Final Score: Pirates 3 Cubs 11
Why The Pirates Lost: The bullpen pretty much lost the game, but it was not an explosion. It was more like death by slowly bleeding out. Bleeding out infield hits and bloopers followed by long 3 run homers that accounted for 6 of the Cubs 11 runs. First inning, a walk an infield hit and boom a home run. Bottom of the 8th, bloop single, that at least got out of the infield, a walk, and a 2nd boom home run. Other than the 2 blasts, the Cubs got 6 infield hits and 2 bloop singles to account for 8 of their 14 hits. Luis Ortiz had another hard luck outing, although some of it was his own doing. He pitched 5 and 1/3 innings giving up 4 runs, on 6 hits, walking 2, and striking out 4. The 2 walks really came back to haunt him as both wound up scoring. This was a brutal game to watch. The Pirates did not play all that bad, but luck was not on their side last night.
Key Moment Of The Game: Despite a disastrous bottom of the 6th, the Cubs were only able to score 1 run, thanks to a Cub runner being hit by a ground ball to end the inning. They still led only 4-3 going into the bottom of the 7th. This inning became even more painful to watch. Yohan Ramirez came on to pitch and he has been pretty good this season. The first batter hit a ground ball that barely got through for a base hit. He got the next batter to fly out. He walks the next batter. Seiya Suzuki hits a hard line drive one hopper just to the right Ji Hwan Bae. I thought the umpire may have screen him out a little on seeing the ball and he was only able to knock it down, which loaded the bases. After getting 2 strikes on Ian Happ, Ramirez threw 3 straight pitches way low and way inside, with the last pitch hitting Happ to send in a run. A ball hit to the right of Ramirez that bounced off his glove scored another run. Ramirez, left the game to be replaced by Zastryzny. After getting one out he gave up a bloop single that drove in two more runs to make it 8-3 and the game was over.
The Next Game: Tonight, Cubs in Chicago. Let’s hope the Cubs used up all their luck in game 1 of the series and the Pirates can win the next two. They are moving Roansy Contreras to the bullpen and bringing up Osvaldo Bido to start tonight. Regardless of the outcome let’s hope that Contreras finds himself in the bullpen. My final comment today is regarding the batting order. Why is it when a batter is struggling that they don’t move him to a lower position in the batting order. Tucupita Marcano in his last 15 games is hitting .229 with an OBP of .229 and they lead him off last night. Great idea. Carlos Santana is hitting .182 and slugging .309 his last 15 games, and they continue to bat him in the clean up spot. Why? All it does is kill potential rallies. I am not saying to bench these guys, but they should be batting 7th and 8th, because we all know who bats 9th, the pitcher, I mean Austin Hedges. Advocates of the DH would say, I am not paying good money to see a pitcher bat. You could say the same thing about Hedges.
The Goofy Game of Golf/Life Searching for the Answer 