Liriano v Strasburg

Francisco Liriano (9-4, 2.44) takes on Steven Strasburg (5-7, 2.97) tonight. Hopefully, The Cisco Kid can get back on track. The rust from the All-Star break showed in his last outing, when he because of command issues, he couldn't get out of the fifth in a loss to the Reds. Strasburg hasn't been real sharp this month, and suffers the double whammy of weak support from the Nat bats. It'll be a match of two marquee guys trying to settle back into their groove.

The games starts at 7:05 and will be aired by Root Sports and 93.7 The Fan.

Pirate lineup: Starling Marte LF, Neil Walker 2B, Andrew McCutchen CF, Pedro Alvarez 3B, Garrett  Jones 1B, Travis Snider RF, Mike McKenry C, Clint Barmes SS and Francisco Liriano P.

Bit of an odd look to the bottom of the order with Snider, The Fort and Barmes; guess Clint has been playing with his iPad again.

National lineup: Scott Hairston LF, Anthony Rendon SS, Ryan Zimmerman 3B, Jayson Werth RF, Adam
LaRoche 1B, Wilson Ramos C, Denard Span CF, Steve Lombardozzi 2B and Stephen Strasburg P.

Poor Anthony Rendon - the kid was drafted as a 3B and it looks like the Nats play him everywhere but. Harper has the night off, too.

• Russell Martin threw out his MLB-leading 20th baserunner last night. It’s the fifth time in Martin’s career he has thrown out at least 20 baserunners in a season.
• Pedro Alvarez is the first Pirate left-handed batter to hit at least 25 home runs in back-to-back campaigns since Brian Giles did it four years in a row from 1999 to 2002.
• One big difference in the club this year is that the Pirates are 27-21 on the road, with wins in 10 of their last 14 contests away from PNC Park.
• Another Elias Sports Bureau obscurity:  Gerrit Cole held the Nationals to two hits in seven innings and had two hits in three trips to the plate on Tuesday. He's the first Pirates rookie starter to have two or more hits while holding his opponent to two or fewer since Hank Gornicki had two hits in a two-hit shutout against the Boston Braves on August 27, 1942.
• Jared Hughes worked back-to-back last night at Indy, the last rehab checklist item, so he should be ready to come off the DL. He could be swapped out for Vic Black in Pittsburgh (we thought he was going to get the call to the big club originally) or remain with Indy.

Random Thoughts As The Deadline Approaches...

A stream-of-consciousness look at the deadline:

• A platoon-type OF/1B that can pound lefties and hopefully sit in the five hole has to be NH's main concern. Another starter may be on the list, but there aren't many available that can crack the Pirate staff. Don't look for a SS deal. Mercer and Barmes are doing well enough, while buyers are lined up around the corner looking at a seller's market that frankly doesn't exist. And we'd be surprised to see them in on a reliever; the bullpen is deep through Indy. The bench could use help. A partial answer may lie at Indy with Tony Sanchez and an outfielder, although the prospects for the pasture are all LH.
• The Pirates are scouting the current Milwaukee-San Diego series. The Padres are said to be dangling bullpen arms; we're wondering if the Bucco bird dogs aren't keying in on OFs Chris Denorfia and Carlos Quentin rather than relievers.
• Looking at early trade results, the price for rentals this year is sky-high in terms of prospects. So while the Bucs may be rumored to be in on some big names (Stanton, Pence, Rios) just as they were last year (Pence, Victorino, Headley), we'd expect nothing more than a Derrek Lee kind of addition or someone NH finds with some upside and under team control who's under the current radar (like last year's Lincoln-Snider deal). The holes just aren't gaping enough to grossly overpay in what is shaping up as an extreme seller's market. The club could go into September and the free call-ups adding nothing more than a RH stick and a doing a little shuffling of the roster's edges.
• The Brewers and Cubs are selling fast, and that's not great news for the Bucs, as the Cards still face them 18 times and the Reds 16 times while the Bucs match up with the pair 13 more times. The Brewers have lost Ryan Braun for the year to suspension and just traded Francisco Rodriguez, with the rest of its bullpen said to be available. The Cubs have unloaded Matt Garza, Scott Feldman and Scott Harrison, and are trying to deal Alfonso Soriano to the Yankees, with most of their roster being dangled. The Bucs won't see the Reds until late September for a six-pack home-and-home series, but have 14 games left with St. Louis, with a big five game set beginning Monday.

