Pirates Dynasty 2005

[joncarlos]

Man, what are Greinke's ratings that you gave up all that for him? I hope he turns it around soon!

[Operation Shutdown]

Week 13
The Pirates are still in second place in the central division, with a record of 43-33, they are five games back of the Cubs. The Pirates start the week off, playing host to a three game series against the Cardinals, who are 40-35 and whom the Pirates are 3-4 against this season. The Cards starting rotation is anchored by Jason Simontacchi (8-6 3.71) and also contains Jimmy Journell (4-6 3.74), Tyler Johnson (0-4 4.13), and Dan Haren (8-3 4.51). The big three of Pujols (0.313 18 45), Jim Edmonds (0.293 8 40), and Miguel Tejada (0.272 10 41) still lead the powerhouse offense, and for some reason Scott Rolen is still leading off the order, despite hitting just 0.235 with 12 HRs and 34 RBIs.

Game 77: Pirates 3 Cardinals 9
Benson didn't have his greatest game, giving up four runs in 6 2/3 innings. The bullpen got destroyed, giving up five more runs in 2 1/3 innings of relief. Jimmy Journell pitched fairly well, giving up just three runs in 8 1/3 innings. Jim Edmonds smashed two homers in the game, a three run shot off Benson in the third, and a two run shot off Vogelsong in the 7th.

Game 78: Pirates 6 Cardinals 5 Glove Day at PNC Park
Greinke did much better in this start, giving up four runs in 6 1/3 innings, but still did not pick up the win. Simontacchi got the loss, giving up six runs, just two of which were earned, in seven innings of work. The Pirates were down 4-0 heading into the bottom of the seventh. Navarette led off with a single, and then Castillo reached base on an error. Doumit then came through with a double to score the first run of the game for the Bucs. After McDougall struck out, Kotsay came through with a single scoring Castillo and Doumit to bring the game to 4-3. After Craig Wilson struck out swinging, Nady walked, and then JJ Davis came through with a three run homerun to give the Pirates a 6-4 lead. Mann gave up one run in the ninth, but with the bases loaded and two outs, he got Vina to fly out to left field to end the game and earn him his 18th save of the season. Shields picked up the win for the Bucs, and while Greinke didn't have a great game, he did well enough to deserve at least one more start.

Game 79: Pirates 9 Cardinals 11
JVB had a really tough start, giving up 7 runs in just 1 2/3 innings for the loss. Johnson picked up his first win of the season, giving up just two runs in 6 innings. The Pirates mounted a huge comeback try in the ninth inning, scoring seven runs off of relievers Kline and Crudale, but Izzy came in with the bases loaded and two outs, and after giving up a single to Bobby Hill, he got Xavier Nady to ground out to end the threat and earn himself his 14th save of the season.

Series Recap: Not a very good series for the Bucs, but luckily the Cubs had a worse series, getting swept and the Bucs managed to pick up a game on the Cubs.

The Pirates now travel to Detroit for a three game series against the Tigers, who they went 2-1 against last week.

Game 80: Pirates 11 Tigers 1
Williams continues to have a great season, as he picked up his 10th win of the season today, giving up just one run through 8 2/3 innings. Roney on the other hand, isn't doing too well, as he picked up his 10th loss of the season, giving up 7 runs, six of them earned, in 6 2/3 innings of work.

Game 81: Pirates 5 Tigers 3
Ponson tied Atlanta's Wainwright for the NL leading 12th win of the season, giving up just 3 runs in eight innings of work. Lackey gave up four runs in 6 2/3 innings of work and got the loss for the Tigers. Mann pitched a 1-2-3 ninth inning, throwing just five pitches for his 19th save of the season.

Game 82: Pirates 3 Tigers 2
Benson made up for last game, giving up just one run in seven innings to pick up his 10th win of the season. Bell pitched well for the Tigers, giving up just three runs in eight innings, but still got the loss. Despite giving up one run, Mann pitched 1 2/3 innings for his 20th save of the season. Doumit and Henson each hit solo homeruns for the Bucs.

Series Recap: A sweep of the Tigers is definitely nice, but unfortunately the Cubs also swept the Giants so the Bucs remain 4 back of the Cubs. The Pirates finished their interleague play with a 12-6 record against the AL.

Around the league, on Monday San Diego's first baseman Ryan Klesko ruptured an achilles tendon while running the bases and will miss the rest of the season. On Tuesday, Montreal's Chad Vargas suffered a torn back muscle, and will also miss the remainder of the season.

[Operation Shutdown]

Keep in mind that I'm using talent only, so I have no idea what Greinke's actual ratings are, but his talent is GGGGB, so hopefully he turns out. I gave up two 2 1/2 star players as well as a four star prospect, but he's 25 and just started playing AAA this year, so he's pretty much a longshot at making the majors.

Week 14
The Pirates are 47-35 and are still in second in the central division, just four games back of the Cubs. The Pirates rank second in batting average, but just 21st in team homeruns. They are ranked 9th, with 419 runs scored, and tied for 6th with 344 runs given up. The Pirates begin the week with a four game series in New York against the Mets. The Mets are in last place in the east with a record of 30-50. The Mets have a decent top of the pitching rotation of Phil Seibel (7-8 4.33), Jake Joseph (2-11 3.70), and Ross Peeples (4-3 3.76). They have been really struggling with their offense, with Robby Alomar with the best average on the team hitting 0.299, and Wigginton and Scutaro are tied for the lead in homers on the team with 8. MRs Jon Bale and Todd Walker are still out with injuries, and Cliff Floyd is out for the season with a torn back muscle. The 36 year old Piazza is just nine hits away from 2000 career hits, and 37 year old Alomar is still in search of 3,000 career hits, just 81 shy of the mark.

Game 83: Pirates 9 Mets 1
Well, Greinke finally had the start that all of Pirate nation was waiting for, giving up just one run in 8 1/3 innings for his first win in a Pirates uniform. He pitched very well, giving up just four hits and one walk, but keep in mind that it was against a very weak offense. Peeples gave up four runs, three of them earned, in six innings for the loss. Ryan Doumit is really starting to come into his own, as he launched his fifth homerun of the year and has pushed his batting average up to 0.300.

June Wrapup
The Pirates went 17-10 in the month of June, and now have a record of 48-35, and are in second place, just 3.5 games back of the Cubs. With the exception of Greinke, the starting rotation has done very well this month, especially Ponson, who was 4-0 witha 2.20 ERA, and Benson, who was 5-1 with a 2.23 ERA. Greinke was 1-3 with a 6.61 ERA. With the exception of Castillo, almost the entire Pirate lineup hit above 0.300, with Xavier Nady, hitting 0.389 with 5 HRs and 21 RBIs, and Ryan Doumit, hitting 0.372 with 4 HRs and 20 RBIs, leading the way. Castillo hit a paltry 0.198 with 2 HRs and 11 RBIs. Here's a quick breakdown of how all the Pirate players are doing this season, just past the halfway point of the season.

C Humberto Cota 0.260 1 HR 8 RBI
C Ryan Doumit 0.300 5 HR 30 RBI
1B Craig Wilson 0.268 10 HR 68 RBI
1B Ray Navarette 0.313 0 HR 3 RBI
2B Bobby Hill 0.336 0 HR 24 RBI 50 R
3B Drew Henson 0.274 4 HR 44 RBI
3B Marshall McDougall 0.370 5 HR 21 RBI
SS Jose Castillo 0.207 7 HR 29 RBI
SS Jack Wilson 0.203 1 HR 6 RBI
LF Xavier Nady 0.282 8 HR 51 RBI
CF Mark Kotsay 0.316 9 HR 36 RBI
CF Darnell McDonald 0.248 3 HR 9 RBI
RF JJ Davis 0.311 18 HR 54 RBI

Sidney Ponson 12-4 3.20
Kris Benson 10-4 2.86
Zach Greinke 2-4 5.91
John VanBenSchoten 8-7 3.92
Dave Williams 10-3 3.12

The Red Sox are continuing their dominance of the AL East with a record of 53-29, they lead by 7 games over the Yankees. The Twins are leading the central division by 12.5 games over the Indians, with a record of 50-31. In the west, the Rangers are still the team to beat, with a record of 46-35, they lead the A's by 1 game. In the NL, the Braves have held on to their control in the east with the best record in baseball, leading the Phililes by 4.5 games with a record of 57-27. The Cubs, with a record of 50-30, are still on top of the central division, 3.5 games ahead of the Pirates. The West is a tight race, still without a single team above 0.500, and is led by the Rockies who are 40-42 and lead the Giants by 1 game.

Odalis Perez came back from his injury and performed well enough in June to win the POM award, going 5-0 with an ERA of 1.78 for the Red Sox. Philadelphia's Brett Myers won the award for the NL after finishing the month with a record of 4-1 and an ERA of just 0.82. For the second time of his career, Yankee 2B Alfonso Soriano won the BOM award in the AL, hitting 0.347 while collecting 10 HRs and driving in 40 runs. Colorado's JD Closser also won the award for the second time in his career after finishing the month with an average of 0.337 with 16 HRs and 36 RBIs.

Besides the Pirates trade, there were three other trades made this month. Cincinatti sent 3 star prospect SS Mark Schramek and 2 star propsect C William Falco to the Diamondbacks for 2.5 star 2B Chad Tracy. Atlanta got 2 star RF Lou Collier from the Indians in return for 3.5 star prospect LF Carlos Quentin and 2 star prospect MR Johnny Fenton. Lastly, the Marlins picked up 3 star 1B Brad Fullmer from the Rangers in return for 3 star SP Runelvys Hernandez.

Game 84: Pirates 6 Mets 4
VanBenSchoten is back to his winning ways, giving up just three runs in 5 2/3 innings for his 9th win of the season. Heilman gave up 5 runs in 5 1/3 innings to get the loss for the Mets. The Mets kept things close, bringing the game to 5-4 when they scored one run in the bottom of the eighth off of Mark Corey, but the Pirates added another insurance run in the top of the ninth, when they scored a run off of Glavine. Mann then pitched a 1-2-3 ninth, with two Ks for his 21st save of the season.

Game 85: Pirates 3 Mets 0
Williams continues his unbelievable season, as he pitches seven shutout innings, giving up just three hits and two walks while striking out 9 to earn his 11th win of the season. Miller gave up just three runs, all three in the first inning, in six innings of work, but still got the loss for the Mets. Mann pithced a scoreless ninth once again for his 22nd save of the season.

Game 86: Pirates 8 Mets 7
Ponson had himself a very uncharacteristic game, giving up six runs in six innings. Seibel gave up four runs in 7 1/3 innings for the Mets. The Mets were leading 7-4 heading into the top of the ninth, thinking they had the game in the bag, but the Pirates never gave up. With one out, Kotsay doubled, then Bobby Hill followed with an infield single, and Nady was then walked to load the bases. Benitez got Craig Wilson to strike out, and with two outs, things looked to be over for the Pirates. However, Benitez walked JJ Davis, walking in a run, and then gave up a single to Marshall McDougall that scored two more runs to tie the game. Franklin Nunez then entered the game, but the threat ended when McDougall was thrown out trying to steal second base. Neither team threatened again until the top of the 11th, when Nady got a one out single, and Craig Wilson followed with a double down the left field line, that allowed Nady to score all the way from first base and give the Pirates the lead. Jimenez pitched a scoreless bottom of the inning, giving up just a single, to get the save. Shields picked up the win, while Glavine got the loss.

Series Recap: Muck the Fets! Yeah! A sweep is always a great way to start out a new month, as the Pirates are now on a 7 game winning streak and find themselves just 2.5 back of the Cubs now.

First off, the Pirate promotions for the month of July will be as follows:
7/4 - Noddin Head Doll Day against the Reds
7/7 - Fireworks Night against the Braves
7/12 - Retro Game Day against the Phillies
7/23 - Glove Day against the Mets
7/29 - Baseball Cap Day against the Diamondbacks
The Pirates now come home for a three game series against the Reds who are 37-48 and whom the Pirates are 6-1 against this year. The Reds top starter is Ted Lilly who is 5-8 with a 4.75 ERA, though Paul Wilson (4-9 4.05) and Chris Reitsma (4-4 4.02) are also having decent seasons with the Reds. Zach Day is still on the DL and will not be back for this series, and Roy Oswalt is out for the season with bone chips in his shoulder. Bobby Kielty (0.282 15 49) and Adam Dunn (0.296 14 41) lead the Reds offense, and veteran CF Ken Griffey Jr. is still part of the lineup, though he is hitting just 0.236 with 11 HRs and 38 RBIs this season.

Game 87: Pirates 3 Reds 4 Noddin Head Doll Day at PNC Park
Neither starter got a decision in this game, as this one took 12 innings to decide. Benson gave up three runs in eight innings of work and Wilson gave up three runs, two of them earned, in just 5 1/3 innings of work. Neither team got a runner to second base in the extra innings, until the top of the 12th inning. Kielty led off the inning with a walk off of Corey. Vogelsong then came into the game and Colbrunn sacrificed Kielty to second, and he then got Tracy to fly out to shallow left-center. Griffey then came through with a clutch single to score Kielty before Vogelsong got Larson to strike out. The Pirates managed just one walk in the bottom half of the inning, as Heredia held on to the lead to get the win. Corey got the loss, giving up the lead-off walk.

