works, and they don't see that baseball does have a salary cap, of sorts. While management and union leaders debate the fine points of both revenue sharing and the luxury tax, fans have a more basic question: Do they promote competitive balance?
The answer seems to be yes, and no. You need to spend to go to the postseason with regularity, but if the true barometer for baseball is winning the World Series, then being hot at the right time can get you to the promised land, regardless of where your payroll sits."
-- Twelve Angry Mascots doctor a Sarah McLachlan vid pushing animal adoption into a plea to pick up a free agent ("for only $18 a month"):
Tuesday, March 2, 2010
Bring On the Manatees!
-- The Pirates first lineup of the year, facing off against the State College of Florida at Manatee-Sarasota nine:
Hernandez, Gorkys (CF) 0-4, 2K
Raynor, John (LF) 0-3, R, K
Van Every, Jonathan (LF) 0-1, K
Tabata, Jose (RF) 1-4, 2B, K
Alvarez, Pedro (3B) 3-4, R, RBI, 2B
Pearce, Steve (1B) 1-4, R, 2RBI, HR, K
Moss, Brandon (DH) 2-2, 2R, RBI, 2B, HR
Walker, Neil (DH) 0-1, K
Kratz, Eric (C) 2-2, R, 2RBI, HR
Carlin, Luke (C) 0-0, W
Diaz, Argentis (SS) 0-2, K
Friday, Brian (SS) 0-1, K
Bernier, Doug (2B) 0-2, W
The Pirates thumped the Sea Cows 6-1, led by bombs hit by Brandon Moss, Eric Kratz, and Steve Pearce, blasted consecutively in the fourth frame. But they went a very Buc-like 1-for-9 with RSIP. Hey, already mid-season form!
The pitchers gave up eight hits, one run (a Jeff Sues homer), four walks, and eleven Ks. Byran Morris, who struck out the first two batters he faced in the first, got the win.
BTW, the Manatees whupped the Bucs 6-4 last spring.
-- How much do the Bucs think of Chase Headley, the Padre third-sacker? Well, enough that they offered Nate McLouth and Xavier Nady for him a couple of seasons ago, according to MLB.com's Corey Brock.
-- The Pirates have their entire 40-man roster under contract today; they renewed all the players with zero-three years of service. They are Ramon Aguero, Jose Ascanio, Jeff Clement, Argenis Diaz, Joel Hanrahan, Kevin Hart, Gorkys Hernandez, Chris Jakubauskas, Jason Jaramillo, Brandon Jones, Garrett Jones, Andy LaRoche, Brad Lincoln, Andrew McCutchen, Daniel McCutchen, Evan Meek, Lastings Milledge, Bryan Morris, Charlie Morton, Brandon Moss, Ross Ohlendorf, Steve Pearce, John Raynor, Jose Tabata, Ronald Uviedo, Donnie Veal, Neil Walker, and Delwyn Young. That's a young team.
-- A couple of old Bucco farmhands have found new organizations: the Yankees signed RHP John Van Benschoten, the eighth overall pick of the Pirates in 2001. He was mauled as a White Sox AAA arm last year, going 2-8 with a 6.35 ERA for Charlotte. JVB, soon to be 30, was the #24 prospect in all of baseball in 2003.
1B Brad Eldred inked a deal with the Rockies; the 29 year-old was in the Nat system last year.
-- Wednesday's Yankee clash will be aired on 104.7 FM, WPGB. It will also be televised on MLB Network and on MLB.TV.
-- Charlie Morton is keeping a camp blog at Pirates Report; it gives the dish on how the players interact during training.
-- MLB Network's look at the Pirates in its spring training series "30 Clubs in 30 Days" will be available March 8 from Comcast On Demand.
-- Interesting article in Fox Sports by Tracy Ringolsby about how the Rockies approach their contracts.
For example, they signed Brad Hawpe to a team-friendly deal, and despite rumors of him being shopped, they held on to him because..."to trade Hawpe would send a strong message. It would have told players that the franchise wanted the players to make concessions to be a part of the big picture in Colorado, but as soon as it was convenient for management, the player could be dealt even if he did go out of his way to fit into the overall scheme."
Unlike a certain management team we all know, hey?
Hernandez, Gorkys (CF) 0-4, 2K
Raynor, John (LF) 0-3, R, K
Van Every, Jonathan (LF) 0-1, K
Tabata, Jose (RF) 1-4, 2B, K
Alvarez, Pedro (3B) 3-4, R, RBI, 2B
Pearce, Steve (1B) 1-4, R, 2RBI, HR, K
Moss, Brandon (DH) 2-2, 2R, RBI, 2B, HR
Walker, Neil (DH) 0-1, K
Kratz, Eric (C) 2-2, R, 2RBI, HR
Carlin, Luke (C) 0-0, W
Diaz, Argentis (SS) 0-2, K
Friday, Brian (SS) 0-1, K
Bernier, Doug (2B) 0-2, W
The Pirates thumped the Sea Cows 6-1, led by bombs hit by Brandon Moss, Eric Kratz, and Steve Pearce, blasted consecutively in the fourth frame. But they went a very Buc-like 1-for-9 with RSIP. Hey, already mid-season form!