July 24 - Walk-Offs, Romps, Roberto Clemente, Barry Bonds, Odd Call & Wandy Joins the Team...

Walk-Offs, Romps, Roberto Clemente, Barry Bonds, Odd Call & Wandy Joins the Team...

• 1899 - The Pirates swept a pair from Philadelphia‚ winning both games on ninth inning blasts by rookies. After the Phils scored five in the ninth in the opener‚ Jimmy Williams hit a three-run homer in the bottom of the frame to win‚ 9-8. In the nitecap‚ Ginger Beaumont tripled with the bases loaded to cap a 5-4 victory.
• 1901 - The Pirates scored in every inning while defeating the Reds 11-2 at Exposition Park. Jesse Tannehill tossed a seven hitter for the win. Ginger Beaumont had four hits and Claude Ritchey tripled twice. 
• 1931 - The Brooklyn Dodgers banged out 21 hits and scored three times in the ninth, but reliever Larry French put down the rally and the Bucs hung on for an 8-7 win at Forbes Field. The Pirates had 13 knocks, seven for extra bases, and had jumped out to an early lead behind Pie Traynor’s three RBI and Eddie Phillips’ homer. 
• 1956 - Honored at a Pittsburgh Chamber of Commerce luncheon before the game, Roberto Clemente proved his plaudits were well deserved by leading the Bucs to a 6-2 win over the Chicago Cubs at Forbes Field. Roberto drove in four RBI on three shots to left center: a sacrifice fly, a triple off the wall, and a homer into Schenley Plaza. Ron Kline got the win with help from Howie Pollet. 
• 1964 - Barry Bonds was born in Riverside, California. The slugger, a first round pick in the 1985 draft, spent seven summers in Pittsburgh, putting up a line of .275/176/556 with two All-Star appearances before really busting out with San Francisco, where he became the all-time HR leader. 
• 1970 - 43,290 fans showed up for Roberto Clemente day at TRS. Pirate ownership buried him with gifts (cash gifts were, at Clemente’s request, donated to charities), and he put on a show of his own, cracking a pair of hits and making a couple of diving grabs in the field during an 11-0 thumping of Houston. Danny Murtaugh pulled him in the eighth inning so he could get a final ovation on the night (he also had cut his knee making a catch); several fans had made the trip from Puerto Rico to help honor their native son. Dock Ellis tossed a four-hitter behind a 15 hit attack. 
• 1979 - A baffling fourth inning call resulted in a 34 minute rhubarb during the Pirates-Reds game at TRS. With Buc runners on 1st and 3rd‚ a 3-1 pitch to Omar Moreno was called a ball‚ but Johnny Bench threw to 2B ahead of the runner from 1B‚ Lee Lacy‚ who was going on the pitch. Lacy was called out by ump Dick Stello even though he was entitled to second base after the walk. After questioning the out call, Lacy left the base and was tagged out again by Dave Concepcion‚ igniting the argument. The Bucs protested the game, but NL president Chub Feeney upheld the call and the Pirates 6-5 loss was in the books. 
• 2004 - The whole Pirate attack chipped in during a 14-4 romp over the Reds at PNC Park. The Buccos had 11 batters with at least a hit and banged out six doubles as 10 different players scored and eight Pirates drove in runs. Jason Bay had three hits and three RBI while Jose Castillo scored four times to lead the attack. The Bucs scored seven times in the sixth to take control. 
• 2008 - The Bucs won their fourth in a row by hammering the Padres at PNC Park by a 9-1 score. Nate McLouth, Jason Bay and Xavier Nady homered while Yoslan Herrera tossed six scoreless frames to claim the win. 
• 2012 - Wandy Rodriguez was traded by the Houston Astros with cash to the Pirates for minor league prospects RHP Colton Cain, LHP Rudy Owens and OF Robbie Grossman as the Bucs looked to shore up their stretch run rotation.

