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Pirates Morning Report: This Time A Pitchers Duel.

Final Score: Pirates 2 Phillies 3 10 innings

Why The Pirates Lost: For the second consecutive game the Pirates bats were silent. Keller vs. Nola turned out to be the pitching duel that was expected. In Pittsburgh, the Pirates got to Nola pretty good touching him up for 6 runs in just under 5 innings. Last night he got his revenge. He went 6 and 2/3 innings giving up just 1 run on 4 hits, striking out 8 while walking no one. Ke’Bryan Hayes had a particularly bad night striking out all 4 times. Ji Hwan (I Don’t Know Why They Keep Leading Me Off) Bae went 0 for 4 with 2 strikeouts. Keller didn’t do too bad either not giving up a hit in the first 5 innings. He had a strange 6th inning where he appeared injured, but he said post game that he hit his elbow on his follow through. On the very next pitch after the apparent injury, he gave up a home run and gave up another run on 2 singles and a sacrifice fly. The Pirates tied the game on solo home runs by Bryan Reynolds and Henry Davis in the 7th and 8th innings. However, it turned out to be another extra inning failure by the Pirates.

Key Moment Of The Game: The inability of the Pirates to move runners along when they have a runner on 2nd and nobody out has hurt them all year and last night was no exception. The Phillies did the same thing but made up for it by getting the key hit, walking off with a 3-2 win, clinching the top wild card spot in the National League.

Next Game: Tonight, Phillies in Philadelphia. Even though Greg Brown kept saying about how the Pirates did not want to see the Phillies clinch anything in front of them, it may work to their advantage. The Phillies may start to rest certain players getting ready for the playoffs. The Pirates have produced only 4 runs in the last 2 games on 12 hits, both losses. Let’s hope that changes soon, or it could be rough getting that 75th win.

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Pirates Morning Report: Walking May Be The Right Thing To Do

Final Score: Pirates 2 Reds 4

Why The Pirates Lost: The bats finally had a bad day and the Pirates refused to pitch around the red-hot TJ Friedl. The Pirate first four batters went 0 for 16 with 2 walks. The rest of the team scored 2 runs on 7 hits and 3 walks. Jack Suwinski hit his 26th homer of the year to account for one of the runs. The most encouraging part of the day was the pitching performance of Quinn Priester. He had his first Major League quality start going 6 innings giving up 2 runs on 2 hits but walked 5. The bottom of the 6th he gave up a 2 run homer to TJ Friedl with nobody out. Each time through the order he had walked the first two batters in the Reds lineup and came out unscathed. This time Jonathan India led off the inning with a single and Priester failed to pitch Friedl careful enough. With no one out and leading 2-0 you could excuse this somewhat. However, in the bottom of the 7th with a runner on 2nd and 2 out Jose Hernandez served up 2 pitches in a row right over the plate slightly above the belt, and Friedl did not miss the 2nd one, and singling into left to give the Reds a 3-2 lead. Why the Pirates gave him anything to hit in that situation who knows? Only The Shadow knows for sure. The Reds added a run in the 8th on a home run and the 4 game win streak was over.

Key Moment Of The Game: In the top of the 7th the Pirates had 1st and 2nd, nobody out with the top of the order coming to bat. In 7 pitches the inning was over. Joe flew out, Reynolds popped out, and Hayes lined out to centerfield. The Pirates had a slight threat in the top of the 8th, thanks to two walks, but failed to score. They went down quietly and quickly, 10 pitches, in the top of the 9th. It has been a good road trip so far with the Pirates going 4-2, as they head for Philadelphia.

Next Game: Tomorrow night, Phillies in Philadelphia. The Pirates have a shot at 77 wins if they can split their next 6 games. If they do, that will be a 15 game improvement from last year. The Phillies have not quite cinched the top Wild Card spot so they will be serious at least for those first 2 games. The Pirates took 2 out of 3 from the Phillies in Pittsburgh. Let’s hope that the Phillies do no more than return the favor.

