Tuesday, July 03, 2007

Dear Pittsburgh Baseball Club,

We have always felt connected to your franchise, due to the many years of losing we have shared with you. We finally had a .500 season a couple of years ago, and this season we are one of the top teams in the league. On the other hand, we see that you are still toiling in mediocrity, and you may actually be getting farther away from the ultimate goal. Therefore, please accept today's game on our behalf. You owe us nothing in return, as you have provided us with so much already.

Sincerely yours,
Milwaukee Brewers' defense


It is not often that you look at a box score, see a team was charged with four errors, and think, "Wow, that really doesn't explain how poorly the defense played." The Brewers seemed to make every mistake imaginable in the field, and the result was a 6-2 victory for the Pirates. Early in the game, it seemed that the Pirates would not take advantage of the Brewers' miscues. In the third inning, the Pirates scored one run on one hit. The Brewers made two errors in the inning, and even the lone hit probably should have been caught. At that time, I figured only scoring one run there would come back to haunt us. But the Brewers kept making mistakes, and eventually the Bucs took advantage.

Shane Youman pitched well in his season debut, and ended up with his first career Major League win. Youman went six innings and allowed only two runs. He has done nothing but pitch well for the Pirates the past two seasons, and you have to feel more confident with him on the mound than someone like Tony Armas. Congratulations, Shane.

The bullpen rebounded from last night's debacle with a solid outing. Damaso Marte, Shawn Chacon, and Matt Capps each pitched a scoreless inning, combining to strike out five batters over that period.

With Ian Snell and Tom Gorzelanny throwing the final two games against the Brewers, the Pirates have a reasonable chance to at least split the series. With a little luck, they might even take three out of four.

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