Bucs, Cole Handle Washington 5-1

The first inning went quietly enough. Taylor Jordan tossed a 1-2-3 opener, and Gerrit Cole did the same. He did give up a leadoff knock to Bryce Harper, but he challenged Russ martin's arm and lost.

Pedro opened the second with a single of Anthony Rendon's mitt. Martin rolled a knock into center to Bucs at first and second, and Garrett Jones drew a five pitch walk to jam the sacks. Neil Walker, in his return, bounced into a force to plate El Toro, thanks to a strong takeout slide by Jones. Jordy Mercer then banged one to third; after a nice pick by Ryan Zimmerman, it looked like a DP in the making, but Rendon dropped the toss, letting another run in with everyone safe.

Cole helped himself by singling through the left side after showing bunt to make it 3-0. Starling Marte lined a bullet to second; Rendon made the grab and threw behind Mercer to get the inning-ending DP. Washington got a runner aboard when Werth was nicked by a pitch with an out, but Cole stranded him. The batter before him, Adam LaRoche, almost went yard the opposite way, but Starling Marte took extra bases away from him

The Bucs went down in order in the third; the Nats lit the scoreboard when Wilson Ramos led off with a homer that Cutch was a hair away from pulling back in. Martin led off the fourth with a knock to left and got to second an out later, but was left there. The Nats went down 1-2-3. Jordan tucked Pittsburgh away cleanly in the fifth. Cole lost Ian Desmond after being ahead 0-2 in the count, and a swinging bunt followed by a fly to right moved him to third. Cole got Jordan to tap out to Walker, and it stayed 3-1 after five frames.

Cutch led off the sixth with a knock into left, but was quickly erased on a Pedro 4-6-3 DP, and Martin K'ed looking to end the frame. The Nats went down routinely. Both rookie starters have been pretty efficient, with Jordan sitting at 71 pitches and Cole at 78.

With two away in the seventh, Mercer and Cole hit back-to-back knocks to put Bucs on the corners, but Marte rolled the first pitch to short; Desmond made the backhand stop and flipped to second to end the inning. The Bucs, needless to add, are 1-for-6 with RISP; and Cole has that hit. The Nats hit a couple of balls hard, but LaRoche's drive to straight center was corralled by Cutch a couple of steps short of the wall and Mercer made a skidding stop of Jason Werth's one hopper ticketed for left. A broken bat popper took care of the Nats; that's nine in a row for Cole, who hasn't given up a hit since the Ramos homer.

A mistake pitch got Jordan yanked in the eighth. After a pair of routine outs and two strikes on Pedro, the catcher tapped the ground for a spinner in the dirt. Instead, he left it up and away, and El Toro dropped it just over the railing and into the LF stands to make it 4-1. Martin lined a knock into left that almost undressed Zimmerman, ala Charlie Brown, and the Nats called on Ian Krol, bringing up Gaby to hit for Jones. This time it paid off, as he doubled into right center to chase Martin home after he had stolen second and went to third on a bad throw. Two out lightning for a little insurance.

Cole went seven innings, giving up a run on two hits with a walk, HBP and four K, tossing 92 pitches. Bryon Morris climbed the bump. Denard Span slapped a knock the opposite way to welcome him to the game. Ramos flared a soft broken bat liner to left; Marte closed on the ball and made the catch like it was hit right at him. Roger Bernadina pinch hit and helped the cause, chasing a 3-2 slider that was down. Harper bounced out to first, and it was on to the ninth.

Closer Tyler Clippard took the ball for the Nats, just for the work, and K'ed a pair. Mark the Shark got the call for Pittsburgh, probably to get him use to the ninth in a low-pressure situation, yet while facing the 2-3-4 hitters for Washington. He was up a little more than usual, getting a couple of fly outs, but still used just seven pitches to set down Washington.

It'll be interesting to see how Clint Hurdle, who likes set roles for his bullpen, handles the relievers during Jason Grilli's absence. It'll be a learning experience for him, we're sure, and we expect to see a set-up by committee, at least early on. But for now, three in a row for the Buccos. Francisco Liriano takes on Steven Strasberg tomorrow in a marquee match.