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Pirates Morning Report: If Not For College Football I Would Have Gone To Bed

Final Score: Pirates 13 Reds 12

Why The Pirates Won: With the exception of Alika (I Am Looking To Buy A McDonalds In San Diego) Williams the Pirates bats boomed. The Reds built that 9-0 lead and I thought another 14 to whatever loss was coming to bookend the 3 game winning streak. There were lots of great College Football games on or I would have gone to bed. The Pirates scored a run in the top of the 4th to make it 9-1. Beginning in the top of the 6th the Pirates offense went crazy. Five in the 6th, three in the 7th, and four in the 8th to take a 13-9 lead. The Reds made a stirring comeback but just fell one run short to lose the game 13-12. In an exciting bottom of the 9th the Reds had the tying run on third with one out and could not push it across to send the game into extra innings. There were 25 runs, 32 hits, 9 walks in this offensive fest of a game. Alfonso Rivas went 3 for 5 with 5 RBI’s. Ji Hwan Bae was 2 for 4 with 3 RBI’s. Bryan Reynolds only got one hit, but it was a big one, a 3 run homer to cut the lead to 9-6. This win will always be one for the ages, and I have this on my DVR. I will watch this on one of those cold winter nights when I am craving baseball once more.

Key Moment Of The Game: Despite the exciting bottom of the 9th, the big moment of this game came in the bottom of the 8th. Colin Selby was brought in to start the 8th. From the very first pitch you knew he was in over his head. On top of all that he did not have the best luck in world either. The Reds had 1st and 3rd with nobody out thanks to a walk, wild pitch and a bloop single to right field. The Pirates gave up a run to get an out at 2nd and the score was 13-10. Another infield hit put runners on 1st and 2nd. A solid single to center scored another run making the score 13-11 with runners still on 1st and 2nd and one out. Tyler Stephenson hit a hard ground ball right back up the middle that Ji Hwan ( I Know I Said He Can’t Play Second Base) Bae made a spectacular play on, getting up, stepping on second base, and throwing to first to complete the inning ending double play. What made this play so big was, despite all his problems, Colin Selby was not coming out of this game because of the overworked Pirate bullpen. Carmen Mlodzinski came up big in the bottom of the 9th after getting into trouble and the Pirates had one of their greatest wins of all time.

Next Game: This afternoon, Reds in Cincinnati. There is no truth to the rumor that the Reds are just going to forfeit today’s game. They have to be pretty well shell shocked after last night’s game. It will be interesting to see how they respond.

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Pirates Morning Report: Pirates Just A Little Bit Better

Final Score: Pirates 7 Reds 5

Why The Pirates Won: Where both teams had similar offensive lines, the Pirates were able to take advantage just a little better and they went long ball. The Pirates hit 4 solo home runs by Endy Rodriguez, Henry Davis, Jared Triolo, and Ke’Bryan Hayes. Each team had 7 walks, were 2 for 10 with runners in scoring position, while the Pirates left 9 men on base and the Reds 10. The back end of the bullpen did the job, shutting out the Reds over the last 3 innings. The Pirates got a big insurance run in the 9th when the Reds gifted them the run with 2 walks and hit batter, that enabled the Pirates to score the big run without the benefit of a hit. It was another hairy bottom of the 9th, but David Bednar was able to get through it unscathed., The Reds had 1st and 2nd with nobody out when Christian Encarnacion-Strand hit into a double play. Bednar stuck out the next batter and Pirates won their 3rd in a row. Now the Pirates just need 2 more wins to get to 75.

The Key Moment Of The Game: It was the first 2 innings where the Reds had lots of traffic on the bases but could only manage to score 1 run. In the first, the Pirates walked 2 and hit a batter to load the bases with 2 outs but they could not get the big hit. In the bottom of the 2nd a single and 2 walks could only net them 1 run. They could have had two crooked innings and wound up having none. Every time the Cubs took the lead the Pirates were able to come right back and either tie the game or go ahead, beginning with the 4th inning.