Game 88: Pirates 5 Reds 7
Greinke once again had a decent start, giving up just three runs in 7 1/3 innings, but the bullpen blew the game for him. Lilly gave up four runs, three of them earned in six innings of work. The Pirates led the game 5-3 heading into the ninth, but the Reds did not back down. LaRue and Olmedo led off with singles against Mann, and Mann then loaded the bases, hitting Eckstein with a pitch. Colbrunn then followed with a single to score two runs and tie the game. Justin Reid then came into the game, and gave up a double to Chad Tracy scoring Eckstein to take the lead, but Colbrunn held at third. Adam Dunn was then intentionally walked, and Larson hit a sac fly to deep left-center, scoring Colbrunn as the insurance run. The inning finally ended when Griffey grounded out to second. Cordero pitched a scoreless bottom of the ninth to pick up the save. Granado got the win and Mann got the loss.

Nate McLouth was promoted from AA to AAA. The 23 year old McLouth was hitting 0.300 with 9 HRs and 32 RBIs for the Curve.

Game 89: Pirates 6 Reds 8
VanBenSchoten didn't have his greatest game, but he didn't do too bad, giving up four runs in 7 innings. Howington gave up six runs, five of them earned in 7 2/3 innings. The Pirates were trailing 4-1, but they tied it up in the bottom of the seventh, scoring three runs, and then took the lead in the bottom of the eighth, scoring two more runs. The Reds did not let this stand however. Stenson led off the inning with a single off of Vogelsong and moved to second on an error by the centerfielder. Veras then singled to left and Stenson scored on the play and Veras moved to second on the throw home. Kielty grounded out to the shortstop, but somehow Veras managed to move to third on the play. Colbrunn then singled home Veras to tie the game at 6-6. Chad Tracy flied out to deep left field, but then Griffy Jr was the hero again, as he hit a two run homerun down the right field line, that just cleared the wall to give the Reds the lead. Riedling pitched a 1-2-3 ninth inning for the save. Vogelsong got the loss for the Bucs, and Dotel picked up the win.

Series Recap: Typical Pirates, they win seven games in a row and then get swept by a team like the Reds.

Around the league, on Tuesday Padres' second baseman Hank Blalock hit for the cycle against the Dodgers. On Friday, teammate 1B Tagg Bozied smashed five hits against the Diamondbacks. On Saturday, Minnesota's RF Juan Gonzalez injured himself tearing his posterior cruciate ligament, and will miss the remainder of the season.

[Operation Shutdown]

Week 15
Just one more week to go before the All-Star game and the Pirates are 51-38, still in second place in the central, but now 5.5 games back of the Cubs. They begin the week at home, with a three game series against the ML best Braves, who are 59-30. The Braves have perhaps the best starting rotation in the majors with Matt Wright (4-3 3.77), Adam Wainwright (14-1 1.21), Horacio Ramirez (7-3 4.19), Wes Littleton (4-3 3.62), and Adam Eaton (10-4 2.77). They also have one of the league premier closers in Vizcaino, who has saved 23 games and has an ERA of just 1.95. The offense is a good mix of power and average, with Wilson Betemit as the leader of the offense, hitting 0.376 with 10 HRs and 51 RBIs.

Game 90: Pirates 7 Braves 5 Fireworks Night at PNC Park
Well, Dave Williams once again continues to shine, as he pitched six innings and gave up just one run for his 12th win of the season. Littleton gave up four runs in five innings and got the loss for the Braves. The Braves tried to mount a comeback, scoring one run in the sixth, one in the seventh, one in the eighth, and then two in the ninth off of Jimenez. However, Mann came in to pick up the final two outs in the ninth and earn his 23rd save of the season.

Game 91: Pirates 3 Braves 0
Ponson pitched a gem of a game, giving up no runs, and just two hits in 8 1/3 innings for his 13th win of the season. Eaton did fairly well, giving up just three runs in seven innings but still picked up the loss. Mann pitched the final two outs of the ninth inning with a runner on first, and got A Jones and Munson to strike out to end the game and earn him his 24th save of the season.

Game 92: Pirates 5 Braves 4
Matt Wright lasted just 4 2/3 innings for the Braves and gave up three runs. Benson once again pitched pretty well, giving up four runs in eight innings of work. The Braves took the lead in the top of the eighth inning, scoring their fourth run off of Benson to make the score 4-3. The Pirates answered back with a run of their own, which was unearned, in the bottom of the eighth off of Ray King. Then in the bottom of the tenth, the Pirates started things off when Craig Wilson got a one out walk. After Doumit lined out to first base, Cota reached base on a fielding error by the first baseman, allowing the inning to continue with runners at first and second and two outs. McDougall came through with a single to the gap in right-center, scoring Wilson with the game winning run. Vizcaino got the loss for the Braves, and Corey got the win while pitching two scoreless innings for the Pirates.

Series Recap: Holy Crap. Well, wonders will never cease, as after getting swept by a team like the Reds, the Bucs answer right back by sweeping the best team in all of baseball.

The Pirates remain home and host a four game series against the second place Phillies, who are 57-33. The Phillies have an excellent top four of the rotation with Ryan Madson (6-5 3.48), Chris Capuano (8-2 2.42), Brett Myers (10-4 2.49), and Vicente Padilla (10-2 2.69). Their pitching staff as a whole ranks first in runs allowed. The Phillies offense is led by the big three of Bobby Abreu (0.295 10 48), Jim Thome (0.290 18 62), and Pat Burrell (0.286 20 57). Rookie catcher Vernon Machuca has replaced veteran Lieberthal in the lineup versus righties.

Game 93: Pirates 3 Phillies 13
Greinke was back to his old self once again, as he gave up five runs, off of four hits and five walks in just 1+ innings of work for the loss. Myers pitched a decent game for the Phillies, giving up just three runs in seven games for the win. Phillies C Vernon Machuca hit his first career homerun, a solo shot in the eighth inning off of Jimenez.

The Pirates traded SS Jose Castillo to the Toronto Blue Jays in return for MR Gabe White. Justin Reid was then demoted to AAA, and 3B Yurrendell DeCaster was added to the 40-man roster and then promoted to the majors and will be back-up 3B.

Game 94: Pirates 3 Phillies 2
This game was a real pitcher's duel, as VanBenSchoten gave up just two runs, both of them from solo homers, one by Byrd and the other by Ledee, in seven innings of work to earn his 10th win of the season. Anderson gave up three runs, two of them earned, in 7 1/3 innings to get the loss, with the Pirate go ahead runs coming from a two run homerun by Davis in the sixth inning. Newcomer Gabe White pitched a scoreless eighth innings, and Mann pitched a scoreless ninth for his 25th save of the season.

Game 95: Pirates 7 Phillies 15 Retro Game Day at PNC Park
What many figured to be a real pitchers duel, turned into a slugfest. Padilla gave up 7 runs, six of them earned, in 6 2/3 innings but still picked up the win. While Williams went just 5 1/3 innings and gave up eight runs in seven innings. The big difference in the game came when Vogelsong gave up seven more runs in two innings of relief.

Game 96: Pirates 2 Phillies 20
Ouch, I think that's all I have to say about this game.

Series Recap: With the exception of the one game, the Phillies' offense just destroyed the Pirates pitching, scoring 48 runs in those three games. Meanwhile the Pirates slipped to 6.5 games behind the Cubs and Philadelphia slid ahead of the Braves in the east, and now have the best record in baseball.

Around the league, on Thursday Giants' 25 year old starter Jesse Foppert pitched his first career shutout, a one-hitter against the Arizona Diamondbacks, as the Giants won the game 3-0.

[Operation Shutdown]

I've uploaded all player and league files to the website, up until the All-Star break.

Week 16
This is all-star week and the American League won the game 4-2, scoring two runs in the top of the ninth inning to win the game. Sidney Ponson, Dave Williams, and Mark Kotsay represented the Pirates on the national league squad. Kotsay was the only Pirate to actually participate in the game, as the starting centerfielder, he went 1-4 as the leadoff hitter, striking out once.

This week the Pirates travel to Atlanta for a three game series against the Braves, who are 60-35, and whom the Pirates swept in three games last week. The Braves have perhaps the best starting rotation in the majors with Matt Wright (4-3 3.86), Adam Wainwright (14-2 1.40), Horacio Ramirez (7-3 4.21), Wes Littleton (4-5 4.20), and Adam Eaton (10-5 2.84). The offense is a good mix of power and average, with Wilson Betemit as the leader of the offense, hitting 0.375 with 11 HRs and 55 RBIs.

Game 97: Pirates 3 Braves 2
Both starters pitched fabulous games, but neither got a decision in the game, as this one took ten innings to decide. Benson gave up a lead-off homerun in the bottom of the first to Rafeal Furcal, but then proceeded to pitch seven scoreless innings, giving up a total of just five hits and one walk while striking out nine batters. Matt Wright had pitched seven scoreless innings, but then with one out in the eighth, Darnell McDonald reached base on an error, and ended up at second base as the throw ended up in the stands. Then Kotsay hit a fly ball to deep right field and McDonald tagged to go to third, but the throw by the rightfielder went past the third baseman and McDonald was able to score. Wright pitched a total of eight innings, giving up the one unearned run off of four hits and one walk while striking out 7. Then in extra innings in the top of the tenth, with one on and two outs, Jack Wilson hit a pinch hit homerun off of Vazcaino to give the Pirates the lead. The Braves answered back with a run of their own, when Betemit tripled and then scored on LaRoche's ground out to first base. Corey gave up just the one run however, and got the save. Mann picked up the win and Vizcaino got the loss.

Game 98: Pirates 4 Braves 5
Greinke didn't have a great outing, giving up five runs in four innings for the loss. Wainwright pitched fairly well, giving up just three runs in seven innings, for the NL leading 15th win of the season. All of the Pirates runs were scored from solo homeruns by Hill, Nady, Davis, and McDougall. Vizcaino pitched a 1-2-3 ninth inning for his 25th save of the season.

Game 99: Pirates 9 Braves 2
VanBenSchoten pitched real well, going the distance in the game and giving up just two runs off of five hits and two walks while striking out 8 batters. VanHekken at some point in time got placed into the Braves starting rotation and gave up five runs in five innings for the loss. Xavier Nady set a career high for RBIs in a game, with 5 RBIs, while going 3-5 including a three run homerun.

Series Recap: The Pirates seemed to have the Braves number this season, winning five out of six games. That may be important as it's quite possible that the Pirates may face the Braves in the playoffs, if they can make it.

Around the league, on Thursday Padres' hitters had no chance against Colorado's Dennis Stark, as he threw a 2 hit shutout to help the Rockies defeat the Padres 7-0. On Saturday, Arizona fans received extremely bad news when they learned that 25 year old rookie Mike Schultz would never again get a chance to start in the major leagues as he suffered a career ending injury when he tore a ligament in his elbow. Also on Saturday, Mets' catcher Mike Piazza collected his 2000th career hit when he singled off of Orlando Hernandez in the second inning.

[Operation Shutdown]

Week 17
I forgot to mention that following the All-Star game, the Pirates front office announced that they increased ticket prices to $8 for the remainder of the season's home games. Any tickets bought previously for $7 will still be honored at the gate.

The Pirates begin the week in Philadelphia with a 2 game series against the Phillies who currently have the best record in baseball at 63-35, and whom the Pirates are just 1-3 against this season. The Phillies have an excellent top four of the rotation with Ryan Madson (7-5 3.37), Chris Capuano (10-2 2.47), Brett Myers (12-4 2.56), and Vicente Padilla (11-3 2.97). Their pitching staff as a whole ranks first in runs allowed. The Phillies offense is led by the big three of Bobby Abreu (0.306 11 56), Jim Thome (0.296 21 70), and Pat Burrell (0.286 21 63).

Game 100: Pirates 3 Phillies 1
Dave Williams continues to have a spectacular season, and almost had a shutout but gave up a solo homerun to Wright in the ninth inning with two outs. He finished the game pitching 8 2/3 innings, giving up just the one run off of 3 hits. Anderson pitched a decent game, giving up just three runs in 7 1/3 innings, but picked up the loss. Mann struck out the last batter of the game to earn his 26th save of the season.

The Pirates promoted CF Jeremy Hermida from A to AA. Hermida was hitting 0.310 with 0 HRs and 15 RBIs for the Hillcats.

Game 101: Pirates 6 Phillies 7
Wtih a matchup of Ponson versus Madson, many were expecting a real pitchers duel, but that's not what happened. Ponson lasted just six innings, giving up four runs, while Mason also lasted six innings and gave up five runs, four of them earned. The Phillies won the game in the bottom of the seventh, when Machuca hit a solo homerun and Ledee hit a two run homerun off of Scot Shields. The Pirates scored one in the eighth inning to bring things close, but Franklin shut them down in the ninth to earn the save. Pineda got the win for the Phillies, while Shields picked up the loss.

The Pirates now return home to face the New York Mets, who are in last place in the east with a record of 35-65 and whom the Pirates are 4-0 against this season. The Mets have a decent top four of the starting rotation with Phil Seibel (7-10 4.54), Jake Joseph (3-13 3.77), Ross Peeples (5-5 3/75), and Andrew Miller (4-5 4.43). The Mets lineup is really struggling, with just 1B Robb Quinland doing well, hitting 0.306 with 11 HRs and 53 RBIs. Roberto Alomar is still in search for his 3000th career hit, as he's still 63 hits shy of the mark.