• Jordy Mercer now has a nine game hitting streak.
• Russ Martin went 3-for-4, but Starling Marte, now getting a diet of soft stuff, is stuck in an 0-for-17 funk as the cat-and-mouse game with the NL pitchers continues.
• Gerrit Cole broke a three game losing streak.
• Vic Black made it in time to get to join the bullpen tonight, jogging out to join his new mates in the third inning.
• The initial diagnosis is that Jason Grilli will miss 7-10 days. But the FO, while knocking on wood that his injury isn't serious - they're calling it a strain for now - won't know for sure until some tests are run in Pittsburgh, including a MRI.
• The Bucs may be making over Indy wild child Andy Oliver ala Justin Wilson/Bryon Morris; he made his first relief appearance tonight since he joined the Pirate organization this season.

Cole v Jordan; Inge DFA'ed, Grilli on DL, Vic Black Added

Gerrit Cole (4-3, 3.89) takes the bump against Taylor Jordan (0-2, 3.32) tonight in a battle of rookie righties. Cole had won his first four decisions, but has dropped his last three as he's still looking for a breakout start. Jordan, a sinker ball pitcher, has just four career starts and is looking for his first MLB win. He's pitching as a replacement for the injured Ross Detwiler. It'll be interesting; both guys were in the minors last month, and both have a tenuous hold on the last spot in the rotation right now.

The game starts at 7:05 and will be aired on Root Sports and 93.7 The Fan.

Pirate lineup: Starling Marte LF, Jose Tabata RF, Andrew McCutchen CF, Pedro Alvarez 3B, Russ Martin C, Garrett Jones 1B, Neil Walker 2B, Jordy Mercer SS and Gerrit ColeP.

The Kid is back, and it looks like Jordy  is still a step up on Clint in the SS derby.

National lineup: Bryce Harper LF, Anthony Rendon 2B, Ryan Zimmerman 3B, Adam LaRoche 1B, Jayson Werth RF, Ian Desmond SS, Denard Span CF, Wilson Ramos C and Taylor Jordan P.

The beat gang reports (and the FO confirmed) that the Pirates have DFA'ed Brandon Inge to make space for Neil Walker, put Jason Grilli on the 15-day DL, and will bring up RHP Vic Black from Indy; we're thought it would be Jared Hughes, but the Bucs are looking at a closer for a closer.

Andrew McCutchen recorded his eighth career multi home run game last night. Three of those games have come against the Nationals, including his career-best three homer game on August 1st, 2009 at PNC Park.

How goes the Pedro as clean up hitter experiment? After a very tiny sample size of 49 PA, El Toro is hitting .170 with 2 HR, 4 RBI and an OPS+ of 27. It's not much different career-wise. Petey's had 188 PA with 4 HR, 15 RBI, a .142 BA and 26 OPS+.

Jason Grilli was sent back to Pittsburgh today, where we assume he will be further evaluated by Pittsburgh's medicos.

The Nationals suffered their fourth straight defeat and ninth in 11 games last night.

Jared Hughes struck out two of the four batters he faced in a scoreless inning of rehab relief for Indy last night. He has tossed five zippo innings since beginning his rehab stint.

LHP Daniel Moskos just signed to play ball in Taiwan.

7/23 - Ginger, Pie Traynor, Ralph Kiner, All Star Game, Milestones, A Streak, Trades...

Ginger, Pie Traynor, Ralph Kiner, All Star Game, Milestones, A Streak, Trades...