Next Game: Tonight, Reds in Cincinnati. The Pirates are taking advantage of another team that is in unfamiliar ground. The Reds are fighting for that final playoff spot, just like the Cubs, and are feeling the pressure. The Pirates are young and loose, clearly enjoying their role as spoilers. The offense has come alive scoring 13, 8, and 7 runs the last 3 games. Let’s hope they can still put a hurtin on the Reds the rest of the weekend.

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Pirates Morning Report: Rundown 101

Final Score: Pirates 8 Cubs 6

Why The Pirates Won: The Pirates were less inept than the Cubs. More on that at the key moment of the game. With the 14 runs last night the series totaled 49 runs for both teams. The first two games were the starter’s failures, but last night it was the bullpens that got rocked around. In only 3 innings of work, the Cubs bullpen gave up 5 runs and the Pirates bullpen 6. Johan Oviedo was the better Oviedo last night not giving up a run in 6 innings despite walking 5 batters. On offense each team got 6 walks and the Pirates collected 11 hits and the Cubs 10. Miguel Andujar had a big game, knocking in 3 runs, while going 3 for 4. About 10 days ago it looked like the Central Division could possibly have 3 teams in the playoffs. Now it is looking more like the it could be just the division winning Brewers who will make it. The Cubs have now lost 7 out of 8 and the Reds have lost 3 of their last 4 games. Both teams finish up on the road with Cubs playing 6 and the Reds 5 road games. The Pirates start a 3 game series with the Reds tonight and can put a big dent in their playoff hopes. Both teams have lousy managers so my guess is they both will miss the playoffs.

Key Moment Of The Game: The Cubs scored 3 runs in the bottom of the 8th to pull within 1 run of the Pirates at 5-4. Bryan Reynolds led off the top of the 9th with a walk. Ke’Bryan Hayes scorched a ball off the left field wall for a double with Reynolds trying to score from 1st base. Reynolds was thrown out at the plate and Hayes was undecided on whether to go to third on the throw. He got caught up in a rundown between 2nd and 3rd, and it looked like the Pirates were going to run themselves into a double play on a double. However, the Cubs came to our rescue by throwing the ball into right field and Hayes made it to 3rd. Jack Suwinski walked after falling behind in the count 0 and 2. Then up stepped Josh (I Will Never Say Another Bad Thing About Him) Palacios. For whatever reason, David Ross did not elect to go to a left hander to face Palacios. Maybe there was not a lefty available. Palcios hit a 3-2 slider for a homer into right center field, that proved to be the difference in the ballgame. David Bednar gave up a 2 run homer to Dansby Swanson in the bottom of the 9th. Instead of it being a dramatic walk off win for the Cubs, it just got them 2 runs closer to lose the game 8-6.

Next Game: Tonight, the Reds in Cincinnati. Another team with playoff hopes, but they are in must win situations. Can the Pirates take advantage of another team that may be choking their guts out. Only the Shadow knows for sure. The Pirates need to go 3 and 6 to get to 75 wins.

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Without Music

Daily writing prompt
What would your life be like without music?
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What would life be without music? Think of all the great movie scores that would not exist. Would we even think about moving to the beat of a different drummer? Would we even know what a drummer is? It is hard to imagine the world without music. Personally, music has always been a means to a way to get things done, relax, increase the feeling of a good mood, absorb and acknowledge a bad mood. My life would not be near as good or as pleasurable without music. I cannot write much more, because it is something that I cannot even fathom. The best way I know how to sum this up is back in the 60’s NFL Films started putting real cool music to the weekly highlights and the rest is history. All I can say is thank God for music.

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Pirates Morning Report: Pitching Duel? What Pitching Duel?