Game 102: Pirates 1 Mets 6 Glove Day at PNC Park
Benson did not have a very good game, giving up six runs in 7 1/3 innings for the loss. Phil Seibel pitched a great game, giving up just one hit and no runs in six innings for his 8th win of the season.

Game 103: Pirates 3 Mets 2
The Pirates came back to win one from the Mets. Peeples gave up just one run in six innings, while Greinke did decent, giving up just two runs in 5 2/3 innings. The Pirates were trailing 2-1 heading into the bottom of the ninth inning. Kotsay and Hill both reached base getting hit by a Benitez pitch. Nady then grounded into a fielder's choice, putting runners at the corners. After Craig Wilson lined out, it looked as if the Mets would get out of the jam. However, JJ Davis came through with a single to score Kotsady and tie the game. Neither team scored until the bottom of the 11th, when the Pirates started things off with a one out double by Nady off of Yates. Craig Wilson then followed with a single scoring Nady and the game winning run. yates got the loss for the Mets and Mann picked up the win.

The Pirates now travel to Houston for a three game series against the Astros who are 41-61 and whom the Pirates are 4-2 against this season. The pitching rotation is a role sore spot for the Astros, with only Freddy Garcia pitching well with a record of 11-5 and an ERA of 3.18. Austin Kearns is the only batter in their lineup hitting well with an average of 0.271 and 18 HRs and 52 RBIs.

Game 104: Pirates 3 Astros 1
VanBenSchoten continues to make a strong case for rookie of the year candidate, as he picks up his 12th win of the season while giving up just one run in six innings. Duckworth picked up the loss, giving up three runs, just one of them earned, in 6 2/3 innings. Jimenez pitched two hitless innings, and Mann pitched a 1-2-3 ninth inning for his 27th save of the season.

Game 105: Pirates 7 Astros 8
Both starters pitched well in this game, with Williams giving up four runs in seven innings and Saarloos giving up five runs, two of them earned, in seven innings. The Pirates took a 7-4 lead in the eighth inning, scoring two more runs off of Ramirez. The Astros didn't give up however. In the bottom of the ninth, Mann gave up a lead off single to Nieves, and then hit Bagwell with a pitch. Lugo then knocked home two runs with a triple. He then scored and tied the game when Bradley singled. Shields then entered the game, and got Buck out on a sacrifice bunt, but then gave up the winning run when Pena singled home Bradley. Mann picked up the loss and Hernandez got the win.

Game 106: Pirates 2 Astros 3 Glove Day at Minutemaid Park
Ponson seemed to be able to get himself back on track as he pitched a decent game, giving up just three runs in seven innings but still got the loss. Garcia just flat out pitched a better game, giving up just two runs in eight innings for the win. Jimenez pitched a 1-2-3 ninth inning for his 17th save of the season.

Around the league, on Friday Los Angeles' shortstop Alex Cora unloaded five hits and hit for the cycle against the Colorado Rockies.

[Operation Shutdown]

Week 18
With just four days left until the end of July and the trading deadline, the Pirates appear to be fairly content with their club right now. There have been very little rumours going around the league, with Kotsay only very rarely mentioned in any kind of deal involving the Pirates. Apparently, the Pirates think they can catch the Cubs and feel that they can do so with the roster they have now. The begin the week with a three game series at home against the Diamondbacks who are 48-58 and whom the Pirates are 1-2 against this season. The Diamondbacks have a fairly weak pitching staff, but have a good starter in Kurt Ainsworth who is 14-6 with a 4.04 ERA. Hitting is how the Diamondbacks try and win games, and they do so with the likes of Lyle Overbay (0.322 10 38), Magglio Ordonez (0.315 20 82), and Jose Vidro (0.314 14 63).

Game 107: Pirates 4 Diamondbacks 10 Baseball Cap Day at PNC Park
Benson didn't have the greatest game, giving up four runs in six innings, but did not pick up the loss. Ken Baugh also gave up four runs, but did so in seven innings and got the win for the DBacks. The DBacks winning runs were scored in the seventh inning when Chase Utley hit a three run homerun off of Scot Shields who picked up the loss for the Pirates.

Game 108: Pirates 3 Diamondbacks 1
Greinke was finally able to put it all together again, pitching a complete game and giving up just one run off of seven hits. Simpson gave up three runs in six innings for the loss. Nady hit the game-winning homerun in the bottom of the fifth inning, a three run shot off of Simpson.

Game 109: Pirates 5 Diamondbacks 4
VanBenSchoten did a decent job in this game, giving up just 3 runs in 7 2/3 innings but did not pick up the win. Asencio gave up four runs in just 4 2/3 innings. The DBacks tied the game in the eighth, when with two outs, Richard Hidalgo hit a solo homerun off of Mark Corey to tie the game. The Pirates won the game in the bottom of the tenth inning, when after McDougall tripled with one out, Doumit hit a pinch hit single to drive him home. Trevor Hoffman picked up the loss in the game, and Mann got the win pitching two scoreless innings.

July Wrapup
The Pirates are now 62-47 and are still in second place in the central division, trailing the Cubs by 7.5 games. The majority of the Pirate staff had troubles this month, but VanBenSchoten did fairly well, going 4-0 witha 3.19 ERA, as did Dave Williams who went 3-1 with a 3.44. The two guys at the top of the lineup really struggled, with Kotsay hitting just 0.200 with 1 HR and 7 RBIs and Hill hitting just 0.231 with 1 HR and 6 RBIs. However, the rest of the lineup backed them up, especially Xavier Nady who hit 0.324 with 7 HR and 21 RBI and Craig Wilson who hit 0.340 with 5 HRs and 17 RBIs.

The Red Sox are continuing their dominance of the AL East with a record of 66-43, they lead by 5 games over the Blue Jays. The Twins are running away with the central division and lead by 10 games over the White Sox, with a record of 62-45. In the west, the Rangers are still the team to beat, with a record of 60-48, they lead the Mariners by just 2 games. In the NL, the Braves have held on to their control in the east, leading the Phililes by 1.5 games with a record of 68-40. The Cubs now have the best record in all of baseball, with a record of 69-39, and are still on top of the central division, 7.5 games ahead of the Pirates. The West is a tight race, still without a single team above 0.500, with the Rockies at 53-56 and the Giants at 54-57 tied for first place.

The AL BOM award went to Tampa Bay's Rocco Baldelli who hit 0.394 with 7 HRs and 30 RBIs in the month of July. In the NL, Sammy Sosa won the award compiling an average of 0.336 and smashing 13 HRs and driving in 29 runs this month. Baltimore's Zach Day had a miniscule 0.31 ERA, having given up just one earned run in 29 1/3 innings in the month of July, and went 3-1 this month to win the AL POM award. In the NL, Cincinatti's Chris Reitsma went 3-0 with a 1.29 ERA to win the POM award.

Once again, a ton of trades were made, so I'm just going to include the link to the transactions page. 2005 transactions There were also a number of contract extensions signed, some of the bigger ones listed below.

Cleveland : Ivan Rodriguez, $11,208,500 per year, for 4 years.
Minnesota : Aubrey Huff, $3,011,500 per year, for 3 years
Oakland : Mark Mulder, $4,702,500 per year, for 3 years.
Seattle : Kazuhiro Sasaki, $3,743,000 per year, for 3 years
Cincinnati : John Riedling, $4,921,000 per year, for 3 years
Colorado : Larry Walker, $4,788,000 per year, for 1 years.
Los Angeles : Shawn Green, $10,456,250 per year, for 6 years.
Los Angeles : Jeff Weaver, $5,681,000 per year, for 3 years.

The Pirates finish the week and start off the month of August with a three game series at home against the Rockies who are 53-56 and tied for first in the west. Colorado is a mix of good and bad, with two good starters in the rotation with Dennis Stark (14-5 3.46) and Jason Jennings (8-3 3.77). Their lineup is led by their 3-4-5 hitters, Todd Helton (0.294 24 69), JD Closser (0.318 35 102), and Larry Walker (0.285 14 67).

Game 110: Pirates 4 Rockies 6
Dave Williams did not have a good start, and gave up six runs in 4 1/3 innings for the loss. Stark gave up just three runs, two of them earned, in six innings to pick up his 15th win of the season. Preston Wilson hit two homeruns off of Dave Williams, and Closser also picked up his 36th of the season.

Game 111: Pirates 4 Rockies 3 Fireworks Night at PNC Park
Both starters pitched a decent game, with Ponson giving up three runs in seven innings and Kibler gave up three runs in 6 1/3 innings. The Pirates scored the go-ahead run in the bottom of the eighth when Drew Henson tripled home Craig Wilson. Mann then proceeded to strike out two in a 1-2-3 ninth inning for his 28th save of the season. Gabe White picked up the win for the Bucs while Travis Harper was charged with the loss.

Game 112: Pirates 1 Rockies 14
The Pirates got destroyed in this game as Benson gave up five runs in five innings for the loss. Jennings on the other hand pitched a great game, giving up just one run in eight innings for his 9th win of the season. The Rockied piled on the runs in the eighth and ninth innings scoring five runs off of Gabe White and four runs off of John Grabow.

Around the league, on Tuesday Arizona's Chase Utley hit for the cycle against the Pirates. On Wednesday, the Giants got more bad news as Damian Moss suffered an inflamed rotator cuff muscle injury and will miss the next 6 weeks. On Friday, Seattle's Ryan Ketchner fired a two hit shutout against the Royals as the Mariners went on to win the game 7-0. On Saturday, Boston's Eric Chavez fractured his knee while rounding a base and will miss the next 4-5 weeks. Lastly, on Sunday Braves' 23 year old Adam Wainwright recorded his first career shutout, a two hitter against the Astros as the Braves won the game 8-0.

[Operation Shutdown]

I think I forgot to upload the actual new league transactions page, but it is updated now, so if you wanna take a look, you can.

Week 19
This week the Pirates travel to California and begin a three game series against the Padres who are 54-59 and whom the Pirates are 3-0 against this season. The Padres have a very young pitching staff, with 28 year old Wells as the oldest, and 24 year old rookie Mike Nicolas as the anchor of the staff with a 3-3 record and a 3.33 ERA. 3B Troy Glaus leads the team in homeruns with 18 dingers, but he has just a 0.190 batting average. Former Pirates Jason Kendall and Brian Giles are still with the Padres and are hitting 0.262 with 15 HRs and 46 RBIs and 0.276 with 3 HRs and 29 RBIs respectively.

Game 113: Pirates 7 Padres 6 Glove Day at Qualcomm Stadium
Greinke didn't have the greatest start, giving up six runs, five of them earned in 5 1/3 innings, but he did well enough to earn the win. Rookie Nicolas gave up five runs in five innings and picked up the loss. Doumit got player of the game going 2-4 with 3 RBIs.

Game 114: Pirates 2 Padres 1
Rookie VanBenSchoten pitched a fabulous game, giving up just one run, a solo homerun by Jayson Werth, in 6 innings to pick up his 13th win of the season. Kip Wells pitched pretty well, giving up just two runs in seven innings, but he still picked up the loss. The Padres threatened to tie the game in the bottom of the eighth when Hank Blalock hit a one-out triple. After intentionally walking Brian Giles, Corey got out of the jam by getting Glaus to ground into a double play. Then in the bottom of the ninth, after walking two batters and getting Young out on a sacrifice bunt that moved the runners over, Mann got out of another jam by striking out Greene and Castilleja to end the game and pick up his 30th save.

Game 115: Pirates 2 Padres 3
A real close game, where thanks to a two run homerun by Dmitri Young in the fifth inning, the Padres were able to win. Williams pitched fairly well, giving up three runs in six innings but earning the loss. Jake Peavey pitched really well for the Padres, giving up just two runs in 7 2/3 innings. The Pirates had a great chance to at least tie the game in the ninth but came up empty. Craig Wilson led the inning off with a double and JJ Davis was then intentionally walked. Henson then came to the plate and hit a long fly ball deep to left and for sure it looked as if Giles wouldn't be able to come up with it, but he did manage to make the catch and then double off Craig Wilson at second base. Doumit then reached base on an error by the second baseman, but Speier finally ended the game by getting McDougall to pop out to first base and pick up his 23rd save of the season.

Series Recap: Well two out of three isn't bad, and thanks to the DBacks who beat the Cubs two out of three, the Pirates were able to inch a game closer to the Cubbies.

The Pirates continue their California road trip with a three game series against the Dodgers who are 52-62. The Dodgers have two decent starters in Jeff Weaver (9-11 3.90) and Wilson Alvarez (7-8 3.92), but the rest of the rotation has really struggled. Their lineup consists of a couple of big hitters in Jeremy Giambi (0.290 10 51) and Shawn Green (0.242 22 69), but the remainder of the lineup is fairly weak.

Game 116: Pirates 8 Dodgers 7
Ponson's bad luck continues, as not only did he fail to pick up a win for his fifth staight decision this game giving up three runs, two of them earned in 3 1/3 innings, he also suffered an inflamed back muscle and will likely miss at least his next start. Alvarez picked up the loss for the Dodgers, giving up six runs in five innings of work. The Dodgers almost came back in the eighth inning, scoring two runs off of Grabow and one run off of Mann, but Mann got out of the jam in that inning, and also pitched a scoreless ninth inning for his 31st save of the season. Craig Wilson, JJ Davis, Drew Henson and Humberto Cota all homered for the Pirates and helped Jimenez to get the win.

