Meet the new look Pirates

[joncarlos]

Started a new league on Wednesday. Totalminors, starting out with a fantasy draft. I've got a good young team so hopefully they'll stick around and give me a nice long run.

(Pittsburgh, PA - March 1 2003)

There was rioting in the streets in baseball towns across the United States last week as MLB commisioner Bud Selig was finally removed from power by a gang of several owners calling themselves "The Small Market Consortium." Within hours, a new commisioner had been appointed, but his identity has not yet been revealed for fear of retaliation.

The Consortium announced that MLB will continue to operate as normal, that no organizational changes will be made at this time, and that current MLB schedules will be honored. Plans are in the works to sell the Montreal Expos to a group of investors interested in permanently moving the team to Montreal, but nothing has been finalized.

The major news, of course, was the Consortium's announcement that all players would be removed from their current teams, though they would still honor all contracts previously agreed to. It was announced that a league-wide "dispersal" draft would be held "to give every team an equal shot at the high-end talent that MLB has to offer."

[joncarlos]

(Pittsburgh PA - March 15 2003)

Sometimes, a new GM makes a big difference. With former Pirate GM Dave Littlefield leaving the Pirates front office for an administrative position in the new MLB management office, the Bucs selected relative unknown John "JC" Franco to be their new General Manager and hired former Reds and Yankees slugger Paul O'Neill to be their assistant GM. The two new faces of the Pirates certainly had an interesting week.

For a brief period of a couple hours, Pirate fans were surprised to learn that ex-Bucco slugger Barry Bonds might be returning to the shores of the Allegheny. With the 14th overall pick in the MLB dispersal draft, the Pirates selected Bonds to anchor their new team. Many fans were stunned by the pick, given Bonds' age and expensive contract, but Franco defended the pick saying that Bonds "was a once-in-a-lifetime talent that we couldn't pass up." He did go on to add that there was "still no guarantee that Barry will ever suit up," a statement that proved to be quite prophetic.

With their next few selections, the Pirates built a good young nucleus that should keep them competitive for years to come: SP Kerry Wood (round 2), 1B Mike Sweeney (round 3), 2B Frank Catalantto (round 4), RP Arthur Rhodes (round 5), and IF Aaron Boone (round 6).

The Pirates filled out their starting rotation with youngsters Kurt Ainsworth, Cliff Lee, Rafael Soriano, and Adam Eaton. They stocked their bullpen with ex-Pirates Ricardo Rincon and Brian Boehringer, as wel as John Riedling, Kyle Farnsworth, Brad Lidge, and Scot Shields.

The Pirates built a solid offensive core with CFs Marlon Byrd and Dave Roberts, RFs Robert Fick and Karim Garcia, Cs Ben Davis and Tom Wilson, SS Jack Wilson, and IF Wes Helms.

The Pirates also stocked their farm system with a tremendous amount of talent, including SPs Rich Harden, Sean Burnett, Jeremy Bonderman and Ben Kozlowski, 1Bs Adrian Gonzalez and Tagg Bozied, LF Nate McClouth and Tony Torcato.

Of course, their roster looked a lot different after a couple days' wheeling and dealing.

[joncarlos]

(Pittsburgh PA - March 29, 2003)

Pirates General Manager John Franco introduced the "New Look" Pirates today, showing fans the team that they would be seeing "for the next few years." Franco explained that he was hoping to refrain from making any major trades once the season had started. He also ran through a brief explanation of the Pirates' flurry of trades over the last two weeks.

First, the Pirates shocked the baseball world by trading LF Barry Bonds to Colorado (where Barry should do "great things" according to Rockies' GM Dan O'Dowd) along with SP Kevin Jarvis for LF Adam Dunn and blue-chip prospects SP Jesse Foppert and 3B/SS Miguel Cabrera.

Second, the Pirates filled out their rotation by trading RP John Riedling and several prospects in a 3-way trade with Cleveland and Oakland, receiving pitchers Joel Piniero and Javier Vazquez in return.

