Pirates Morning Report:

FINAL SCORE: PIRATES 4 PADRES 2

WHY THE PIRATES WON: SIMPLY, THE SAN DIEGO PADRES GIFT WRAPPED THIS ONE. LET ME COUNT THE WAYS. THE PADRES COULD ONLY SCORE 2 RUNS ON 10 HITS WITH 7 WALKS AND LEFT 16 MEN ON BASE. WHILE CHARGED WITH ONLY 1 ERROR THEY MADE NUMEROUS MISPLAYS IN THE FIELD. WHEN TUCUPITA MARCANO WAS TRYING TO BUNT IN THE TOP OF THE NINTH, THEY WALKED HIM ON 4 STRAIGHT PITCHES. IT TOOK A DRAMATIC HOME RUN IN THE NINTH TO WIN THE GAME, BECAUSE THE PIRATES TRIED JUST AS HARD NOT TO WIN THE GAME. THEY HAD NUMEROUS FIELDING BLUNDERS AND LEFT 9 MEN ON BASE. THEY STRUCK OUT 15 TIMES. TUCUPITA MARCANO SHOWED HE IS THE PERFECT PIRATE, WHEN HE TOOK 2 STRIKES AND THEN STRUCK OUT ON A BALL OUT OF THE STRIKE ZONE, WITH A RUNNER ON THIRD AND ONE OUT. IT’S NICE TO SEE THE PIRATE BATTING PHILOSOPHY IS THROUGH OUT THE SYSTEM. THIS WAS TOPPED OFF BY ONE OF THE WORST HOME RUN CALLS IN THE HISTORY OF BASEBALL BY GREG BROWN. AS KE’BRYAN HAYES WAS ROUNDING THE BASES IN THE TOP OF NINTH, HE FIRST SAID THE PIRATES HAD A 3-1 LEAD, THEN LED BY ONE RUN, 3-2, AND FINALLY GOT IT RIGHT BY SAYING THE SCORE WAS 4-2. I GUESS WE CAN BLAME IT ON JET LAG OR SHOCK ON THE PIRATES HITTING A HOME RUN IN THE 9TH TO TAKE THE LEAD IN THE GAME. THANK GOD THIS GAME ENDED AT 1:45 AM, WITH HOPEFULLY NOT TOO MANY PEOPLE WATCHING. THIS GAME SET BASEBALL BACK 50 YEARS.

KEY MOMENT OF THE GAME: THERE WERE TOO MANY TO MENTION THEM ALL. OBVIOUSLY, HAYES’S HOME RUN WAS THE BIG HIT OF THE GAME. SHELTON BATTING FOR PEREZ IN THE 9TH MAY HAVE BEEN THE BIGGEST MOMENT. IT IS INTERESTING THAT HE PINCH HIT FOR PEREZ IN THE 9TH THIS TIME, WHEN HE DID NOT A FEW GAMES BEFORE WITH THE WINNING RUN ON 3RD BASE IN THE BOTTOM OF THE NINTH.

NEXT GAME: THIS AFTERNOON, PADRES IN SAN DIEGO. COULD THE PIRATES TAKE THE SERIES? CAN’T WAIT TO SEE THE LINE UP CARD.