• 1876 - OF Ginger Beaumont was born in Rochester, Wisconsin. He played eight seasons (1899-1906) for Pittsburgh, hitting .321 with 757 runs scored and 200 stolen bases. Beaumont led the league in batting with a .357 average in 1902, and in 1903 led in at bats (613), runs (137) and hits (209) while batting .342, helping the team to earn a spot in the first World Series. 
• 1930 - The Pirates won the first game of a Baker Bowl twin bill against Philadelphia 2-1 as Heinie Meine slipped past Roy “Swede” Hanson, the match decided by a ninth inning Pie Traynor homer. The second game, twice delayed by rain, went 13 innings and ended 16-15 Pittsburgh. With darkness threatening, Traynor was again the hero, blasting a three run shot that barely was enough to hold off the Phils, and going 5-for-7 in the nitecap. The second game set a couple of single game records: With eight total homers and nine doubles, the total bases mark of 83 was established. The other record was total number at bats; the two clubs combined for 117 AB. 
• 1947 - Ralph Kiner hit his 24th and 25th long balls of the year of the Phils’ Al Jurisich‚ breaking the club record of 23 set by Johnny Rizzo in 1938 and tied by Kiner in his rookie year of 1946. Pittsburgh beat Philly 6-2 at Forbes Field as Hank Greenberg also went yard. 
• 1962 - Reds pitcher Jim O'Toole lost his no hit bid when Bob Skinner doubled with one out in the eighth inning, but still finished with a 3-0 one-hit win over the Bucs at Crosley Field. 
• 1974 - TRS hosted the 45th All-Star Game. The NL romped, 7-2 with Pittsburgh lefty Ken Brett getting the win after tossing a pair of scoreless frames. 
• 1979 - The Bucs won their ninth game in a row by a 7-1 count over the Atlanta Braves at TRS. Tim Foli went 3-for-5 with four RBI to lead the attack while Bert Blyleven tossed a four hit complete game. The Bucs pulled off the 500th triple play in MLB history in the second inning of the nitecap when Braves’ pitcher Phil Niekro bounced into a 5-4-3, Bill Madlock-to-Phil Garner-to-Willie Stargell triple killing at TRS, but had the last laugh as he spun a two-hitter in an 8-0 Atlanta romp, ending the Bucco winning string. 
• 1991 - A couple of milestones: Buc bench coach Jeff Banister made his MLB debut and singled off Atlanta’s Dan Petry in his only big league at bat. Banister is a Pirate lifer since being drafted in 1986. In the same game, rookie John "Rock" Wehner, now a Root Sports broadcaster, went 5-for-5 to become the first 'Burgh rook since Richie Zisk in 1973 to collect five hits. The Bucs beat the Atlanta Braves 12-3 at TRS; Gary Redus and Spanky LaValliere combined to drive in seven runs while Redus and Bobby Bonilla homered. 1
• 1996 - The Pirates traded RHP Danny Darwin to the Astros for minor league RHP Rich Loiselle. Loiselle spent his six year MLB career (1996-2001) as a Pirate and claimed 29 saves in 1997 after being converted from a starter to the pen. He finished 9-18-49, going steadily downhill after fairly strong 1997-98 campaigns. The veteran Darwin won 16 more games before hangin’ the spikes up after the 1998 season, closing out 21 years in the show. 
• 1999 - The Pirates traded OF Jose Guillen and P Jeff Sparks to Tampa Bay for Cs Joe Oliver and Humberto Cota. Guillen‚ who had 28 homers and 154 RBI in his first two seasons‚ was having a down year after arriving at spring training a month late due to visa problems. He went on to have a half dozen 20+ HR campaigns, including 31 bombs in 2003. 
• 2003 - The Pirates traded 3B Aramis Ramirez, OF Kenny Lofton, and cash to the Cubs for SS Jose Hernandez, P Matt Bruback, and 2B Bobby Hill in Dave Littlefield's darkest day of salary dumping.

The Ryan Braun Song...

If Grilli Is Down...

Jason Grilli sat in the locker room, alone and with his head down. The winning clubhouse was about as somber as Russian opera. We're not exactly sure what Grilli did to his arm last night, but judging by his reaction, it's not good. It was called "right forearm discomfort" yesterday, usually a euphemism for an achy elbow, and the team will evaluate him further today. He may well end up on the DL.

That would be a hard blow for a guy who has overcome so much - rehabbing from TJ surgery, then a shredded knee, working in the boonies of Lehigh Valley before becoming a set-up man and this year, an All-Star closer through sweat and sheer will. Now he looks to have another hill to climb.

The Pirates will have their bullpen shuffled because of his injury - if he lands on the DL, we wouldn't expect him back until September first just as a matter of rehab time and red tape - but it's built deep enough to continue to be a lock-down group, to the great credit of Neal Huntington.

