It sure was fun with that steady diet of the Cubs and Astros before and after the All-Star break, but the Reds and the Cardinals have now doused the Pirates with a huge bucket of cold water reality over the last five games, and that hasn't been nearly as much fun. That the Pirates managed to win two of those games with the Reds is a tribute to what has been a remarkable pitching staff, but even those pitchers have been over matched against the Cardinals line-up, and the Cardinals' Pujols-Holliday-Berkman-Molina (Yadier Molina????) Murderers Row has only shown the stark contrast of the anemic Pirates offense. Seriously, do you any confidence in any Pirates hitter other that Presley, Walker, and McCutchen at this point? It's tough going when you send up six almost-automatic outs to the plate every game.
With that in mind, I will join the chorus of sportswriters, bloggers, and commentators asking why Pedro Alvarez is not up here in Pittsburgh. He is the only big power threat in the entire organization, and, the awful start in 2011 aside, he has shown that he can hit home runs in the major leagues. If Neal Huntington and the Marine drill instructors that run the Pirates minor leagues are trying to make a point about Alvarez' conditioning and/or work ethic, that would be fine if the Pirates were bobbing along near .500 way back in the middle of the standings, but the fact is, thanks to an apparently mediocre NL Central, the team is, for now, in the mix for winning the division. Alvarez can come up here now, and he could very possibly hit 15-20 home runs between now and the end of the season. We also know that any combination of Steve Pearce/Brandon Wood/Chase d'Arnaud will not come close to that kind of production. Of course, if they wait too much longer, the Pirates will be that team bobbing along near .500 way back in the middle of the standings.
After the Cardinals leave town today, the Pirates embark on a seven game stretch against the Phillies and Braves. The Cardinals? Well, now it's their turn to feast on the Cubs and Astros.
Having said all of this, let me put on my rose colored glasses and take a sip of Bucco Kool-Aid and remind all that this team won only 57 games last year. The most optimistic among us said that they might - MIGHT - win 70 games in 2011. Flirting with a pennant in July but failing to win it should not give a false negative on what still could turn out to be a remarkable turnaround from that awful team we all watched last year.
In reading Clint Hurdle’s comments today it is apparent that he is definitely in favor of leaving Alvarez down there for the time being. It appears Hurdle has had way more influence on the makeup of the 25 man roster than Russell ever did. He has professed to being a Beimel guy, as he managed him in Colorado and the team has stuck with him even though he has struggled. When they only had one lefty in the pen earlier this year Hurdle made public comments about preferring two, and the team then immediately called up southpaw Tony Watson. And just this week they went out and got Jason Grilli who Hurdle had managed in 2008-2009. He could just be agreeing with managements wishes, but I have a feeling Hurdle has been given a lot of say so with the 25 man, including the current Pedro situation.
ReplyDeleteBut hey... the good news is that the pathetic Cubbies are back in town on August 1st. However, today’s (Sun, 7/24) game is a big one.
I mapped out the rest of the season game by game on thursday (Bucs were 51-45) and I came up with 80-82 at the end of the season. I'm going to update my projection after each games result. After Friday and Saturday I'm at 79-83. Today (Sunday) is projected in the "L" column so only upside today.
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