Game 117: Pirates 9 Dodgers 3
Benson finally snapped a streak of six consecutive decisions without a win, picking up the win in this one while going 7 innings and giving up just three runs. Soto gave up five runs in four innings and got the loss. The Pirates continued their homerfest, with Kotsay, Nady, Davis, and Doumit all homering off of Dodgers pitching.

Game 118: Pirates 11 Dodgers 5
Greinke's struggles continue, as he gave up five runs, four of them earned, in just four innings of work. Andrew Brown pitched well for the Dodgers, giving up just three runs in six innings but wasn't able to pick up the win as the Dodger bullpen blew the game. Roberts gave up three runs in the seventh inning without record a single out, and the Pirates piled on three more off of Mota and another off of Shuey before the inning was over, to score a total of seven runs in the inning to take the lead.

The Pirates were able to sweep the Dodgers and thanks to the Giants beating the Cubs in one game, they were able to gain yet another game on the Cubs.

Greinke was demoted to AAA Nashville as we felt he could use some more work down there. Brian Bullington was promoted to take his spot on the roster. Bullington was 12-6 with a 3.76 ERA for the Sounds this season.

Around the league, Indian's ace Jeremy Guthrie suffered a season ending injury when he tore his bicep muscle.

[Operation Shutdown]

Week 20
This week the Pirates return home and begin the week with a four game series against the Houston Astros who are 47-70 and whom the Pirates are 5-4 against this season. The pitching rotation is a real sore spot for the Astros, with only Freddy Garcia pitching well with a record of 12-6 and an ERA of 3.17 and the rest of the staff with ERAs around 5. Austin Kearns is the only batter in their lineup hitting well with an average of 0.271 and 19 HRs and 57 RBIs.

Game 119: Pirates 8 Astros 5 Glove Day at PNC Park
VanBenSchoten extended his winning streak to six games, giving up just 2 runs in seven innings to earn his 14th win of the season. Saarloos also pitched well, giving up just three runs in six innings, but picked up the loss. The Astros tried to come back in the ninth, scoring one run off of White, but Mann then came into the game and shut them down for his 32nd save of the season.

Game 120: Pirates 4 Astros 2
Dave Williams continues to have a fantastic season, giving up just one run in 8 2/3 innings and picking up his 14th win of the season. Talbot gave up four runs in seeven innings off of just three hits and one walk. JJ Davis knocked home the deciding runs with a three run homerun in the sixth inning.

Game 121: Pirates 5 Astros 4
Bullington fared decently in his first major league start, giving up four runs in 6 2/3 innings for a no decision. Baez pitched well for the Astros, giving up just two runs in 6 1/3 innings, also not getting a decision. The Pirates were trailing 4-2 heading into the bottom of the eighth but they brought the game to within one run when Craig Wilson tripled home Xavier Nady to make it 4-3. Then in the bottom of the ninth, Henson led off with a single and Doumit walked, and then both were moved up when Jack Wilson laid down a perfect sacrifice bunt. Both runners then scored when Marshall McDougall doubled off of Jimenez to win the game for the Pirates. Mann picked up the win with a scoreless ninth inning.

Game 122: Pirates 3 Astros 2 Baseball Cap Day at PNC Park
Both pitchers pitched brilliantly in this game, with neither starter getting a decision. Benson pitched 7 1/3 scoreless innings and Garcia pitched seven scoreless. The Astros got on the board first, scoring two runs off of Mark Corey in the top of the eighth. The Pirates answered right back, scoring two runs in the bottom half of the inning, both of the unearned, one against Ramirez and the other off of Jimenez. Then in the bottom of the ninth with the bases loaded and one out, McDonald hit a single to score the game winning run to end the game. Gabe White got the win pitching a scoreless ninth for the Pirates.

Series Recap: A great 4 game sweep by the Pirates, but unfortunately the Cubs also swept the Reds in four games, so the Bucs remain 5.5 back of the Cubs for the division, but are now just 3.5 back of the Phillies for the wildcard.

The Pirates remain home now for a three game series against the Dodgers who are 52-69 and whom the Pirates are 3-0 against this year. The Dodgers have two decent starters in Jeff Weaver (9-12 3.89) and Wilson Alvarez (7-10 4.04), but the rest of the rotation has really struggled. Their lineup consists of a couple of big hitters in Jeremy Giambi (0.287 10 52) and Shawn Green (0.239 24 73), but the remainder of the lineup is fairly weak. The Dodgers are on a 7 game losing streak and the Pirates are on a 7 game winning streak.

Game 123: Pirates 4 Dodgers 2
VanBenSchoten seems to be a sure thing for rookie of the year, picking up his seventh straight win, giving up just two runs in 7 2/3 innings. Brown gave up four runs in 5 2/3 innings for the Dodgers and got the loss. Mann pitched a scoreless ninth inning for his 33rd save of the year. Davis hit his 29th homerun of the year, a two run shot off of Brown in the third inning.

Game 124: Pirates 8 Dodgers 1 Noddin Head Doll Day at PNC Park
Dang, another great game by Dave Williams, who went the distance giving up just one run off of three hits and 2 walks while striking out five for his 15th win of the season. Weaver had trouble in the game, giving up five runs in just four innings for the loss.

Game 125: Pirates 6 Dodgers 5
Bullington didn't fare quite as well in his second career start, giving up five runs in 2 2/3 innings. Dreifort was about average, giving up five runs in eight innings. This game required extra innings to decide, and in the bottom of the tenth, Drew Henson hit a solo homerun off of Paul Shuey to win the game for the Pirates. Gabe White picked up the win pitching a scoreless tenth inning. Craig Wilson and Mark Kotsay also homered for the Pirates in the game.

Series Recap: wow, the Bucco train just keeps on rolling along, with 10 straight wins, and thanks to the Cardinals, who beat the Cubs two out of three games, the Pirates now find themselves just 3.5 games out of the division lead, and just 1.5 games back of the Phillies for the wild card.

Around the league, there was no significant news.

[Operation Shutdown]

Week 21
Just six weeks left in the season and the Pirates are trying to make a run for the central division title as they are on a 10-game winning streak and now find themselves with a record of 75-50 and just 3.5 games back of the first place Cubs. The Pirates begin this week travelling to Houston for a three game series against the Astros who are currently 47-77 and whom the Pirates are 9-4 against this season. The pitching rotation is a real sore spot for the Astros, with only Freddy Garcia pitching well with a record of 12-6 and an ERA of 3.05 and the rest of the staff with ERAs around 5. For the majority of the season, Austin Kearns has been the only batter in their lineup hitting well with an average of 0.262 and 20 HRs and 62 RBIs, though Alfaro has really been playing well lately and has upped his average to 0.305 with 13 HRs and 58 RBIs.

Game 126: Pirates 0 Astros 2
The Astros snapped their 8 game losing streak and at the same time ended the Pirates 10 game winning streak. Ponson's bad luck continues, as he gave up just one run in six innings but still suffered the loss. Baez pitched 6 2/3 innings without giving up a single run despite giving up six hits and walking three batters and throwin over 100 pitches. The Astro bullpen held on to the lead, pitching 2 1/3 scoreless innings, with Munro picking up the save.

Game 127: Pirates 6 Astros 1
Benson pitched his second straight good game in a row, giving up just one run in six innings for his 12th win of the season. Garcia had trouble late in the game, after pitching five scoreless innings, he finished the game giving up five runs in 7 2/3 innings for the loss. Xavier Nady hit two homeruns in the game, a solo shot off Garcia to tie the game in the sixth, and then a three run homerun off Garcia in the seventh to give the Pirates some extra cushion. The Pirates bullpen pitched three scoreless innings of relief, giving up just two hits.

Game 128: Pirates 3 Astros 10
Despite pitching well, giving up just three unearned runs in 6 1/3 innings, VanBenSchoten did not get the win in the game. Penny also didn't pick up the win, despite also throwing well, giving up three runs in seven innings. The game was tied 3-3 heading into the eighth inning, when the Astros scored seven runs off the Pirates bullpen in the eighth, two of them coming against Vogelsong, and five off of White. Vogelsong got the loss and Ramirez picked up the win.

Series Recap: This series really hurt the Pirates, not just the fact that they lost two of three to the last place Astros, but also that the Cubs swept the Reds, pushing the Pirates to 5.5 games back. The Pirates at least finished the season series 10-5 against the Astros.

Next, the Pirates travel to Coors Field to play a three game series against the western division leading Colorado Rockies, who are 63-65 and whom the Pirates are 1-2 against this season. With the exception of Dennis Stark, who is 17-5 with a 3.26 ERA, the Rockies' pitching staff is really struggling, with most starters around a 5 ERA, and one starter, Daal, above 7 for the season. The offense is what drives this team, with the likes of Preston Wilson (0.237 25 62), Todd Helton (0.282 25 73), and 25 year old catcher and MVP hopeful JD Closser who is tearing up the league with an average of 0.325 along with 41 HRs and 123 RBIs.

Game 129: Pirates 5 Rockies 4
Both starters pitched pretty well in this game but neither of them got a decision. Williams went seven innings and gave up just three runs, while Dennis Stark went nine innings and gave up four runs. The Pirates were leading 4-3 heading into the bottom of the ninth, but after a lead-off walk to Uribe, Gentry hit a pinch hit double off of Mann to tie the game. Mann then got three straight outs to end the threat. Then in the top of the tenth, the Pirates answered back. Kotsay led off with a single and then moved to second on the sacrifice by Hill. Nady was then intentionally walked and Craig Wilson followed with a single to load the bases. Davis then drew a walk against Herrera to score the go-ahead and eventual game winning run. Herrera finally got out of the jam by getting Henson to ground into a double play. One run was all the Pirates needed though, as Mann went back out and pitched a 1-2-3 tenth, and held on for the win. Herrera got the loss for the Rockies. Also, Drew Henson hit two solo homeruns in the game, one in the fourth and the other in the sixth, both off Stark.

Barry Zito pitched a no-hitter today against the Chicago White Sox as the A's won the game 8-0. Zito struck out 8 batters in the game, and the only two runners in the game got on base because of errors by the Oakland defense.

Game 130: Pirates 3 Rockies 7
Bullington struggled yet again, as he gave up seven runs, five of them earned, in seven innings for the loss. Kibler pitched great for the Rockies, giving up just two runs, one of them earned, in eight innings for the win.

Game 131: Pirates 11 Rockies 9
Ponson continues to just have a bad stretch of luck, as he has now gone seven straight starts without recording a single win. This game he lasted just 4 1/3 innings, and gave up 7 runs, but luckily the Pirates managed to come back and he did not get the loss. Jason Jennings also struggled in the game, giving up 6 runs in 3 2/3 innings. The Pirates took the lead in the top of the eight when they scored four runs in the inning, one off of Fuentes and three off of Jones, who got the loss. Scot Shields pitched 1 2/3 scoreless innings and got the win, while Mann pitched 1 1/3 scoreless innings for his NL leading 34th save of the season.

Series Recap: Well, the Pirates had some troubles, but they did manage to take two out of three from the Rockies. Unfortunately, it's now the Cubs' turn to go on a hot streak as they have now won 6 straight, and the Pirates fall another game to 6.5 back.

Around the league, Giants' ace Pedro Martinez who has been plagued with injuries this season, pitched a one hit shutout against the Braves as the Giants won the game 5-0. Also, as mentioned before on Friday Barry Zito pitched a no-hitter against the White Sox.

[Operation Shutdown]

Week 22
The Pirates begin the last week of August with a three game series in Cincinatti against the Reds who are 58-73 and whom the Pirates are 6-4 against this season. With the loss of Oswalt, the Reds are reduced to just a few decent starters in Danny Graves (6-14 4.92) and Ted Lilly (8-12 4.52). Their lineup however is still rather formidable with Bobby Kielty (0.272 20 69), Chad Tracy (0.321 7 55), Ken Griffey Jr (0.247 24 67), and Adam Dunn (0.256 23 66).

Game 132: Pirates 3 Reds 5
Benson didn't do too bad, but he didn't do all that great as he gave up four runs in seven innings for the loss. Danny Graves pitched quite well, giving up just three runs in seven innings for the win. The Reds added an insurance run in the eighth with a Griffey solo homerun in the eighth inning off of White. Adam Dunn also had two homeruns for the Reds, a two run shot and a solo shot, both off of Benson. Riedling pitched a 1-2-3 ninth for his 26th save of the season.

Game 133: Pirates 2 Reds 5
VanBenSchoten had his first poor start in a long time, giving up five runs in just 3 2/3 innings for the loss. On the other hand, Pirates hitters continue to struggle, as they scored just 2 runs off of Lilly who worked 7 1/3 innings and picked up the win. Riedling again pitched a scoreless ninth for his 27th save of the season.

Game 134: Pirates 6 Reds 0
Dave Williams carried a no-hitter into the ninth inning, but gave up three hits in the ninth, but still held on to the shutout, thanks to a double play ball. He also struck out eight batters while walking none in the game. Howington struggled, giving up six runs in 5 2/3 innings. Kotsay, Doumit, and McDougall each homered for the Pirates.

Series Recap: Another bad series for the Pirates as they're able to win just one out of three against the Reds, and meanwhile the Cubs won two of three from the Braves and the Pirates fall back to 7.5 back of the division. On a good note, they still remain just two back of the Phillies for the wild card.