Their farm system now depleted, the Pirates turned around and traded AAA 1B Lee Stevens for prospect C Jarrod Saltlamaccia, SP Adam Eaton for prospect 2B Ricky Weeks, and starting C Ben Davis for prospect OF Matt Murton.

After dealing their starting catcher in Ben Davis, the Bucs named Tom Wilson their new starter and acquired AAA catcher JR House from the Reds to be their new backup.

The Pirates will go into the 2003 season with the following lineup

C Tom Wilson
1B Mike Sweeney
2B Frank Catalanatto
SS/3B Aaron Boone
3B Hank Blalock/SS Jack Wilson
LF Adam Dunn
CF Marlon Byrd/David Roberts
RF Robert Fick/Karim Garcia
Bench - Mark Grudzielanek, JR House (plus Wilson, Roberts, Fick)

SP - Wood, Piniero, Vazquez, Ainsworth, Soriano
RP - Lidge, Shields, Boehringer, Rincon, Farnsworth
Closer - Arthur Rhodes

[joncarlos]

Game 1:

The Pirates won their season opener at home in PNC Park, coming from behind to defeat the Brewers 4-2 on the strength of a 4-run 5th inning, capped by a 3-run double by Hank Blalock. Kerry Wood got the win, pitching 7.1 innings, allowing 6 hits, 2 runs (1 earned), walking 2 and striking out 7

Game 2:

The Pirates moved to 2-0 after defeating the Brewers handily by a score of 10-2 after giving up 2 runs in the first inning. The Pirates scored 5 runs in the 7th inning and 6 runs overall against Brewers' ace Tim Hudson, then added 4 more runs in the 8th against Jim Mecir. Joel Piniero got the win, going 7 strong innings, allowing 2 runs on 5 hits and 2 walks, striking out 6.


Game 3:

The Bucs jumped all over Brewers' starter Freddy Garcia early in the game, scoring 7 runs in the 2nd inning and chasing Garcia after just 1.1 innings (his line: 1.1 IP, 7 H, 7 R, 1 BB). Aaron Boone hit a 3-run HR and Adam Dunn added a 2-run HR. Javier Vazquez got the win, pitching 6 innings, allowing 2 runs on 6 hits and 1 walk, striking out 4.

Game 4:

Despite having their manager ejected in the second inning for arguing a call at second base, the red-hot Pirates spoiled Arizona's home opener by winning 6-3. The Pirates continued their big-inning ways by scoring 3 runs in the 7th to break the game open; Frank Catalanatto's 2-run double was the key hit. Kurt Ainsworth got the win with an impressive 10-strikeout performance, though he did allow 8 hits and a walk, along with all 3 Diamondback runs.

[joncarlos]

Game 5:

All good things must come to an end, and the Pirates' 4-game winning streak fell victim to that adage last night in Arizona. Starter Rafael Soriano took a 3-1 lead into the 6th inning, but gave up a walk and a double, putting runners on 2nd and 3rd with 2 outs. Soriano intentionally walked RF Ichiro Suzuki to face SS Jose Valentin (hitting .056 at the time) but Valentin smoked a single down the line and tied the game at 3-3. The Pirates brought in Kyle Farnsworth to pitch the 7th, and Kyle took the loss after allowing a run to make it 4-3 Arizona. Scot Shields allowed 2 more runs in the 8th and the Pirates lost 6-3 when they couldn't get any hits off of Arizona closer Robb Nen.

[joncarlos]

Game 6:

The Pirates were happy to be ranked 5th in the majors in the first weekly power poll. We have the 21st highest payroll in the league, the top teams are TB (?), OAK (??), NYY, LA, TEX, ATL, and NYM.

Then the game started. Quite a pitcher's duel as the Pirates and Cards went into the 8th inning ties 0-0. Marlon Byrd singled, Karim Garcia tripled, Tom Wilson hit a sac fly, and then JR House hit a 400-foot bomb for his first major league hit. The Bucs went on to win the game 4-2. Kerry Wood got the win, pitching 7 scoreless innings, giving up just two hits and 3 walks while striking out 11.