Final Score: Pirates 13 Cubs 7

Why The Pirates Won: They simply just out hit the Cubs. This has been quite an offensive series. There has been a total of 35 runs scored combined in the 2 games, 21 by the Cubs and 14 by the Pirates. This game looked like it should be a pitcher’s duel with both clubs sending out their best pitcher. The Pirates got to Justin Steele in the 4th inning in a big way, getting 7 runs in the inning, with 6 runs being charged to Steele. He could not get an out in the 4th inning, giving up 6 singles in a row. Josh Palacios got the big hit a 3-run homer to make the score 7-1. With Keller on the mound, you had to have the feeling that this one was in the bag, especially after having such an easy 4th inning. Wrong, Josh Palacios hater. The Pirates added a run in the top of the 5th on a Jared Triolo solo home run. In the bottom of the 5th the Cubs just started hitting rocket shots, and I do mean rocket shots off of Keller. In order, home run, single, single, home run, double, with none of the hits under 103 MPH. There was on one weak ground ball that resulted in an out. Again, Oscar Marin came out in the middle of all this, probably setting a major league record. For two games in a row, shortly after one of his worthless trips to the mound, a grand slam home run was hit. I was surprised that the Shadow let Keller stay in the game, but I guess in his warped mind, it was more important for Keller to get a pitching victory, rather than the Pirates winning the game. Somehow, he did manage to get the last 2 outs to pick up his 13th win. Fortunately, the bullpen came through, shutting down the Cub offense, allowing the Pirates to beat the Cubs for only the 2nd time this year.

Key Moment Of The Game: The 4th inning explosion by the Pirates. The Pirates wasted a golden scoring opportunity in the top of the 1st when they had 2nd and 3rd and 1 out. Connor Joe, taking a page out of the Daniel Vogelbach hitting instruction manual, took 4 pitches in a row, with 3 of them called strikes. Two runners in scoring position and Joe does not take the bat off his shoulder. There is an old adage, if you let a good pitcher off the hook in the 1st inning you will pay the price. If looked like this was going to happen when the Pirates went up and down in order the next 2 innings. However, in the top of the 4th the Pirates’ bats came alive, resulting in the big 7 run inning that carried the Pirates to victory.

Next Game: Tonight, Cubs in Chicago. Let’s hope that anybody attending tonight’s game does not have to go to work early tomorrow. The Pirates are sending Johan (100 Pitch 5 Inning) Oviedo to the mound. If Kyle Hendricks is having control issues, which sometimes he does, this could be the longest 9 inning game of the year. The longest 9 inning game this year that did not go extra innings is 3 hours and 58 minutes. This could be broken tonight.

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Celebrate? They Should Be Banned

Daily writing prompt
How do you celebrate holidays?
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Holidays are the scourge of human society. These are days that are set aside to do things that are kind, caring, and acknowledging that we should be doing every day anyway. I am not going to bash every holiday separately except one that I do not know is even a holiday, but people certainly celebrate it. Halloween is the worst day of the year. It is a holiday of bizarre rituals and superstitions. It has caused people to be burned at the stake. In today’s world, parents send their 3 to 10 year olds out into the neighborhood to get things that they would not let them eat all year. Kids come home with 300 bars of candy and eat them in about 2 weeks, then try and hang the cat upside down on a bungy cord. The candy also rots their liver, destroys their pancreas and they have sleeping disorders until the next Halloween. Getting back to the real holidays. People make promises to themselves that they can’t keep. They go out the day before another holiday and drink so much that they do not even remember what happened and vow never to do it again. One holiday they stuff themselves with so much food that they have to take a nap one hour afterward. Some holidays cause so much stress and depression that suicide rates go up. We celebrate are so called independence with fireworks that make dogs and cats hide in terror and crap all over the house. They may shake and puke for up to a week afterward. Other holidays are to honor our service men who gave their lives for this country and also the current individuals that are serving our country today. However, the other 364 days of the year the government shits all over them. Some people think that this is a great day for families to get together. Why do you need a “special” day just to get together. The old adage of you can choose your friends but not your relatives becomes particularly true during the holidays. I have known some families that have had to have a family meeting during such joyous times. The bother-in-laws and sisters-in-laws were banned. Why does anybody need a holiday to get together, just get the ef together. Having written all of that do I enjoy any holiday. Really, I do not. But I am not going to be the party pooper. I enjoy watching my grandkids open their Christmas presents. I have prepared huge Thanksgiving Day and Christmas meals and loved every minute of it. But the fact of the matter is holidays cause more harm than good and this little blog has barely touched the surface.