The Pirates now come back home for a three game series against the Cardinals who are 73-60 and whom the Pirates are 4-6 against this season. The Redbirds have a great top two in the rotation with Simontacchi (12-9 3.32) and Jimmy Journell (9-9 3.99), but the rest of the rotation suffers with an ERA over 5. The Cardinals have a strong lineup with the likes of Travis Lee (0.301 20 79), Miguel Tejada (0.275 17 76), Albert Pujols (0.329 31 87), and Jim Edmonds (0.306 17 78) at the top of the lineup.

Game 135: Pirates 4 Cardinals 2
Brian Bullington picked up his first major league win while holding the potent Cardinals lineup to just two runs over seven innings. Ankiel gave up four runs in six innings for the loss. Nady smashed his 19th homerun of the season and Davis smashed his 30th homerun of the season. Mann pitched 1 1/3 scoreless innings for his 35th save of the season.

Game 136: Pirates 4 Cardinals 3
Ponson finally ended his streak of seven winless starts with a win today while giving up just one run through seven innings for his 14th win of the season. Simontacchi didn't have a terrible start, giving up just four runs, three of them earned, in six innings, but still picked up the loss. The Redbirds made it close, scoring two runs in the eighth inning when Pujols hit a two run homerun off of Mann. Mann finished off the eighth and then pitched a 1-2-3 ninth to hold on for his 36th save of the season.

Game 137: Pirates 1 Cardinals 15
Benson got clobberes in this game as he gave up 6 runs in four innings as the Cardinal offense just exploded with Travis Lee, Scott Rolen, and Tim Salmon all homered and Albert Pujols smashed two homers in the game. Jimmy Journell gave up just one run, a solo homerun to Nady which was his 20th, and pitched a complete game for his 10th win of the season.

Series Recap: While the Pirates and Cubs each won two out of three and the Pirates remain 7.5 back of the Cubs, the team the Cubs beat was the Phillies, so the Pirates pull to within just one game of the wildcard heading into September.

Around the league, on Saturday Phillies' rightfielder Bobby Abreu injured himself diving a ball and herniated a disc in his back and will miss the next 5-6 weeks. On Sunday, Kansas City's Kevin Mench unloaded five hits against the Yankees and St Louis' Albert Pujols laced five hits against the Pirates.

August Wrapup to come later tonight.

[Operation Shutdown]

August Wrapup
This month the Pirates went 19-9 and are now 81-56 on the year and still in second place in the central division, 7.5 games back of the Cubs and also second place in the wild card race, 1 game back of the Phillies. VanBenSchoten had himself a pretty good month, going 3-1 with a 2.93 ERA, as did Dave Williams who went 3-2 with a 2.86 ERA, while the rest of the staff had a fairly average, if not slighly below average month. Kotsay and Henson both rebounded rather nicely from a poor month last month, with Kotsay hitting 0.377 with 4 HRs and 13 RBIs, and Henson hitting 0.324 with 5 HRs and 13 RBIs. McDougall is continuing to hit well as the starting shortstop, hitting 0.351 with 2 HRs and 15 RBIs, while Bobby Hill is continues to struggle for the second month in a row, hitting just 0.233 with 1 HR and 13 RBIs.

The Red Sox are continuing their dominance of the AL East with a record of 81-56, they lead by 8.5 games over the Blue Jays. The Twins struggled a bit this month but still lead the central division and by 7 games over the White Sox, with a record of 76-60. In the west, the Rangers are still the team to beat, with a record of 76-61, they lead the Mariners by just 4 games. In the NL, the Braves have held on to their control in the east, leading the Phililes by 3.5 games with a record of 85-51. The Cubs still have the best record in all of baseball, with a record of 88-48, and are still on top of the central division, 7.5 games ahead of the Pirates. The West is a tight race, still without a single team above 0.500, with the Rockies in first place with a record of 66-71 and the Padres just one game back.

Texas' Justin Morneau won the BOM award for the AL for the first time in his career after hitting 0.331 with 13 HRs and 35 RBIs in the month of August. JD Closser was on fire this month for the Rockies', hitting 0.343 with 9 HRs and 36 RBIs this month to win his third BOM award. Tampa Bay's Kevin Millwood had a terrific August, good enough to win the AL POM award after going 6-0 with a 2.40 ERA in the month. In the NL, the winner only started three games, but Florida's John Rheinecker went 3-0 with a 0.90 ERA in those three starts to win the POM award in the NL.

Week 23
The Pirates called up RF Manuel Ravelo, CF Vic Butler, and SP Zach Greinke as the rosters were expanded to 40 players this month. Since the Pirates are in the middle of a pennant race, none of the players are expected to get much starting time, but Butler and Ravelo can be expected to be used off the bench, and Greinke will likely split time with Bullington starting games.

The Pirates begin this week with a four game series at home against the Reds, who are 62-75 and whom the Pirates are 7-6 against this year. With the loss of Oswalt, the Reds are reduced to just a few decent starters in Danny Graves (7-14 4.75) and Ted Lilly (9-12 4.43). Their lineup however is still rather formidable with Bobby Kielty (0.274 21 74), Chad Tracy (0.314 7 55), Ken Griffey Jr (0.244 27 72), and Adam Dunn (0.258 26 70).

Game 138: Pirates 3 Reds 9
JVB had another poor outing, giving up 5 runs in 5 2/3 innings for the loss. Lilly pitched real well for the Reds, giving up just two runs in 7 1/3 innings for his 10th win of the season. Olerud and Beattie each had their first homeruns of the year in the game.

Seattle's Gil Meche pitched a no-hit shutout as the Mariners beat the Indians 1-0. Meche walked five batters while striking out eight in the game.

Game 139: Pirates 4 Reds 2
Williams pitched another great game, giving up no runs, but because of a rain delay, he was only able to last 6 1/3 innings and was not able to pick up the win. Howington also pitched well in the game, giving up just one run, but lasting just 6 innings. The Pirates were leading 1-0 heading into the eighth, but the Reds scored two runs in the top of the eighth, one off of Jimenez and the other off of Mann. The Pirates answered right back in the bottom of the eighth scoring three runs, one run off of each of Grenato, Reitsma, and Sullivan. Mann then pitched a scoreless ninth inning to hold on for the win, while Reitsma was charged with the loss.

Game 140: Pirates 8 Reds 3
Bullington pitched another decent game, giving up three runs in six innings to earn his second win of the year. Koronka gave up five runs in 4 1/3 innings and earned the loss. The Reds gave up three more runs, given up by Reitsma, while Shields and Corey combined to pitch three scoreless innings for the Pirates.

Game 141: Pirates 3 Reds 1
Ponson is on a roll once again, as he pitched a complete game and gave up just one run, a solo homerun to LaRue. Wilson also pitched well for the Reds, giving up just three runs in 6 2/3 innings but still picked up the loss in the game.

Series Recap: I was a bit worried there when the Pirates lost the first game of the series, but they came back to win the next three. The Cubs lost two out of three to the Braves and the Phillies won two of three, which means the Pirates are now 6 back of the Cubs and just 1/2 game back of the Phillies. The Pirates finished the season 10-7 versus the Reds this year.

The Pirates finish off the weak and travel to St. Louis for a three game series against the Cardinals who are 76-63 and whom the Pirates are 6-7 against this season. The Redbirds have a great top two in the rotation with Simontacchi (12-10 3.36) and Jimmy Journell (10-9 3.84), but the rest of the rotation suffers with an ERA over 5. The Cardinals have a strong lineup with the likes of Travis Lee (0.299 21 81), Miguel Tejada (0.281 18 82), Albert Pujols (0.338 35 96), and Jim Edmonds (0.305 18 82) at the top of the lineup.

Game 142: Pirates 5 Cardinals 0
Both Benson and Simontacchi pitched very well in this game and did not give up a single run through seven innings before they each left the game. The Pirates got on the board in the top of the eight, with two runs off of Crudale, and then added more in the ninth with a three run homerun by JJ Davis off of Witasick. Corey pitched 2/3 of a scoreless inning, and Mann finished off the eighth and then pitched a scoreless ninth inning to record his 37rd save of the year.

Game 143: Pirates 4 Cardinals 3 Glove Day at Busch Stadium
VanBenSchoten started out with a lot of trouble in the first inning, giving up a two run homerun to Tejada and then a solo homerun to Edmonds. However, he finished with seven innings, having given up just those three runs and picked up the win. Jimmy Journell pitched a complete game, but gave up four runs and earned the loss.

Game 144: Pirates 9 Cardinals 6
Williams didn't have his greatest game, giving up four runs, three of them earned, in 6 2/3 innings, but it was good enough for him to pick up the win, his 17th of the season. Haren fell apart in this game, giving up five runs in just 2 2/3 innings for the loss. Williams helped himself out with the bat in the game, as he hit his second career homerun, a solo shot in the sixth innings off of Batista. Mann pitched a scoreless ninth for his 39th save of the year.

Series Recap: A sweep of the Redbirds is exactly what the doc ordered for the Bucs. The sweep, coupled with the Phillies beating the Cubs in two out of three games, means the Pirates are now just 4 back of the Cubs and lead the wild card by 1/2 game over the Phillies with three weeks to play.

Around the league, as mentioned before on Monday Seattle's Gil Meche pitched a no-hitter against the Indians. On Tuesday, Oakland's Barry Zito dominated the Twins pitching a two hit shutout as the A's won the game 6-0.

BOS 84-58 13
TOR 8 GB
TBD 9.5 GB

MIN 79-63 14
CHW 6.5 GB

TEX 78-65 18
OAK 2 GB
SEA 4 GB

The Blue Jays are leading the AL wild card by just 1/2 game over Oakland, 1.5 games over Tampa Bay, 2.5 games over Seattle, and 3.5 games over Chicago.

ATL 89-54 17
PHI 3 GB

CHC 90-52 16
PIT 4 GB

COL 69-74 19
SD 1.5 GB
ARZ 2 GB
SFG 2.5 GB
LAD 4.5 GB

The Pirates lead the NL wild card race by 1/2 game over the Phillies, and the next nearest team is the Cardinals who are 10 games back.

[Operation Shutdown]

Week 24
This week the Pirates start off with a trip to Montreal for a three game series against the Expos, who are 76-68 and whom the Pirates are 1-2 against this season. The Expos have three decent starters with Javier Vazquez (10-11 4.46), Seung Song (12-11 3.43), and Amaury Telemaco (10-7 3.70). The biggest threat in the lineup comes from RF Vladimir Guerrero who has an average of 0.301 with 40 HRs and 103 RBIs, but they also have Jason Hart (0.289 30 100) and Jeff Kent (0.279 20 60) to back him up in the lineup.

Game 145: Pirates 4 Expos 5
This loss was a real heartbreaker. Bullington did a decent job, giving up four runs, two of which were earned, in six innings of work. Hernandez did quite well, giving up just two runs in eight innings of work. The Pirates tied the game in the ninth, scoring two runs off of Stewart to send the game into extra innings. The Pirates were the first to threaten in the top of the 12th inning. Nady led off with a single, and then one out later Davis singled, and an out after that, Hill reached base on a fielding error by the second baseman, which loaded the bases loaded. Biddle got out of the jam by getting McDougall to ground out back to the mound and end the inning. The next threat didn't come until the bottom of the 14th. Guerrero got on base with a one out single. After he stole second base, Hart was intentionally walked. Guerrero then got caught trying to steal second, but Hart smartly moved to second base on the play. Brad Wilkerson then came through with a clutch single to left field that score Hart and ended the game. Corey was charged with the loss and Smith picked up the win. Vic Butler hit his first career homerun in the game, a solo homerun off of Hernandez in the third inning.

Game 146: Pirates 7 Expos 3
Ponson pitched another pretty good game, limiting the Expos to just three runs despite giving up 10 hits and walking three batters in 7 1/3 innings to earn his 16th win of the season. Telemaco struggled giving up five runs in four innings for the loss. Craig Wilson, Davis and Henson each homered for the Pirates.

Game 147: Pirates 1 Expos 5
Benson didn't have his greatest game, though he gave up just three runs in five innings, but still got the loss. The difference in the game was the great pitching of Rett Johnson, who gave up just one run, a solo homerun to JJ Davis, in 7 2/3 innings of work for the win.

Series Recap: The Pirates managed to win just one out of three games, while the Cubs won three of four from the Brewers and the Phillies split a four game series with the Mets, meaning the Bucs are now 5.5 back of the Cubs and are tied with the Phillies for the wild card.

The Pirates now return home for a three game series against the Brewers who are 57-89 and whom the Pirates are 7-4 against this season. The Brewers starting rotation is pretty weak, with only one starter, Ruben Quevedo (7-5 3.75), below a 4 ERA and three of the five starters above a 5 ERA. Their lineup is a bit better with three big hitters Tony Batista (0.294 25 77), Richie Sexson (0.288 28 93), and Kelly Grams (0.285 26 79), but the rest of the lineup is fairly weak.

Game 148: Pirates 4 Brewers 3
Both starting pitchers did well, as each gave up three runs while Quevedo lasted seven innings, and VanBenSchoten went just 6 1/3 innings and neither starter got a decision. The Pirates won the game in the bottom of the ninth, when McDougall started things off with a one out single off of Strickland. Rodriguez then came into the game and gave up singles to Navarette and Kotsay to load the bases. Rodriguez got lucky when Bobby Hill lined out with a shot right at the third baseman, but the luck was short lived, when with two outs, Nady came through with a game winning single that scored McDougall. Strickland picked up the loss, while Vogelsong picked up the win after throwing two scoreless innings.