Game 7:

Another great pitcher's duel as the Bucs beat the Cardinals 2-0. Aaron Boone was the hitting star, hitting a solo HR in the first and an RBI double in the 3rd to give Joel Piniero all the runs he would need. Piniero needed just 106 pitches to go 8 scoreless, allowing 5 hits and 1 walk while striking out 8.

Game 8:

Not so much of a pitcher's duel this time. Javier Vazquez gave up 4 runs in the 4th inning to the Cards. Mike Sweeney hit a 3-run double to pull the Bucs to within 5-4, but the Pirates could never close the deal and lost 6-5. Vazquez toiled through 5 innings, giving up 5 runs on 10 hits and a walk while striking out 5.

After the game, the Pirates signed Rusty Greer, Matt Lecroy and Brett Tomko to minor league deals and assigned them to AAA Nashville.

[joncarlos]

Game 9:

Another day, another dominating pitching performance by a Pirate starter. Kurt Ainsworth earned a win after going 7 scoreless innings, allowing 6 hits and 3 walks but stranding all 9 runners. Ainsworth struck out just 4 but held the Dodgers in check with a slew of ground-ball outs. Hank Blalock was the hitting star, going 4-for-4 with 3 singles and a 2-run HR in the 6th inning. Mike Sweeney had an RBI HBP in the first and Adam Dunn made a highlight-reel throw to nail a runner at the plate in the 5th inning. Pirates 4, LA 0.

Game 10:

The Pirates were outlasted by Dodgers' starter Wade Miller in this game, and then their defense let them down. After a dropped fly ball and a missed opportunity to turn the DP, John Olerud dropped a 2-run double on the Bucs. The Pirates did get the game tied up on a single by P Rafael Soriano, a double by Aaron Boone, a walk by Adam Dunn and a 2-run single by Mike Sweeney. But the Pirates lost the game on an error in the bottom of the 9th, as Frank Catalanatto allowed a routine grounder to slip between his legs into right field and bring home the winning run. LA 3, Pirates 2.

[joncarlos]

Game 11:

Kerry Wood took the mound for the Pirates and clearly did not have good command of his fastball, but he struggled through 6 innings and the Pirates were able to get him the win thanks to some timely hitting and good bullpen work. The Pirates took an early 1-0 lead when Adam Dunn's groundout scored Aaron Boone, who had tripled. But then Kerry Wood walked the Dodgers' pitcher and then walked the leadoff hitter to force in a run. Kerry made up for it by hitting a single, going to 3rd on a double by Aaron Boone, and scoring on another RBI groundout by Adam Dunn. Dunn added a 3rd RBI on a double later on, and Wood left the game after 6 with a 3-2 lead, having allowed just 4 hits, but walking 7 and striking out 9. Ricky Rincon and Kyle Farnsworth worked a scoreless 7th and 8th, and Arthur Rhodes pitched a scoreless 9th for his 5th save. Pirates 3, LA 2.

[joncarlos]

Game 12:

The Rockies came to PNC park for a short 2-game series and the Pirates won game 1 in thrilling fashion. The Pirates trailed 2-0 after 5, and got back one run in the 6th when Marlon Byrd singled (to extend his hit streak to 10) and was driven home by Aaron Boone's sac fly. The Pirates tied it in the 8th when pinch hitter Jack Wilson doubled and scored on an RBI single by JR House. The Rockies brought in closer Trevor Hoffman in for the 9th inning, and with 2 down, Karim Garcia singled, pinch hitter Dave Roberts singled, and JR House came through again with an game-winning single.

After the game the Pirates got some very bad news as star prospect Rich Harden suffered a season-ending hip injury. Hopefully Rich will be well enough to pitch at a high level next season.