The Shark Tank will move Mark Melancon to closer, and his stat line is even more impressive than Grilli's. His ERA is 0.87, his WHIP is 0.820, and he averages nine K to one walk per nine innings. And it won't be new territory; he closed for the Astros in 2011, saving 20 games.

Justin Wilson would be the heir apparent as bridge man. Bryan Morris, who has minor league experience at closing, is in the mix if the Bucs are uncomfortable in handing the position full-time to a lefty, even though Wilson's splits are excellent no matter what side the batter swings from. Wilson has worked the most high leverage situations, with an OBA of .205; Morris has worked to a .203 OBA in his turns at high leverage

Vin Mazzaro and Tony Watson have also worked late frames, so the Pirates have lots of options. Watson, in fact, may be a dark horse for the bridge; his OBA in high leverage is .085.

They likely would be joined by Jared Hughes if Grilli can't go, with Jeanmar Gomez as the long man. They have minor league options in Ryan Reid and Vic Black top among a pack of candidates. And if they do deal for another starter, the FO could opt to work Gerrit Cole out of the pen, though we think they'll keep him stretched as a starter at Indy if the rotation gets crowded. They can fill the hole in the dike internally.

The one thing they may miss is Grilli's leadership. We know chemistry is a word that's bandied about a lot, but the alpha shark in Pittsburgh's tank has been the vocal righty. Even if he's on the DL, he would still be physically with the team, and hopefully his presence will be enough to keep the bullpen on an even keel; Melancon is a much quieter guy, leading by example rather than by emotion.

Baseball is a game of ups and downs. When somebody goes down, someone else has to step up. We think the Pirate bullpen has the men and arms to step up and continue the job.

Bucs Hang On 6-5; Grilli Hurt

Nice start against Dan Haren. Jordy Mercer fell behind 1-2, spoiled a couple, and worked a nine pitch walk. Cutch fell behind 0-2, took a ball, fouled one off, then lined a heater barely over the wall in right center, and the Bucs were up 2-0. Charlie Morton walked Bryce Harper, then got a couple of grounders, the second a 6-4-3 DP, to clean up. Both pitchers tossed a clean second frame.

Marte got conked with a 2-2 heater with one away in the third; the kid is a ball magnet. After Mercer flew out fairly deep to left, Andrew got a 2-1 cutter just above the belt and dropped it over the CF fence. Cutch is happening today, and it's 4-0 Buccos. Ground Chuck got three rollers to retire the Nats.

Russ Martin opened the fourth with a knock through the left side. Garrett Jones took a ball at the knees and lined it into right for a double to put Bucs at second and third. Gaby didn't have much of an at bat, fishing for a pair of cutters off the dish, but with the infield back, he did manage to roll one to short to plate Martin, so it ended up a productive visit to the plate. A Barmes grounder moved Jones to third, where he stayed as Morton K'ed. Charlie did OK at his day job, though, picking up a pair of K to go with a tap out.

With one gone in the fifth, Mercer banged one off the left field fence for a double. But Haren came back to K Cutch and Pedro to keep it at 5-0. Cutch got a couple of good balls to hit but fouled them off, swinging through a splitter, while El Toro missed a meatball and then fished for a pair.

Charlie had a rough frame. Adam LaRoche drilled a homer into right on a sinker that ran back over the plate. After a couple of hard hit outs, Denard Span poked a pitch away into left and Wilson Ramos pulled a pitch to put Nats at first and second. Lefty Roger Brenardino came up, and got ahead 3-1 with Harper on deck, but helped Morton out of the jam by swinging through a pair of balls of the plate, so he escaped with a 5-1 lead.

Craig Stammen came on in the sixth. Martin singled to left and stole second; three shots at RISP! Jones almost came through as Anthony Rendon made a diving stop of his hard hit ball to the right side that took a nice hop for the second baseman, moving Martin to third. Sanchez popped out with the infield in, and Barmes was worked carefully, drawing a walk. That left it up to Morton, who rolled one softly to second, and the Bucs, even with five runs, are 0-for-8 with RISP. Harper opened by banging a 3-1 pitch into center, but Ground Chuck got a one hopper to Pedro from Rendon to start an around-the-horn DP. Morton showed Zmmerman the hook a couple of times and got him swinging; it's a pitch he should go to a little more often.