Game 149: Pirates 6 Brewers 5
Dave Williams didn't have the greatest start as he gave up five runs, four of them earned, in just 5 1/3 innings, but he was spared the loss. Valdes pitched fairly well, giving up four runs in 7+ innings. The Pirates were trailing 5-3 heading into the bottom of the eighth, but they managed to score three runs in the inning, one off of each Valdes, Adams and Strickland to take over the lead. Mann then pitched a scoreless ninth inning, giving up just one hit, for his 40th save of the season. Strickland got the loss for the Brewers, and Shields got the win, pitching a scoreless eighth inning.

Game 150: Pirates 2 Brewers 4
Bullington did OK in the game, giving up four runs in 7 1/3 innings, but did pick up the loss. The story of the day was former Pirate Oliver Perez's performance as he gave up just two runs in seven innings of work for the win. Brewers' first baseman Prince Fielder hit his first career homerun in the game, a two run shot off of Bullington in the eighth inning, which went on to be the game winner. Rodriguez pitched a 1-2-3 ninth for his 26th save of the season.

Series Recap: Well, two out of three isn't too bad, but it'd have been nice to get the sweep. The Cubs managed just two of three from the Mets as well, so the Bucs remain 5.5 back of them, and the Phillies won just one of three from the Braves, so the Pirates take a one game lead on the wild card, with just 12 games remaining.

Around the league, on Wednesday, Minnesota' Corey Koskie laced five hits against Detroit pitching. On Friday Royals' Ryan Anderson herniated a disc in his back and will miss the next five weeks. On Saturday, Braves fans got very bad news when they learned that ace starter and current leader in the NL in wins with 21, Adam Wainwright will likely miss the remainder of the season with a strained tricep muscle.

BOS 89-59 4
TBD 10.5 GB
TOR 11 GB

MIN 83-66 7
CHW 7 GB

TEX 81-68 11
OAK 2.5 GB
SEA 3 GB

The Devil Rays are leading the AL wild card by just 1/2 game over Oakland and Toronto, 1 game over Seattle, and 3 games over Chicago.

ATL 93-56 9
PHI 4.5 GB

CHC 95-54 8
PIT 5.5 GB

COL 73-77 13
SD 1 GB
ARZ 3.5 GB
SFG 4 GB
LAD 4.5 GB

The Pirates lead the NL wild card race by 1 game over the Phillies, and the next nearest team is the Expos who are 10 games back.

[Operation Shutdown]

Week 25
Just two weeks to go and the Pirates still find themselves in second place, 5.5 games back of the Cubs, but also leading the wildcard by 1 game over the Phillies. They start the week at home with a three game series against the Marlins who are 73-76 and whom the Pirates are 1-2 against this season. The Marlins have a real good starting rotation with Josh Beckett (107-7 2.68), Nate Bump (8-10 3.33), John Rheinecker (7-3 2.80), and Jimmy Haynes (9-5 3.55). Their lineup definitely leaves something to be desired, as only 1B Brad Fullmer is hitting the ball well with an average of 0.333 with 23 HRs and 94 RBIs.

Game 151: Pirates 1 Marlins 11
Ponson did not have a good start, giving up five runs in five innings for the loss. Jimmy Haynes pitched beautifully going the distance and giving up just one run. Nunez and Johnson each had one homerun, while Fullmer had two homeruns in the game for the Marlins.

Game 152: Pirates 3 Marlins 2
Benson pitched pretty well, giving up just two runs in 6 1/3 innings but didn't pick up the win. Olsen also pitched well for the Marlins, giving up just two runs in 6 innings, but he did not get a decision either. The Marlins took the lead 1-0 in the top of the sixth when Fullmer homered off of Benson. The Pirates answered back in the bottom of the sixth when Craig Wilson and JJ Davis hit back to back solo homeruns and took the lead 2-1. The Marlins tied things back up when Willingham singled off of Benson to score Pierre. Shields then came into the game and closed out the seventh inning. The Pirates then started out the seventh with back to back walks, and then when Butler tried to steal third, the catchers throw went into the outfield and allowed Butler to score on the play. That unearned run was all the Pirates would need as Jimenez pitched a scoreless eighth, and Mann pithced a scoreless ninth inning for his 41st save of the season. Shields picked up the win and Gracesqui got the loss.

Game 153: Pirates 3 Marlins 4
Both starters pitched well in this game but neither of them got a decision. Beckett lasted just five innings, but gave up just two runs, while VanBenSchoten gave up just three runs in 6 2/3 innings. The Pirates tied the game in the bottom of the eighth when Craig Wilson walked with the bases loaded. The Pirates were still threatening with the bases loaded and one out in the inning, but McDougall grounded into an inning ending 5-4-3 double play. The Marlins took the lead right back in the top of the ninth when Nunez singled off of Mann to score Pierre. The Pirates gave one last shot in the bottom of the ninth, but with runners at the corners and two outs, Jack Wilson grounded back to the pitcher to end the game and earning Spooneybarger his 20th save of the season. Mann was charged with the loss, and Neal picked up the win for the Marlins.

Wes Littleton pitched a no-hitter for Atlanta, giving up just two walks and striking out 6 batters as the Braves defeated the Mets 6-0.

Boston clinched the AL East with a 2-1 victory over the Orioles.

Series Recap: Not a good series at all for the Pirates as they lose two out of three to the Marlins. Meanwhile the Cubs won 3 of 4 from the Brewers and Philadelphia won two of three in their series, meaning the Pirates are now 7 back of first place and tied for the wild card.

The Pirates now travel to Chicago for a three game series against the first place Cubs who are 98-55 and whom the Pirates are 4-8 against this season. The Cubs have an excellent starting rotation with every starter under a 4 ERA, and with Mark Prior (14-7 2.62) and Joe Kennedy (17-9 2.92) leading the way. Their lineup is just as formidable with the big three of Hee Seop Choi (0.283 26 77), Sammy Sosa (0.289 37 107), and Dave Kelton (0.266 35 100) leading the way.

Game 154: Pirates 9 Cubs 4 Baseball Cap Day at Wrigley Field
Dave Williams continues to have his best season in his career, picking up his 18th win while giving up four runs in seven innings, inlcuding three solo homeruns, one each by Sosa, Kelton and Guillen. Thomson struggled for the Cubs, giving up five runs, four of them earned, in five innings of work and picking up the loss.

Game 155: Pirates 9 Cubs 5
Bullington did decent in his start, giving up five runs in 7 1/3 innings and picking up his third win of the season. Former Pirate Brian Meadows really struggled against his former teammates, giving up six runs in just 3 2/3 innings for the loss. Choi homered for the Cubs and Kotsay homered for the Bucs.

Game 156: Pirates 4 Cubs 3
Ponson pitched a decent game, giving up three runs in six innings, but he did not get the win. Prior pitched superbly, giving up just one unearned run through 6 innings but he did not get a decision either. The Pirates pulled to within one run in the top of the seventh when Doumit doubled off of Beltran to score JJ Davis and make the game 3-2. Then in the top of the eighth, the Pirates tied the game when Nady singled off Kolb to score Kotsay and then later in the inning they took the lead when Ravelo hit a pinch hit single off of Kolb to score Vic Butler. Shields and White then combined to pitch a scoreless eighth inning, and Mann pithced a scoreless ninth inning to earn his 42nd save of the season. Shields picked up the win for the Pirates, and Kolb got the loss for the Cubs.

Series Recap: For the Pirates to have had a shot at winning the central, they needed to do exactly what they just did in this series with the Cubs, and sweep them. Philadelphia also lost two out of three against Atlanta, meaning the Pirates are just four back of the Cubs, and two games ahead of Philly for the wildcard.

Around the league, as mentioned before on Thursday Atlanta's Wes Littleton pitched a no hitter against the Mets.

BOS 94-61 *

MIN 85-71 4
CHW 3.5 GB

TEX 83-73 7
SEA 83-73 7
OAK 1 GB

The Devil Rays are leading the AL wild card by just 2 games over Seattle or Texas, 3 games over Oakland, 3.5 games over Chicago and 4.5 games over Toronto.

ATL 97-58 2
PHI 5.5 GB

CHC 93-58 3
PIT 4 GB

SDP 75-80 7
COL 0.5 GB
ARZ 2.5 GB
LAD 4 GB
SFG 4.5 GB

The Pirates lead the NL wildcard by 2 games over the Phillies.

[Operation Shutdown]

Week 26
The Braves clinched the NL East with a 5-1 win over the Phillies. The Pirates begin their last week of the season with a trip to Milwaukee for a three game series against the Brewers who are 61-95 and whom the Pirates are 9-5 against this season. The Brewers starting rotation is pretty weak, with only one starter, Ruben Quevedo (7-6 3.63), below a 4 ERA and three of the five starters above a 5 ERA. Their lineup is a bit better with three big hitters Tony Batista (0.289 27 80), Richie Sexson (0.288 31 98), and Kelly Grams (0.285 26 79), but the rest of the lineup is fairly weak. Grams will miss this series, however, as he was placed on the DL.

Game 157: Pirates 6 Brewers 3 Fireworks Night at Miller Park
Benson pitched a fairly decent game, giving up just three runs in six innings for the win. Quevedo struggled a bit, giving up all six Pirates runs while working just 5 1/3 innings. The big story today was JJ Davis who knocked in all of the Pirates runs, with a grandslam in the first inning, and then a two run homerun in the sixth inning. Mann pitched a scoreless ninth inning and picked up his new season NL record 43rd save of the season.

Game 158: Pirates 2 Brewers 1
VanBenSchoten continues to roll over his opponents, as he gave up just one run, a solo homerun to Bautista, in six innings of work and picked up his 17th win of the season. Valdes pitched a decent game for the Brewers, giving up just two runs in 7 2/3 innings, but it wasn't good enough as he picked up the loss. Mann pitched a scoreless ninth inning for his 44th save of the season.

The Minnesota Twins clinched the AL Central with a win over the Royals 6-5. Also, the Pirates clinched at least the wild card spot as they defeated the Brewers and the Phillies lost to the Expos 3-2.

Game 159: Pirates 6 Brewers 0
Dave Williams finished the season with a bang, pitching a one-hit shutout while walking just one other batter and striking out three, to pick up his 19th win of the season. Perez did not fare well against his former teammates, as he gave up all six runs in just 5 1/3 innings for his 17th loss of the season.

Series Recap: A sweep of the Brewers was just perfect, and Florida did their job against the Cubs winning two out of three and giving the Pirates a chance to still win the central division by sweeping the Cubs.

BOS 97-62 *

MIN 88-71 *

TEX 86-73 3
SEA 1 GB

The Devil Rays lead the wild card race by three games over the Mariners. A Seattle loss or a Tampa Bay win will clinch the wild card for the DRays.

ATL 100-59 *

CHC 99-60 2
PIT 2 GB

COL 78-81 3
SDP 1 GB

The Pirates have at least clinched the wild card spot and depending on how the central plays out, either the Pirates or Cubs will be the wild card winners.

In the AL, the Rangers will face off against the Angels who are 64-95, while the Mariners play the A's who are 82-77, and lastly the Devil Rays play the Blue Jays who are 81-78. In the NL, the Pirates face the Cubs in a three game series and Colorado plays Cincinatti who is 74-85 and the Padres play the Giants who are 71-88.

Game 160: Pirates 2 Cubs 6
Bullington struggled in his last start of the year, giving up five runs in five innings for the loss. Prior performed brilliantly, giving up just one run in 6 innings for the win.

The Cubs clinched the NL central division title with their win over the Pirates, and the Pirates will have the wild card. The Devil Rays clinched the wild card race in the AL with their 3-0 win over the Blue Jays.

Game 161: Pirates 13 Cubs 11
This game was a real slug fest as neither starter did too well, with Ponson giving up six runs in four innings and Webb giving up six runs in three innings. Vogelsong wound up with the win for the Pirates, giving up just one run in three innings of work, while Ohman got the loss for the Cubs giving up five runs in one inning. A lot of homeruns in this game, as Choi picked up his 29th of the season, Sosa hit his 39th and 40th, Kelton hit his 39th and Davis picked up his 12th of the season for the Cubs. For the Pirates, nady picked up his 24th and JJ Davis hit his 39th and 40th homerun of the season.

With just one game remaining, Texas leads Seattle by one game in the AL, and Colorado and San Diego are tied in the NL.

Game 162: Pirates 4 Cubs 5
The Pirates decided to rest Benson and started Greinke who did OK, giving up four runs, three of them earned, in six innings of work. The Cubs still sent out Kennedy, who gave up four runs in eight innings for the win. Kolb picked up the save, his 42nd of the year for the Cubs. Yurrendell DeCaster hit his first career major league homerun, a two run shot in the seventh inning.

The Rangers clinched the AL West as Oakland played spoiler to the Mariners winning 6-3. In the NL west, San Diego and Colorado both lost so they will play a one game playoff to decide who gets to face either the Cubs or Braves.

Padres 5 Rockies 4

Around the league, on Tuesday Colorado's Dennis Stark pitched a one hit shutout against the Giants as the Rockies won the game 6-0. Also as mentioned earlier, on Thursday, Dave Williams pithced a one hit shutout as the Pirates defeated the Brewers 6-0.

Expect a September wrapup and a playoff preview sometime tonight. The player and league pages should be uploaded sometime this afternoon.

[joncarlos]

Congrats on the post-season!!!