Game 13:

Before the game, the Pirates learned that they were #2 in the power rankings behind only their cross-state rivals in Philadelphia. The Pirates then went out and tried to lose that ranking, losing to the Rockies and looking bad in the process. The Bucs jumped out to an early 4-0 lead on 2-run HRs by Frank Catalanatto and Adam Dunn, but in the 4th inning, they allowed the Rockies to score 6 runs, their rally sparked by a pair of singles, a throwing error on catcher JR House, followed by back-to-back doubles, a single, a walk and another double. The Pirates trailed 7-4 and managed to get only one run back on an RBI single by JR House. Javier Vazquez took the loss, allowing 6 runs (5 earned) on 7n hits and 3 walks, striking out 6 in the process.

[joncarlos]

Game 14:

Kurt Ainsworth earned himself a spot on the league's top performers list with a gem against the Giants today. Kurt allowed 2 runs in 8 innings, walking 1 and scattering 6 hits, while striking out an impressive 10 batters. The Pirates still needed some late-game heroics to get Ainsworth the win, as Karim Garcia hit a 2-run HR in the bottom of the 8th to give the Bucs the lead for good. Arthur Rhodes pitched a scoreless 9th for his 6th save.

Game 15:

Ugh! Some games, your team just gets beat. And once in a while, you get just get beat badly. The Giants beat the Bucs 14-1 today, scoring 8 runs in the first 2 innings off Pirate starter Rafael Soriano. Soriano gave up 3 in the top of the first, then 5 in the top of the second (including walking in a run) and ended up with 7 hits and 4 walks allowed against zero strikeouts. Aaron Boone drove in the Pirates' only run with a single in the 5th, and Brad Lidge pitched 3 scoreless innings, allowing just 1 hit and 1 walk while striking out 6. Scot Shields pitched the final 2 innings and was tagged for 6 more runs.

[joncarlos]

Game 16:

The Pirates got their first complete game of the season tonight as Kerry Wood just kept holding on and hoping the Bucs would score one more run against the Giants. The Pirates went up 2-0 in the first on a 2-run HR by Adam Dunn, but a 2-run HR by Jeremy Giambi in the top of the 4th and an RBI groundout in the top of the 6th put the Bucs down 3-2. The Pirates tied it in the bottom of the 7th on a solo HR by Karim Garcia and won it in the bottom of the 9th when Frank Catalanatto hit a walk-off solo HR. Kerry Wood finished with 9 innings, 3 runs, 4 walks and 4 hits, and 6 strikeouts.

The Pirates' division rivals suffered a major blow today as Carlos Beltran, CF for the Cardinals, suffered a broken wrist when he was hit by a pitch. Beltran will miss the rest of the season.

Game 17:

More great pitching from the top of the Pirates' rotation propelled them to another win against the Giants. The game was 0-0 through 6, and in the bottom of the 7th, an RBI single by Aaron Boone and sac fly by Hank Blalock gave the Pirates all the runs they would need. The Bucs won 2-0 behind a strong performance by Joel Piniero (7 IP, 0 runs, 3 hits, 2 walks, 5 K's, 108 pitches) and another dominating effort in the 9th inning, as Arthur Rhodes struck out the side for his 7th save.

After the game, the Pirates traded RF Robert Fick and AAA 4-star prospect Cliff Lee to the Devil Rays for 5-star catching prospect Joe Mauer. After taking a long look at the Pirates' farm system and watching our opponents run wild on the catching tandem of House and Wilson, it was necessary to make a move to eventually get a good-throwing catcher into the lineup. Mauer will report to AAA Nashville for now. The Pirates also signed free agent 2B/OF Eric Young to a 1-year deal after he was released. Young will fill in for Fick as the Pirates' utility outfielder.

[joncarlos]

Game 18:

The Pirates were shut down by a strong performance by San Diego starter Jeff D'amico and lost to the Padres 2-1. Pirate starter Javy Vazquez pitched well but didn't get enough support, as Vazquez allowed a solo HR to Brad Wilkerson in the first and a sac fly in the 5th to go down 2-0. The Bucs got 1 run back on a solo HR by the red-hot Karim Garcia, but never did catch up. Vazquez finished with 7 innings, 2 runs, 10 hits, 1 walk and 6 Ks. Padres starter Jeff D'amico finished with 8 innings, 5 hits, 5 walks, 2 strikeouts and 1 run allowed.