With an out in the seventh, Mercer, after hooking a ball a few feet outside the foul pole, lined a single to left. He was erased trying to steal; Wilson Ramos, who has had his troubles with larcenists, tossed a perfect strike to beat Mercer by a hair. Cutch bounced out to end the frame.

Morton struggled. He hit LaRouche, then spun an offspeed pitch down and tight to Jason Werth, who hammered it into the stands in left center. After two ground outs - one on a great stretch and pick by Gaby - Ramos singled up the middle. That was it; Clint Hurdle called on Bryon Morris to face lefty Chad Tracy. Oddly, no lefty was loose, though it didn't make a difference as Tracy grounded out to first. But at 5-3, the game is still in the balance. Charlie went 6-2/3, giving up three runs on six hits, a walk and five K, tossing 102 pitches.

Ian Krol took the ball for Washington in the eighth. Pedro dropped a soft liner into left, and Martin followed with a walk. JT hit for Jones, and bunted them up a station. Doug Storen climbed the hill, and got Gaby to hit a short fly to left; there was no chance for Alvarez to score against Harper's arm. That brought up Barmes. The Nats got a break when a wild pitch went to the wall and bounced straight back; catcher Ramos had the ball before El Toro could advance four or five steps. But two pitches later, Storen tossed another one to the backstop; Alvarez and the ball reached home at the same time, but Petey's headfirst slide knocked the ball from Storen's mitt for a run. Barmes walked, and pinch hitter Travis Snider popped out.

Tony Watson came in with a 6-3 lead as Mark Melancon had the night off after back-to-back outings. Rendon dropped a soft single into center with an out, but Tony came back to get Zimmerman to hit a tapper to short. Barmes charged the ball, made a nice turning feed, and Mercer made the turn quickly to get the Bucs third DP of the night.

Fernando Abad worked a clean ninth inning, thanks to nice play in the hole by Ian Desmond to deny Mercer and a drive to right by Cutch that died at the track. Jason Grilli toed the rubber and opened by walking LaRoche. He trotted home when Werth smackd his second homer, and fourth in two days, to make it 6-5.

He K'ed Desmond, but fell behind Span 3-1. Looking dead red, Span drilled one heater just outside the foul pole and lined the next into the RF corner for a double. Grilli whiffed Ramos on a hung hook; the catcher was looking fastball all the way. But Jason had been clenching his right hand during the at-bat, and after getting a foul from Steve Lombardozzi, called to the bench and was replaced by Vin Mazzaro, who got a grounder to earn the save, his first ever, for Charlie Morton's second win..

We're surprised that with his lack of command that Martin or the bench didn't pick up on his condition sooner, but Grilli does work up in the zone and has a good game face. Now we'll have to wait it out; he could have hurt his elbow or just had a cramp that wouldn't work out. Then again, this may be something that's been developing. Grilli's given up eight runs and three homers in his last eleven appearances, and maybe it wasn't all due to regression.

The Bucs are deep in bullpen options and don't have to go beyond internal choices to fill his spot if he lands on the DL. They would certainly slide Melancon to closer and have a choice of eighth inning bridges, with a Wilson/Morris tag team likely. They also have a back ender in Vic Black with Jared Hughes and Ryan Reid at Indy; we'd look for Hughes if Grilli's spot comes open. Still, let's knock on wood that it's not anything major. The Bucs said after the game that it was "forearm discomfort" which in Pirate talk is almost always an elbow injury of some kind. A trip to the DL would keep probably keep him out of action until at least late August or into September.

As for the Bucs, they were 0-for-10 with RISP; Cutch played home run derby well enough to cancel the three Nat bombs. The Pirates are 6 for 59 with RISP in their last seven games; we can't wait for that regression correction. Maybe it'll start tomorrow when Gerrit Cole takes on Taylor Jordan.