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Pirates Morning Report: Thank God, Just Two More Cubs Games

Final Score: Pirates 1 Cubs 14

Why The Pirates Lost: They were playing the Cubs. Even for a Cub game some of the game’s stats were mind blowing. The Cubs used 5 pitchers despite the score. The Pirates struck out 16 times. The offense produced only 4 singles and a home run for their only run. The Cubs had 8 extra base hits, including 4 home runs. The Pirate pitchers walked 6 and hit a batter along with giving up 12 hits. There was one good thing that happened in this blowout loss. Quinn Priester pitched 6 innings and gave up “only” 4 runs. He is off the run an inning schneid. His ERA has finally dropped below 9. Now we can say he is making progress. Then there was the major league debut of Kyle Nicolas. He showed he was a true Pirate pitcher by hitting the first batter he faced, and after getting one out, walked the next two. In the middle of all this Oscar Marin went out to the mound for another one of his worthless trips. He must have told him to just throw the ball over the middle of the plate, because that’s what he did, the result being a grand slam home run. Why did it have to stop raining?

Key Moment Of The Game: When it stopped raining.

Next game: Tonight, Cubs in Chicago. The Pirates are 1-10 against the Cubs this year. If they could have been 5-6 a .500 season could have been a possibility. Mitch Keller is going out on the mound tonight, but it is against their ace, Justin Steele. It would be nice to see Keller outpitch Steele tonight and get the win.

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Pirates Morning Report: One Is Better Than None

Final Score: Pirates 3 Yankees 2

Why The Pirates Won: The up and down pitching staff was up yesterday limiting the Yankees to 2 runs, 4hits and 3 walks. The Pirate offense was not much better but was good enough to push across 3 runs to eke out the win. The Pirates had a bullpen day with Selby 2 innings, Jackson 4 and 1/3, Borucki 2/3, Mlodzinski 1 and Bednar getting the save pitching 1 inning. On offense Andujar hit a solo home run, with Delay and Peguero getting the other 2 RBI’s. On a side note, the Pirates, continuing from the game before, did go 28 batters before they got a man on base. They did not quite make 30 in a row. The Pirates were able to salvage the final game of the series for a 4-3 homestand. Now, they head out for a difficult 9 game road trip playing the Cubs, Reds, and Phillies. The last 4 series the Pirates play are all against playoff contenders. The Diamondbacks are quickly becoming Pirate fans.

The Key Moment Of The Game: In the bottom of the 7th with the score tied at 2-2, the Pirates had a runner on 2nd base with two out and Jason (I Wish I Was AS Good As The Pirate Broadcast Booth Thinks I Am) Delay at bat. The count was 0 balls and 2 strikes when this happened on the next 3 pitches. The first pitch was a curve ball that just caught the inside corner of the plate just below the letters but was called a ball. The second pitch Delay fouled one down the right field line that just went out of play by about 2 yards. The third pitch Delay hit an 82 MPH ground ball toward 3rd that just hit the inside edge of the third base bag and went into the corner to score the go ahead run to make the score 3-2. The Pirates’ luck had returned, and the bullpen made it stand up the rest of the way for a victory over the Yankees.

Next Game: Tomorrow, the Cubs in Chicago. Naturally the Pirates do not know who is going to pitch on Tuesday. At the minimum the Pirates need to win 3 out of the 9 games to get to 75 wins. I don’t know why I am focused on 75 wins. It just sounds like a nice round number to get to as far as wins are concerned. The Pirates will play meaningful games in September. They are just meaningful to the other team. Go Bucs! Break somebodies’ heart.