[joncarlos]

Game 19:

The Pirates got revenge on the Padres with a 2-1 victory of their own behind a strong pitching performance from Kurt Ainsworth. Ainsworth pitched 6 strong innings to join Kerry Wood at 4-0 on the season, allowing 1 run on 4 hits and 2 walks while striking out 6 on 94 pitches. Brian Boehringer, Kyle Farnsworth and Arthur Rhodes finished the game in scoreless fashion. The Pirates got both their runs on a 2-run single by rookie CF JC Franco in the top of the 5th inning.

Game 20:

The Padres were apparently hurting for starting pitchers, as Zach Day came out to the mound for a second straight start. Day allowed just 1 runs in 3 innings before turning the game over to the bullpen. The Pirates won the game 7-1 as Rafael Soriano pitched a strong game (6 IP, 3 H, 3 BB, 1 R, 1 K) and the offense finally came alive. Hank Blalock hit a 3-run double in the top of the 4th to give the Bucs a 3-1 lead and scored on a sac fly by JR House. Solo HRs by Karim Garcia and Adam Dunn and an RBI single by JC Franco completed the scoring.

Around the league, Edgar Martinez collected his 2000th hit for Detroit, and the Pirates were ranked 5th in the power rankings behind TOR, DET, PHI and COL.

Game 21:

The Pirates scored 7 runs for the second straight game as Kerry Wood moved to 5-0 with a win against the Marlins. The Pirates took an early lead on a sac fly by Mike Sweeney in the bottom of the first, and after the Marlins tied the game in the top of the second, the Bucs took a 2-1 lead in the bottom of the 2nd on an RBI single by Frank Catalanatto. The Bucs got an RBI triple from Catalanatto and an RBI single from JR House to take a 4-1 lead in the bottom of the 5th, and an RBI single by Blalock to move to 5-1 in the bottom of the 7th. Adam Dunn followed with a 2-run double to move the lead to 7-1 and the Bucs held on for a 7-3 win. Kerry Wood pitched 7 innings, allowing 1 run on 4 hits and NO walks, striking out 8.

[joncarlos]

Game 22:

The Pirates newly found offensive prowess disappeared against Kenny Rogers and the Marlins and the Bucs dropped a close one 2-1 against the Fish. Rogers scattered 10 hits over 7 scoreless innings to get the win, as the Marlins scored 2 runs in the top of the 6th on a 2-run single by Ruben Rivera. Karim Garcia's solo HR (his 6th) in the bottom of the 8th was the Pirates' only offense, as they wasted a solid outing by Joel Piniero (6 IP, 3 H, 2 BB, 2 runs, both unearned, and 5 Ks on 98 pitches). Piniero's ERA is down to 1.06.

Game 23:

The Atlanta Braves came in for a visit to PNC Park and proved to be lousy guests, beating the Pirates 3-1 in 10 innings behind a strong performace from John Burkett. The Pirates were down 1-0 in the bottom of the 9th and tied the game on an RBI triple by Karim Garcia, but couldn't bring Garcia home and ended up losing the game in the 10th inning when they gave up 2 runs. Javier Vazquez had his 2nd straight strong, winless outing for the Bucs, going 7 innings and allowing just 1 run and 2 hits, with 5 walks and 6 Ks.

Game 24:

Kurt Ainsworth had his first poor game for the Pirates, allowing 9 runs in 5 innings on 6 hits and 3 walks, though he did strike out 6 batters. The Pirates trailed 9-0 after 3 and managed to get back to 9-5 but couldn't finish the offensive comeback, losing to the Braves by that 9-5 score. Karim Garica had an RBI walk and RBI double, Frank Catalanatto had a sac fly, and JC Franco had a 2-run double to account for the Pirates scoring.

Around the league, Jeff Bagwell singled for his 2000th hit.