The pitchers gave up eight hits, one run (a Jeff Sues homer), four walks, and eleven Ks. Byran Morris, who struck out the first two batters he faced in the first, got the win.
BTW, the Manatees whupped the Bucs 6-4 last spring.
-- How much do the Bucs think of Chase Headley, the Padre third-sacker? Well, enough that they offered Nate McLouth and Xavier Nady for him a couple of seasons ago, according to MLB.com's Corey Brock.
-- The Pirates have their entire 40-man roster under contract today; they renewed all the players with zero-three years of service. They are Ramon Aguero, Jose Ascanio, Jeff Clement, Argenis Diaz, Joel Hanrahan, Kevin Hart, Gorkys Hernandez, Chris Jakubauskas, Jason Jaramillo, Brandon Jones, Garrett Jones, Andy LaRoche, Brad Lincoln, Andrew McCutchen, Daniel McCutchen, Evan Meek, Lastings Milledge, Bryan Morris, Charlie Morton, Brandon Moss, Ross Ohlendorf, Steve Pearce, John Raynor, Jose Tabata, Ronald Uviedo, Donnie Veal, Neil Walker, and Delwyn Young. That's a young team.
-- A couple of old Bucco farmhands have found new organizations: the Yankees signed RHP John Van Benschoten, the eighth overall pick of the Pirates in 2001. He was mauled as a White Sox AAA arm last year, going 2-8 with a 6.35 ERA for Charlotte. JVB, soon to be 30, was the #24 prospect in all of baseball in 2003.
1B Brad Eldred inked a deal with the Rockies; the 29 year-old was in the Nat system last year.
-- Wednesday's Yankee clash will be aired on 104.7 FM, WPGB. It will also be televised on MLB Network and on MLB.TV.
-- Charlie Morton is keeping a camp blog at Pirates Report; it gives the dish on how the players interact during training.
-- MLB Network's look at the Pirates in its spring training series "30 Clubs in 30 Days" will be available March 8 from Comcast On Demand.
-- Interesting article in Fox Sports by Tracy Ringolsby about how the Rockies approach their contracts.
For example, they signed Brad Hawpe to a team-friendly deal, and despite rumors of him being shopped, they held on to him because..."to trade Hawpe would send a strong message. It would have told players that the franchise wanted the players to make concessions to be a part of the big picture in Colorado, but as soon as it was convenient for management, the player could be dealt even if he did go out of his way to fit into the overall scheme."
Unlike a certain management team we all know, hey?
Monday, March 1, 2010
A Quiet Spring
Hey, never let it be said that Bucco fans have completely given up hope...
Tomorrow, the squad starts its exhibition season against their traditional rivals, the State College of Florida @ Manatee-Sarasota. If the game isn't rained out, the Bucco hurlers will be: Bryan Morris, Donnie Veal, Ronald Uviedo, Justin Thomas, Ramon Aguero, Jeff Sues and Anthony Claggett, each slated for an inning of work.
The starters for the rest of the week: Wednesday @ Yankees: Paul Maholm, Ross Ohlendorf, Brian Bass, D.J. Carrasco, Chris Jakubauskas, Steven Jackson, Jack Taschner, and Jean Machi, each getting an inning.
Thursday @ Braves: Charlie Morton, Brian Burres (two innings or 45 pitches), and Brad Lincoln (one inning); Friday @ Orioles: Zach Duke and Daniel McCutchen (two innings or 45 pitches), and Virgil Vasquez (one inning); and on Saturday, the home opener vs. the Phillies: Kevin Hart and D.J. Carrasco (two innings or 45 pitches for Morton, 40 for Carrasco).
The Yankee game is on the MLB Network, and starts at 1:05 PM.
Tomorrow, the squad starts its exhibition season against their traditional rivals, the State College of Florida @ Manatee-Sarasota. If the game isn't rained out, the Bucco hurlers will be: Bryan Morris, Donnie Veal, Ronald Uviedo, Justin Thomas, Ramon Aguero, Jeff Sues and Anthony Claggett, each slated for an inning of work.
The starters for the rest of the week: Wednesday @ Yankees: Paul Maholm, Ross Ohlendorf, Brian Bass, D.J. Carrasco, Chris Jakubauskas, Steven Jackson, Jack Taschner, and Jean Machi, each getting an inning.
Thursday @ Braves: Charlie Morton, Brian Burres (two innings or 45 pitches), and Brad Lincoln (one inning); Friday @ Orioles: Zach Duke and Daniel McCutchen (two innings or 45 pitches), and Virgil Vasquez (one inning); and on Saturday, the home opener vs. the Phillies: Kevin Hart and D.J. Carrasco (two innings or 45 pitches for Morton, 40 for Carrasco).
The Yankee game is on the MLB Network, and starts at 1:05 PM.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)