[Operation Shutdown]

Thanks, and it only took three years to make it, kinda gives me some hope for the actual Pirates in the coming years. If these propsects are as good as some think they are, then it quites possible, especially considering I've managed to build the team with a pretty low payroll of just $42 million, well within the Pirates budget. Anyway, now on to my wrapup

September Wrapup
The Pirates were red-hot in the month of September, going 17-8 and managing to clinch the wild card in the NL. Benson, VanBenSchoten and Williams all pitched well this month going 2-1 with a 2.96 ERA, 2-1 with a 3.98 ERA, and 3-0 with a 2.88 ERA respectively. Ponson really struggled this month, going just 2-1 with a high 5.17 ERA. Xavier Nady had a good month hitting 0.389 with 4 HRs and 15 RBIs, as did JJ Davis who hit 0.297 with 10 HRs and 25 RBIs. Bobby Hill rebounded nicely this month hitting 0.292 with a 0.418 OBP, while McDougall cooled off considerably, hitting just 0.153 with no homers and just 5 RBIs.

Boston's Eric Chavez won the BOM award in the AL, hitting 0.392 with 8 HRs and 31 RBIs in the month of September, while former Pirate and current Padre, Brian Giles won the award in the NL hitting 0.365 with 12 HRs and 25 RBIs. Tampa Bay's Aaron Rakers won his first ever POM award for the AL this month, compiling a record of 4-0 with a 1.46 ERA. Florida's John Rheinecker won the award for the NL, after finishing the month with a record of 3-0 and a 0.74 ERA, marking the second straight month that he won the award, and doing so with a sub 1 ERA both times.

The Pirates sent Zach Greinke and Vic Butler back to AAA and released OF Darnell McDonald and chose to keep OF Manuel Ravelo as part of their playoff roster.

Division Series
In the first series in the AL the Texas Rangers (87-75) battle the Boston Red Sox (99-63). The Red Sox finished with the best record in the AL and did so thanks in large part to a very balanced team, with good pitching and good defense. The Red Sox were 5th in batting average, 6th in HRs, and 5th in runs scored, while their pithing staff was 6th in ERA, 14th in OAVG, and 6th in runs allowed. The Sox have Odalis Perez (19-8 3.20), Eric Milton (11-13 4.69), and Casey Fossum (14-10 4.23) listed as their top three starters, but they also have Derek Lowe (14-11 3.76) available to start if need be. The Red Sox have a pretty spread out offense, but Eric Chavez is the big one to look out for as he hit 0.304 with 26 HRs and 98 RBIs this season. The Rangers on the other hand have a very potent offense, but a rather weak pitching staff. They were 6th in batting average, 2nd in HRs, and 1st in runs scored, while their pitching staff was 26th in ERA, 24th in OAVG, and 24th in runs allowed. Mario Ramos (13-11 4.66), Runelvys Hernandez (11-15 3.95) and Rich Harden (11-13 5.11) are listed as their top three starters. The Ranger lineup is strong at all spots, but obviously the guy to watch out for is Alex Rodriguez, who hit 0.326 with 49 HRs and 123 RBIs and is the favorite for AL MVP. Prediction: Red Sox in three games.

The other AL race features the matchup of the Tampa Bay Devil Rays (90-72) versus the Minnesota Twins (91-71). The Devil Rays have a real good offense, mixed with a decent pitching staff. They finished first in team batting average, 12th in HRs and third in runs scored, while their pitching was 12th in ERA, 17th in OAVG, and 12th in runs allowed. Dewon Brazelton (13-12 3.90), Kevin Millwood (19-6 3.91), and Luis De los Santos (10-2 3.29) are listed as their top three starters and they also have Aaron Rakers (12-9 4.25) available to start if need be. Their lineup is pretty solid all-around with the likes of Ben Grieve (0.320 24 83), Michael Cuddyer (0.282 24 88), Erick Almonte (0.303 24 96), and Rocco Baldelli (0.308 25 107). The Twins feature a fairly average team, with slightly above average hitting, and average pitching. They finished 12th in team batting average, 25th in HRs, and thanks to their speed and plate discipline, managed to finish 7th in runs scored while their pitching was 16th in ERA, 19th in OAVg, and 18th in runs allowed. Wade Miller (14-12 4.71), Jon Pridie (11-14 5.45), and Beau Kemp (5-5 3.32) are listed as their top starters, but they also have Brad Thomas (12-10 3.52) available to start. Their offense is pretty average, but Todd Hollandsworth is the guy to watch for on this team as he hit 0.293 with 22 HRs and 109 RBIs this season. Prediction: Devil Rays in four games.

In the NL, the first series sees the Braves (101-61) going against the Padres (79-84). The Braves have rather average hitting, but probably the best pitching staff in the majors. They finished 21st in team batting average, 10th in HRs, and 12th in runs scored, and their pitching was 1st in ERA, 3rd in OAVG, and 1st in runs allowed. Matt Wright (8-8 3.67), Jung Bong (4-1 2.53), and Horacio Ramirez (13-7 3.92) round out the top of the rotation, but they also have Wes Littleton (9-8 3.70) available if need be. The Braves rotation is very young, with Ramirez as the oldest at 25 years of age but will turn 26 this offseason. The Brave lineup is filled with power, but doesn't hit much for average, as not a single player hit above .300 this season, but they had 5 players with 20+ homeruns. Possible Cy Young candidate Adam Wainwright will likely miss the entire playoffs for the Braves. The Padres made it to the playoffs thanks in large part to a very weak division, but also some good pitching. They ranked 24th in team batting average, 16th in HRs, and 18th in runs scored, while their pitching staff was 8th in ERA, 9th in OAVG, and 8th in runs allowed. Mike Nicolas (9-6 2.69), Kip Wells (12-16 4.20), and Kyle Lohse (10-8 5.03) are listed as their top starters, but they also have Randy Keisler (6-9 4.03) to start if need be. Brian Giles (0.288 30 84), Jayson Werth (0.260 33 113), and Dmitri Young (0.300 19 95) are the hitters to watch for. Prediction: If the Braves played anyone but the Padres, I'd have picked them to lose, but I still think the Padres will give the Braves a run for their money, but even with Wainwright out, the Braves will win the series in five games.

The last series involves two central division foes competing against each other, with the Pirates facing the Cubs. The Pirates are a well-balanced team with above average hitting and above average pitching. They finished second in batting average, 18th in HRs, and 10th in runs scored while their pitching was 10th in ERA, 7th in OAVG, and 10th in runs allowed. Ponson (16-8 4.04), Benson (14-9 3.44), and VanBenSchoten (17-9 3.63) are listed as their top starters, but they would be crazy to not use Williams (19-6 3.08) as well. Their lineup is pretty well rounded with every hitter hitting above 0.270, and their middle three of Nady (0.312 24 102), Craig Wilson (0.281 22 120), and JJ Davis (0.292 40 111) are the players to really keep an eye on. The Cubs on the other hand have just an average offense, but a really good pitching staff. They ranked 19th in batting average, 4th in HRs, and 14th in runs scored, while their pitching was 4th in ERA, 5th in OAVG, and 5th in runs allowed. Mark Prior (15-7 2.52), Joe Kennedy (18-10 2.96), and Steve Smyth (14-8 3.74) are listed as their top three starters, but John Thomson (15-7 3.73) is also available. The Cubs don't have as well rounded of a lineup, but their middle three hitters are just as deadly, with Choi (0.280 29 80), Sosa (0.295 40 113), and Kelton (0.273 39 109) leading the way. Prediction: Gotta root for the home team, so I'm gonna say the Pirates in five games.

Game 1: Pirates 2 Cubs 4
The long ball really hurt Benson, as Choi, Sosa and Bellhorn all hit solo homeruns off of Benson, as he gave up four runs in six innings for the loss. The Pirates managed to pick up nine hits off of Prior, but scored just one run off of him in 6 2/3 innings. they scored one more in the ninth off of Kolb, but he held on for the save.

Other games:
TEX 1 BOS 0 WP - Ramos LP - Perez SV - Zimmerman
TBA 8 MIN 7 (11) WP - Standridge LP - Guardado
ATL 3 SDP 0 WP - Wright LP - Wells SV - Vizcaino

Game 2: Pirates 7 Cubs 10
This game was a real slugfest, as VanBenSchoten gave up 6 runs in 5 1/3 innings and Kennedy gave up 7 runs, five of them earned in 6 2/3 innings. The Pirates were trailing 6-0 heading into the seventh, but they managed to score seven runs off of Kennedy in the top of the seventh to take the lead. The Cubs tied things back up scoring a run off of Shields in the bottom half of the inning. They then scored three more in the bottom of the eighth, two off Shields and one off Jimenez to take the lead and they never looked back. Kolb pitched a scoreless ninth for the win. Shields got the loss and Ohman got the win.

Other games:
TEX 11 BOS 4 WP - Hernandez LP - Milton
MIN 4 TBA 0 WP - Pridie LP - Millwood
SDP 3 ATL 2 WP - Looper LP - Mallette SV - Speier

Game 3: Pirates 3 Cubs 4
The Pirates were swept by the Cubs and ace starter Ponson didn't even get a chance to start. Williams gave up four runs, three of them earned, in 8 1/3 innings of work for the loss. Smyth gave up just three runs in six innings for the win. The Cub bullpen did very well, giving up just two hits in three innings, and Kolb pitched a scoreless ninth for the save.

Other games:
TEX 7 BOS 6 (10) WP - Lundquist LP - Wagner
TBA 2 MIN 1 WP - De los Santos LP - Kemp SV - Duckworth
SDP 3 ATL 2 (11) WP - Peavy LP - Eaton

A real shocker as the Rangers swept the Red Sox and continue on to the league championship series to face either Tampa Bay or Minnesota.

Game 4
TBA 5 MIN 4 WP - Zambrano LP - Kim
SDP 5 ATL 0 WP - Wells LP - Wright SV - Speier

Another shocker as the Padres do in fact upset the Braves in four games. The Devil Rays won in four as I predicted. I'll do the rest of the playoffs tomorrow, along with a team season wrapup and upload all of the files to the website as well.

[Skipaway]

Did you give Benson extension? With all the winning, there should be enough revenue to keep the team together and stay competitive next year! Good job for improving the team while stay realistic. I can never resist abusing the AI in a solo league.

[Operation Shutdown]

I already pissed Benson off to the point that he doesn't want to talk to me anymore, but it should be all right because I have like four 4.5-5 star SP prospects in AAA and my scouts are already telling me that two of them (Bullington and Greinke) are ready to play in the majors so they should be my #4 and #5 starters next year and hopefully Williams can match this years incredible numbers. I still might try to pick up another starter in free agency though, although I might try to hold on to the cash for next year when a lot of my arbitration eligible players will become eligible for free agency. And believe me, it takes everything within me to not try and take advantage of the AI.

League Championship Series
In the AL the Rangers will go up against the Tampa Bay Devil Rays. The Rangers surprised everybody by sweeping the Red Sox and the Devil Rays beat the Twins pretty handily in four games. The Rangers lead the season series between the two teams 6-3, however I think the DRays are going to be too much for the Rangers with their better pitching staff and better lineup and I'm going to predict that the Devil Rays win in 6.

In the NL, the Cubs meat up with the San Diego Padres. The Padres, a team that finished the regular season under 0.500, surprised everyone by beating the Braves in four games, while the Cubs took care of the Pirates in three. The Padres luck is gonna end here, as the Cubs are gonna sweep them, and go on to the world series for the second year in a row.

Game 1
TEX 6 TBA 0 (11) WP - Park LP - Duckworth
SDP 2 CHC 0 WP - Nicolas LP - Prior SV - Speier
In the AL game, Rangers' Ramos pitched a no hitter into the tenth inning, when he gave up a single to Erick Almonte. The Rangers went on to score 6 runs in the 11th inning, an inning that started out with a walk, and then a sacrifice bunt attempt, that ended up being a bunt single as it was perfectly placed.

Game 2
TBA 4 TEX 1 WP - Lidge LP - Hernandez SV - Switzer
CHC 9 SDP 8 WP - Ohman LP - Bartosh SV - Kolb

Game 3
TBA 11 TEX 8 (12) WP - Standridge LP - Murray SV - Rocker
CHC 11 SDP 9 WP - Smyth LP - Wells SV - Kolb

Game 4
TBA 9 TEX 4 WP - Millwood LP - Ramos
CHC 5 SDP 2 WP - Prior LP - Nicolas SV - Kolb

Game 5
TEX 8 TBA 7 (10) WP - Zimmerman LP - Duckworth
CHC 1 SDP 0 WP - Kennedy LP - Lohse SV - Howry

Game 6
TEX 4 TBA 1 WP - Nieves LP - Lidge SV - Zimmerman

Game 7
TBA 3 TEX 2 WP - Millwood LP - Ramos SV - Duckworth

World Series
For the second year in a row the Cubs find themselves in the World Series and also find themselves the favorites to win it all again this year. They will go up against the Tampa Bay Devil Rays, who won the wild card in the AL. The two teams did not face each other in interleague play this year. Prediction: Cubs in five games.

Game 1: Cubs 4 Devil Rays 3
Prior pitched pretty well, giving up two runs in 6 2/3 innings for the win. De Los Santos gave up three runs in five innings. The Cubs added one more run off of Lidge in the sixth inning, and that proved to be needed as the Devil Rays picked up one run off of Ohman in the eighth inning, but got no more as Kolb pitched 1 1/3 scoreless innings for the save.