[potatoman]

nicely done

[joncarlos]

Game 25:

The Pirates broke their 3-game losing streak with a little bit of offense and another fine pitching performance, defeating the Braves 5-1 behind 7 strong innings from 5th starter Rafael Soriano. Soriano moved to 2-1, going 7 innings and allowing 1 run on 4 hits and 3 walks, striking out 5 on 108 pitches. The positive K/BB ratio is definitely a good sign!!! The Bucs trailed 1-0 early as Ryan Klesko singled home the first run of the game in the top of the 3rd, but the Pirates got that run back on a sac fly by JC Franco in the bottom of the 4th. In the bottom of the 7th, Hank Blalock hit a pinch-hit single, PH Frank Catalanatto reached on an error, Eric Young hit a run-scoring double, and Mike Sweeney followed up with another run-scoring double to give the Bucs a 3-1 lead. JC Franco walked and stole 2nd in the bottom of the 8th, moving to 3rd on a sac bunt by Jack Wilson and scoring on an RBI single from Catalanatto. Cat scored on Wes Helms' RBI double, his first hit in 11 ABs as a Pirate.

Game 26:

It had to happen eventually: Kerry Wood suffered his first loss as a Pirate after a 5-0 start, as the Pirates lost 7-4 to Sidney Ponson and the Mets. Wood allowed 4 runs in the bottom of the 5th inning and the Pirates' bullpen allowed 3 more in the bottom of the 8th. Mike Sweeney FINALLY hit his first HR as a Pirate, a 3-run shot in the top of the 9th, but it was too little, too late. Kerry Wood finished with 6 IP, 10 H, 1 BB, 3 K and 4 runs allowed.

After the game, the Pirates signed OF prospect Luis Terrero to a minor-league deal and assigned him to AAA Nashville after Terrero was released by his previous team.

[joncarlos]

Game 27:

The Pirates won a nail-biter on the road against the Mets 4-2 behind another strong pitching performance by Joel Piniero. The Pirates took a 1-0 lead in the top of the 3rd when Dave Roberts singled, stole second and scored on a single by Frank Catalanatto. The Mets took a 2-1 lead in the bottom of the 4th when Austin Kearns singled in a run and scored on a sac fly. The Bucs regained the lead right away on Mike Sweeney's RBI groundout and Adam Dunn's RBI single in the top of the 5th, and added an insurance run on a sac fly by Dunn in the 7th. Arthur Rhodes pitched 1.1 scoreless innings for his 9th save. Joel Piniero pitchd 7 innings, allowing 2 runs on 5 hits and no walks, striking out 6 to improve to 4-1.

Game 28:

The Pirates took 2 of 3 from the Mets with a 3-1 victory in Shea stadium. The Bucs jumped out to an early lead on an RBI single by Karim Garcia in the top of the first and added another run on a sac fly by Garcia in the 3rd. Nick Johnson hit a run-scoring single in the botom of the 7th to get the Mets within 2-1, but the Pirates' bench provided an insurance run when pinch runner Eric Young was advanced to 3rd on a pinch-hit single by JC Franco and scored on a single by Dave Roberts (his first RBI of the year!!!). Brad Lidge pitched a scoreless 8th and Ricky Rincon pitched a 1-2-3 9th for his second save in relief of Javier Vazquez, who moved to 2-3 with a dominant outing of 7 innings, 3 hits, 1 walk, 1 run and 6 strikeouts.

After the game, the Pirates learned that they were still in 5th place in the power rankings.

Around the league, Rafael Palmiero hit his 500th HR and Pirate starter Joel Piniero was named April's Pitcher of the Month, going 4-1 with a 1.32 ERA and 36 Ks in 41 innings.