• Tonight was Andrew McCutchen's first multi-HR game of the season. His pair of two-run shots broke a string of 11 solo shots.
• Neil Walker will be back in the lineup tomorrow as the Bucs wanted to give him a day off after his Indy rehab. He'll replace either Josh Harrison or Brandon Inge. There's some debate about whether Mercer or Barmes will get the SS job with walker back in, but we're guessing Mercer will see at least the major portion of playing time with Clint getting spot starts. Barmes, btw, played in his 1,000th MLB game today while Jordy extended his hitting streak to eight games.
• Scratch Matt Garza from the Bucco fantasy list: he went to the Rangers for 3B Mike Olt, RHP Justin Grimm, RHP CJ Edwards and a PTBNL. Olt is a Top 50 prospect ala SS Alen Hansen, Grimm is roughly equivalent to Brandon Cumpton and Edwards is a Nick Kingham/Tyler Glasnow type prospect; no word on the player to be named. That's quite a price for a mid-rotation rental, though it may be that the Rangers believe they can sign him after the season (not that the option didn't exist no matter where he went now.) 
• Indy's LHP Kris Johnson has allowed just 10 runs over his last 11 games (59-2/3 IP) to lead the International League with a 1.51 ERA
• Ryan Braun accepted a 65 game PED suspension from MLB; too bad for that guy that collected his specimen last year who got axed when Braun wriggled out a drug jam on a technicality that he didn't 'fess up then.

Morton v Haren To Open The Washington Series

Charlie Morton (1-2, 3.19) takes on Dan Haren (4-10, 5.61) as the Bucs continue their road trip in Washington. Ground Chuck is getting a little stronger each outing, and that's good news for the stretch. Haren had a horrible June and then went on the DL with shoulder inflammation; he's been much better in his last two starts. However, the Nationals have dropped his last 10 starts as Haren has surrnedered an NL high 19 long balls.

The game starts at 7:05 and will be aired by Root Sports and 93.7 The Fan.

Pirate lineup: Starling Marte LF, Jordy Mercer 2B, Andrew McCutchen CF, Pedro Alvarez 3B, Russ Martin C, Garrett Jones RF, Gaby Sanchez 1B, Clint Barmes SS and Charlie Morton P.

JT takes a seat for the second day, hmmm. Guess it's six of one, half dozen of the other: JT is batting .282 while Gaby is hitting .226, but Tabata's OPS+ is 115, Sanchez's 113. Neil Walker is reported to be in Washington, but hasn't been added to the active roster, so we'll see what's up with that; maybe it will just be a late move before tonight's game..

National lineup: Bryce Harper LF, Anthony Rendon 2B, Ryan Zimmerman 3B, Adam LaRoche 1B, Jayson Werth RF, Ian Desmond SS, Denard Span CF, Wilson Ramos C and Dan Haren P.

The Nats came out cold after the break, scoring just five runs in a three game set against the Dodgers, and hopefully their bats will remain chilly until the Bucs get out of town. In fact, the Nats just fired hitting coach Rick Eckstein today and replaced him with Rick Schu, their minor league hitting coordinator.

It should be interesting series. The Pirates team batting average is .243 and they put up 3.82 runs per game. Washington's BA is .241 with 3.69 RPG. The Bucs were 2-for-27 with RISP last series and the Nats were 2-for-26. Somehow, we don't think those numbers are the coaches fault.

• Jason Grilli recorded his league leading 30th save yesterday in the team’s 96th game. It’s the fastest a Pirate has reached 30 since saves became an official statistic in 1969.
• Garrett Jones has homered in back-to-back games for the first time since April 28th-29th.
• Gordon Wittenmyer of the Chicago Sun-Times (free registration needed) has the Pirate FO in hot and heavy on Matt Garza and also looking at Nate Scheirholtz. 
• ESPN takes a look at the top pitching performances of "...pitchers who can make a case as a Cy Young contender..." and Jeff Locke's game is included. Maybe he's not as under the radar as we think. 
• The Washington Post's Dave Scheinin welcomes Pittsburgh to town with another "Is This The Year?" article.
• Baseball America lists Alex Dickerson, Altoona 1B, on its Hot Sheet. They also caution on Jameson Taillon and Luis Heredia, and praise DSL player Michael de la Cruz.
• Ronny Cedeno, who had a line of .220/.260/.298 for the Astros, was DFA'ed.