Game 2: Cubs 14 Devil Rays 2
Matt Mantei made an emergency start for the Cubs and lasted 5 1/3 innings and gave up just one run for the win. Brazelton got smashed, giving up nine runs in just 3 2/3 innings for the loss.

Game 3: Cubs 3 Devil Rays 1
Once again a Cubs reliever started the game, and Ohman lasted four innings and did not give up a single run. Millwood started for the DRays and gave up just one run in 5 2/3 innings. The Cubs were leading 1-0 heading into the eighth, but Doug Mirabelli hit a solo homerun in the inning to tie things up. The Cubs answered back and with two outs, Sosa singled, Kelton walked, and Bellhorn knocked both of them home with a double off of Zambrano. Kolb shut down the DRays 1-2-3 in the ninth for the save. Almanza got the win for the Cubs and Zambrano suffered the loss.

Game 4: Cubs 1 Devil Rays 5
For some odd reason, even though up 3-0, the Cubs decided to start Prior on three days rest, and he gave up two runs while lasting just five innings for the loss. De los Santos also lasted just five innings, but gave up just one run for the win.

Game 5: Cubs 7 Devil Rays 9
Once again a reliever started the game for the Cubs and it proved to be a huge mistake as Howry gave up five runs in just two innings. Brazelton started for the DRays and gave up four runs in 4 2/3 innings. The Cubs trailed 5-0 heading into the fifth and scored four runs in the bottom of the fifth, and then three more in the bottom of the sixth, while the Drays scored just one in the top of the sixth, to take a 7-6 lead. Then in the top of the eighth, with two outs, Ben Grieve hit a three run homerun off of Beltran to give the DRays the lead. The Cubs tried to answer back in the bottom of the ninth, but with runners at first and second and one out, Lidge got Sosa to ground into a double play to end the game and pick up the save. Duckworth picked up the win and Beltran suffered the loss.

Game 6: Cubs 7 Devil Rays 14
Once again, the Cubs refused to use their starting pitchers, this time sending out Mantei who did well giving up just one run in 2 2/3 innings. Millwood started for the DRays and despite giving up seven runs in seven innings, still managed the win. The big inning for the Devil Rays came in the bottom of the sixth when they scored 11 runs off of Almanza, and then they added one more off of Almanza in the seventh inning. Almanza ended the game giving up 12 runs in three innings of work for the loss.

Game 7: Cubs 2 Devil Rays 3
Both starters pitched well giving up just one run, while Prior lasted six innings and De Los Santos lasted just 5 1/3 innings and neither got a decision. The Cubs took the lead 2-1 in the top of the seventh scoring off Lidge, but the Drays then took the lead in the bottom of the eight scoring two runs, one off Almanza and the other off Howry. Duckworth then pitched a scoreless ninth for the save. Switzer picked up the win and Howry was charged with the loss.

Doubtless the Cubs lost this series because the AI insisted on using reliever to start the games that Prior did not start, and the Devil Rays became the first team ever to rebound from a 3-0 deficit to win a series. Congrats to the DRays who last year finished 70-92 and this year won the world series.

Cy Young Award Winners
There were three starters tied with the lead in wins with 19 in the AL, but Gil Meche ended up winning the Cy Young award. He finished the season with a record of 17-8 with an ERA of 2.57. He was 4th in the league in wins and had the best ERA in the league. Despite missing the last three weeks or so of the season, Atlanta's Adam Wainwright managed to win the NL CY Young Award. He finished the season with a record of 21-3 and a 1.77 ERA. Both he and Dennis Stark of Colorado were tied with the league lead in wins, but Wainwright won the award based on the best ERA in the league. He also finished third in the league in strikeouts. This is the second time he's won the award in his three year career.

MVP Award Winners
The AL MVP honors went to Texas' SS Alex Rodriguez who hit 0.326 with 49 HRs and 123 RBIs. He finished first in batting average, first in HRs, and third in RBIs, just 7 RBIs behind Wise and just missing the Triple Crown. This is the second time in a row that ARod has won the award. In the NL, without a doubt the clear cut MVP was C JD Closser of the Colorado Rockies. Closser hit for a 0.322 average and smashed 46 homeruns and drove home 150 runs. He finished first in homers, first in RBIs and fifth in batting average, just 0.021 behind the leader Pujols, and also just barely missing the triple crown.

Rookie of the Year Winners
The 26 year old SP Adam Johnson of the Minnesota Twins won the ROY for the AL. He finished the season with a record of 12-10 with a 4.03. For the second straight year, a Pittsburgh Pirate won the NL ROY, but it was not the expected VanBenSchoten as MLB ruled that he was not eligible to be considered a rookie. Instead, 3B Drew Henson won the award after hitting 0.271 this year with 13 HRs and 89 RBIs.

Gold Glove Winners
2005 American League Winners
Pitcher: Ryan Anderson, KCA
Catcher: Ramon Hernandez, OAK
First Base: Jose Leon, BAL
Second Base: Dave Matranga, ANA
Third Base: Adrian Beltre, KCA
Shortstop: Alfredo Amezaga, ANA
Leftfield: Larry Bigbie, KCA
Centerfield: Johnny Damon, BOS
Rightfield: Juan Rivera, NYA

2005 National League Winners
Pitcher: Kevin Olsen, FLO
Catcher: Ben Davis, CHN
First Base: Craig Wilson, PIT
Second Base: Orlando Hudson, COL
Third Base: Brandon Larson, CIN
Shortstop: Cristian Guzman, MON
Leftfield: Raul Gonzalez, NYN
Centerfield: Preston Wilson, COL
Rightfield: Larry Walker, COL

[Operation Shutdown]

Pirates Season in Review
The Pirates really created a buzz around Pittsburgh, increasing fan interest dramatically, and for the first time since 1992, the people of Pittsburgh were talking about the Pirates in the month of October, even though football season had already started. The Pirates finished with an amazing record of 98-64, second in the central division, and winners of the wildcard, though they lost in the first round of the playoffs to their nemesis Chicago Cubs. They did all this with the third lowest payroll in the major leagues, with a payroll of just $42 million. Here's a breakdown of how all the players did this year.

C Ryan Doumit
After JR House was injured and then traded, Doumit really stepped things up and contributed well at the major league level. He finished the season with a 0.298 average, 0.338 OBP, and 0.433 SLG. He hit 11 HRs and drove in 62 runs in 416 at-bats. He did well behind the plate, committing just four errors and three passed balls in 991 2/3 defensive innings for a percentage of 0.995. He also threw out 24 of 75 runners (32%).

C Humerto Cota
Cota did a good job as back-up once again and will likely be a permanent fixture there. He hit 0.264 with 4 HRs and 17 RBIs in 125 at-bats. He started 31 game behind the plate and committed just 2 errors and one passed ball in 292 2/3 defensive innings. He did not do as well throwing out runners this year as he's done in the past, throwing out just 8 of 29 (27.6%).

1B Craig Wilson
Wilson once again plugged away in the cleanup spot in the lineup this year. Many fans wanted to see Davis moved to the cleanup spot, but Lloyd McClendon decided that he'd rather have more of a veteran presence there, and Wilson didn't disappoint as he led the team in RBIs with 120. He hit for an average of 0.281 with a 0.321 OBP and a 0.455 SLG. He smashed 22 HRs, but also struck out 124 times in 609 at-bats. Wilson was solid defensively again this year, and started 147 times and committed just 6 errors in 1321 innings for a percentage of 0.996.

1B Ray Navarette
Navarette did well as a back-up after the Pirates decided to release Carlos Rivera. He hit 0.315 with 0 HR and 9 RBIs in 124 at-bats. In 12 starts, he did not commit a single error in 110 defensive innings.

2B Bobby Hill
Hill really improved dramatically at the plate this year, increasing his average from 0.276 to 0.295 this season, and also had an OBP of 0.384 and a SLG of 0.381. He hit just 3 HRs and drove in just 48 runs, but he also led the league in stolen bases with 57 of them, and scored 81 runs this season. He continues to hit better against the lefties, as he hit 0.340 versus lefties and just 0.278 against righties. Defensively, he started in 140 games and committed just 12 errors and was involved in 99 double plays in 1216 defensive innings for a 0.983 fielding percentage.

3B Drew Henson
Drew Henson had a good rookie year at the plate, hitting 0.271 with an OBP of 0.328 and a SLG of 0.425. He went yard 13 times and drove in 82 runs in 558 at-bats. Defensively, in 143 starts, Henson struggled a bit and committed 26 errors in 1290 innings for a fielding percentage of 0.935. He won the rookie of the year award.

3B Yurendell DeCaster
DeCaster had real limited chances and hit just 0.156 with 1 HR and 3 RBIs in 45 at-bats. He started just 6 games and did not commit any errors in 54 innings.

SS Marshall McDougall
Almost midway through the season, McDougall was given the starting SS job after Jose Castillo was traded. He did pretty well this season hitting 0.290 with an OBP of 0.340 and a SLG of 0.458. He hit 9 dingers and knocked home 52 runs. Defensively he started 73 games at SS and committed just 9 errors while contributing in 38 double plays in 686 defensive innings for a 0.977 fielding percentage. He also started 13 games at 3B and committed 4 errors in 111 innings for a percentage of 0.927.

SS Jack Wilson
Wilson was once again given back up duties for 2B and SS this year and hit 0.229 with 2 HRs and 9 RBIs in 153 at-bats. He started 22 games at 2B and committed no errors in 238 innings, and also started 8 games at SS and committed 2 errors in 75 innings for a fielding percentage of 0.950.

LF Xavier Nady
Nady improved a bit on last year and hit 0.312 with an OBP of 0.386 and a SLG of 0.491. He hit 24 homeruns and drove in 102 RBIs, very similar numbers to last year. His plate discipline improved this year as he struck out just 106 times and walked 67 times in 583 at-bats, compared to 117 times and 57 last year. He did well in the field again this year and started 144 games and committed just 8 errors, though people learned that he had a great arm from last year, and he had just 8 assists in 1308 innings for a percentage of 0.970.

CF Mark Kotsay
Kotsay once again performed brilliantly in the leadoff role for the Pirates hitting 0.307 with an OBP of 0.368 and a SLG of 0.488. His power numbers dropped off a bit this year, hitting just 15 HRs and driving in 61 runs, but he still managed to score 116 runs. Defensively, he started 144 games, and committed just 6 errors and had 13 assists in 1276 1/3 innings for a percentage of 0.982.

CF Manuel Ravelo
Ravelo wasn't brought up until September and did well, hitting 0.333 with 4 RBIs in 21 at-bats.

RF JJ Davis
Davis improved leaps and bounds on his rookie year last year, hitting 0.292 with an OBP of 0.351 and a SLG of 0.548. He led the team and set a new team record with 40 HRs and also had 111 RBIs. He started 145 games and committed an uncharacteristic 12 errors and had 6 assists in 1303 innings for a percentage of 0.956.

SP Sidney Ponson
Ponson had a decent season, finishing with a record of 16-8 with an ERA of 4.04 and a WHIP of 1.28 in 32 starts. He struck out 161 batters and walked 73 in 216 innings of work.

SP Kris Benson
Benson had probably one of his best season in a Pirate's uniform, finishing with a record of 14-9 and a 3.44 ERA and a WHIP of just 1.05. In 219 2/3 innings pitched, he struck out 189 batters and walked just 48 hitters.

SP John VanBenSchoten
JVB proved that he is a capable MLB starter this year with a record of 17-9 and a 3.63 ERA and a 1.24 WHIP. In 205 2/3 innings pitched he struck out 187 batters and walked 65.

SP Dave Williams
Williams had an amazing season, easily the best of his career as he finished 19-6 with a 3.08 ERA and a 1.11 WHIP, all career bests. In 222 innings, he struck out 149 hitters and walked 75.

SP Brian Bullington
Bullington pitched just for few months in the season and finished with a 3-3 record and a 5.73 ERA and a 1.53 WHIP. In 55 innings, he struck out 50 hitters and walked 21 batters.

SP Zach Greinke
Greinke started the majority of the games in the #5 spot for the Pirates and finished 4-6 with a 5.97 ERA and a 1.69 WHIP. In 89 innings, he struck out 55 hitters, and walked an alarming 43 batters.

Bullpen
The Pirates bullpen this year as a whole did a pretty good job.
Grabow was used mostly as just a mop-up reliever and pitched in just 16 1/3 innings and had an ERA of 6.06.
Jimenez was the go-to guy as middle reliever, and other than Mann he racked up the most innings with 71 1/3 innings pitched in 70 appearances. He finished with a 2-2 record with 2 saves and a 4.42 ERA.
Shields was also used a good bit and worked 64 2/3 innings in 56 appearances. He finished with a 6-3 record with 1 save and a 2.92 ERA.
Vogelsong was used sparingly and pitched in just 46 games and racked up 48 innings. He had a record of 4-3 with a 6.19 ERA.
Gabe White was used as the main set-up reliever and made 41 appearances and pitched in 43 1/3 innings. He finished with a 3-0 record with 1 save and a 4.98 ERA.
Corey was used as the other set-up guy and also as a middle releiver and made 72 apperances and racked up 68 2/3 innings. He finished with a 2-3 record with 1 save and a 3.59 ERA.
Jim mann finished with the most saves in the NL with 44 saves and finished with a record of 7-7. He made 70 appearances and pitched in 75 innings and struck out 69 hitters and walked 28. he blew just 6 saves for a percentage of 88%.