[joncarlos]

Game 29:

The Pirates travelled to Puerto Rico to meet the Montreal/Puerto Rico Expos for the first time this year. The Expos have been impressive early, going 19-9 behind an incredible offense led by Randy Winn, Mike Lowell, Sammy Sosa, Jeff Kent, Michael Tucker, Omar Vizquel and David Ortiz. In this game, though, it was the Pirates' bats who did the talking, as the Pirates dominated the late innings to cruise to an 8-3 win. The Bucs fell behind 2-0 early when Randy Winn hit a solo HR in the 3rd and the Expos scratched out a run in the 4th on a single, walk, error and failed double play. The Pirates got one back on a bases-loaded walk by JC Franco in the top of the 5th. In the top of the 7th, the Bucs offense opened the floodgates, scoring 5 runs when pinch hitter Eric Young singled, Dave Roberts singled, JC Franco singled in a run, Adam Dunn hit a sac fly, JC stole second, Aaron Boone was intentionally walked, and Karim Garcia hit a 3-run HR. The Pirates added 2 more in the 8th on a walk by Dave Roberts, run-scoring triple by JC Franco and run-scoring single by Adam Dunn. Kurt Ainsworth was the beneficiary of the offensive outburst, moving to 5-1 with a 6-inning stint, allowing 2 runs on 5 hits and 2 walks, striking out 7.

After the game, the Pirates traded relievers Randy Chaote and Grant Balfour from their AAA squad to the Yankees for prospect Scott Kazmir, a 19-year old, 4-star lefty. The Pirate coaches were insisting that Chaote and Balfour could pitch in the majors, but there was no place to put them, so they were sent elsewhere to get their shot. Kazmir will work out of the bullpen in AA Altoona until the Pirates' logjam of starters is cleared up.

Game 30:

The Pirates lost a tough one to the Expos 7-5 after they were unable to hold the Expos' offense in check. The Bucs jumped out to an early 1-0 lead when JC Franco reached on a fielder's choice, stole 2nd and scored on a single by Mike Sweeney. The Pirates went up 3-0 in the 3rd when Dave Roberts tripled and scored on JC's groundout, followed by 3 singles from Sweeney, Catalanatto, and Blalock. The Pirates gave 2 back in the bottom of the 3rd on RBI doubles by Lowell and Kent, but got back to 4-2 on a solo HR by Tom Wilson (his first) in the top of the 4th. The Pirates gave up another run in the bottom of the 4th, and the Expos finally pulled ahead with 2 more in the bottom of the 5th to lead 5-4. A 2-run double by David Ortiz gave the Expos a 7-4 lead. Eric Young came through again as a pinch hitter, doubling home Hank Blalock in the 8th, but the Bucs could do no more. Rafael Soriano took the loss, allowing 5 runs in 5 innings on 9 hits and 1 walk, while striking out 4. Despite suffering the loss, Rafael hit 97 on the radar gun and continues to improve his K/BB ratios.

The Pirates have developed a bit of a logjam in their outfield as of late. CF Dave Roberts has been absolutely on fire for the last 2 weeks and is now batting over .420 in 66 ABs, to go with a handful of walks and 10 stolen bases. RF Karim Garcia leads the team with 7 HR and LF Adam Dunn has provided the Pirates with a steady presence in the middle of the lineup to go with his 22 walks in about 100 ABs. Dunn has also improved his defense to a 'B' rating in LF. The Pirates' 4th OF, 23-year old prospect JC Franco, is not highly rated by scouts, but is hitting over .350 in limited playing time and has also stolen 5 bases. JC can play all 3 outfield positions fairly well. 2B/OF Eric Young has also been hitting over .300 and has been red-hot as a pinch hitter. The Pirates also have 25-year old prospect Marlon Byrd at AAA; though Byrd is hitting just .180 at Nashville, he is still a highly regarded prospect. Only time will tell how this logjam will be resolved.

[joncarlos]

Game 30:

The Expos took the rubber game of their 3-game series with the Pirates with a 6-2 win behind Mark Mulder. Once again the Expos' offense proved too much for the Pirates, as their ace Kerry Wood suffered the loss after allowing all 6 runs in just 6 innings of work despite striking out 9. The Pirates took an early lead in the top of the first on a leadoff double by Eric Young, a perfect sac bunt by Jack Wilson and a sac fly by Mike Sweeney, but the Expos tied it in the bottom of the first on a single, walk, error and run-scoring GIDP. Omar Vizquel's 2-run double in the bottom of the 4th gave the Expos the lead and Mike Lowell's 3-run HR in the bottom of the 5th was all the insurance they needed.

Game 31:

The Pirates returned home to PNC Park to face the Cubs and Mark Prior. Prior, who has struggled early this season, allowed 5 runs in 5 innings and dropped to 1-5 after suffering the loss. The Pirates scored early and often, taking a 1-0 lead in the bottom of the first on an RBI double by JC Franco, then retaking the lead at 2-1 in the bottom of the 4th on a 2-run double by Hank Blalock and extending the lead to 5-1 in the bottom of the 5th on a single by Joel Piniero, a single by Dave Roberts, a HBP by JC Franco, a run-scoring walk to Adam Dunn and a sac fly by Frank Catalanatto. The Pirates extended their lead to 6-1 in the bottom of the 7th on Karim Garcia's team-leading 8th home run. Joel Piniero moved to 5-1 with another impressive performance, pitching 6.1 innings and allowing just 1 run on 5 hits and 4 walks while striking out 5. Dave Roberts went 3 for 4 to raise his team leading batting average to .435 and also stole his 12th base of the year.

After the game the Pirates learned that CF JC Franco would miss 6-7 days with a dislocated finger, temporarily relieving the logjam of outfielders they have had lately. It is rumored that the Bucs will send JC down to AAA to rehab and call up Rusty Greer, who has been hitting well over .300 in Nashville this year.

Also after the game, GM John Franco announced that he is conducting a "thorough evaluation of [the] entire organization" in order to "ensure that we've got the right players in the right places throughout the system." Franco hinted that some trades of minor league players could be in the works.

[joncarlos]

Game 33:

The Pirates finally ended their struggles against left-handed pitching with a 7-5 win over the Cubs and Eric Milton. The Bucs jumped out to a 6-0 lead before their bullpen made it interesting, but closer Arthur Rhodes came in to pitch a scoreless 9th for his league-leading 10th save. The Pirates took a 2-0 lead in the bottom of the 2nd on a 2-run HR by Aaron Boone, then added 2 more in the bottom of the 3rd on an RBI single by Mike Sweeney and RBI groundout by Karim Garcia. The lead grew to 6-0 in the 5th when Eric Young singled, stole second and scored on Dave Roberts' double, then Roberts tagged up from second on a fly ball by Mike Sweeney and scored on a throwing error. The Cubs cut the lead to 6-2 in the bottom of the 7th as Lance Berkman doubled in a run and scored on a sac fly. The Pirate bullpen allowed 3 more in the 8th to make it 6-5 before back-to-back doubles by Jack Wilson and Rusty Greer gave the Pirates an insurance run. Javier Vazquez improved to 3-3 with the win, pitching 7-plus innings, allowing 3 runs on 8 hits and no walks while striking out 8.

Game 34:

The Pirates were shut out for the first time this year, losing 2-0 to John Thomson and the Cubs. Thomson, who came into the game with an ERA over 6, blanked the Pirates for the full 9 innings, allowing just 4 hits and needing just 91 pitches. The Pirates loaded the bases with no outs in the bottom of the 8th on a triple by Aaron Boone and a pair of walks, but JR House and Eric Young struck out and Dave Roberts flew out to end the threat. Despite an outstanding performance, Kurt Ainsworth dropped to 5-2, pitching 6 strong innings, allowing 2 runs on 5 hits and 4 walks while striking out 5.

Around the league, the KC Royals will be without ace Curt Schilling for 5 weeks after he suffered a herniated disk.

Pirates GM John Franco announced that the initial study of the team's farm system was complete, and that results and possibly a few deals would be coming soon.

EDIT: I just wanted to include a note about Rusty Greer... before being called up for a few days, he was hitting .457 in 116 ABs at AAA!!