The Pirate Limbo: How Low Can They Go?

The Pittsburgh Pirates continued to push the limits of how much bad baseball one city can tolerate with a 14-2 loss last night in Chicago, highlighted by a home run from Cubs pitcher Carlos Zambrano.

Today's Headlines

The PITTSBURGH PIRATES notched yet another victory over the Chicago Cubs yesterday at Wrigley, this one by a 2-0 count. Brad Lincoln allowed just four hits in earning his first MLB victory, and Octavio Dotel finished off Lou Piniella's team for his 16th save.

Garrett Jones drove in the winning run in the eight inning, and Lastings Milledge drew a bases-loaded walk for the Bucs' second run. The Pirates managed the usual seven hits, with two singles from Andrew McCutchen leading the way.

Daniel McCutchen (0-3, 11.00 ERA) duels with Cole Hamels (6-6, 4.08) as the Phillies come to PNC Park for a 7:05 game tonight.

My take: If only this team could play the Cubs 162 times in a season, all our worries would go away. While the Bucs did win two games, they scored a grand total of five runs in the three-game series, winning 2-1 and 2-0 and losing 3-1. It's fantastic that the Pirates pitched so well, but they can't expect to win many more series when putting up such little offense.

SERGEI GONCHAR will go to unrestricted free agency today, and it's looking less and less likely that he will return to the Penguins. Ray Shero has been quiet on the talks with Dan Hamhuis, but apparently nothing has happened on that front, either.

Rob Rossi listed some of the Pens' alternatives in a column for the Trib today, including Kurtis Foster of Tampa Bay and Zbynek Michalek of Phoenix. Mark Eaton and Jordan Leopold would also move up the priority list in the event that Gonchar and/or Hamhuis decides to move on. Meanwhile, Joe Starkey is looking at another year of Winger Roulette, and adds a few names to the mix of players who could fill the always-present void at that position.

My take: It's funny how quickly things can change in sports. A few days ago, we heard about the plan to keep Gonchar and Hamhuis and build one of the league's deepest defenses. Now it's looking like neither one will sign with the team and the Pens will be scrambling to fill holes with lower-tier players. On the heels of the failed Alexei Ponikarovsky experiment, Ray Shero is in need of a truly solid deal; not necessarily a home-run, but definitely an extra-base hit.

THE PENN STATE NITTANY LIONS found enough room on their future schedules to ink a three-game deal with Syracuse, to be renewed in 2013 at New Meadowlands Stadium in East Rutherford, N.J. Syracuse would play at Beaver Stadium on September 19, 2020, and the Nittany Lions would visit Syracuse on September 18, 2021.

Meanwhile, a certain local college football team with a bit of history sits idly by, still not worth of the Nittany Lions' time. Coincidence? Obviously.

My take: You really don't know my take on this by now? 

Introducing "The Hot Button"

I'm pleased to announce that effective immediately, I'm writing a second weekly feature for 93.7 The Fan, and the debut installment is available right here. It's called "The Hot Button", and it's basically a pumped-up version of our weekly Paris Hilton-hosted polls, but with more of my opinions and takes on topics beyond Pittsburgh sports.

In our first run, I take a look at several controversial topics in the sports world, including an extended look at the courtship of LeBron James, Carlos Zambrano's well-publicized  and controversial dinner with Ozzie Guillen, the NFL going to an 18-game schedule, Stephen Strasburg's All-Star credentials, and how the loss of Willie Colon might affect the Steelers in 2010. 

Much like in the MH version, you can vote in online polls, and as always, you can also tell me how wrong I am in the comments section.

The Hot Button [93.7 The Fan]

Lilly, Soriano End Bucs' Win Streak at One

So much for the Pirates' uncanny hold over the Cubs this year - it did them little good on Tuesday night in a 3-1 loss at Chicago on Tuesday night.

The Battlin' Bucs, who were somehow 8-2 against the Cubs in 2010 entering this contest, could muster just one run, a fifth-inning Ryan Doumit solo shot, across the plate on Tuesday. Doumit also doubled, and Garrett Jones added two hits as well; but once again, timely hitting with men on base was not the Pirates' strong suit.

Of course, the Cubs weren't much better, going 0-for-5 with runners in scoring position - but if the other team scores one run and Alfonso Soriano hits two solo homers, you win. It's that simple, and that's exactly what happened for Chicago, which also got seven strong innings from perennial Pirate-killer Ted Lilly to aid their cause.

Jeff Karstens (2-3) allowed three runs (two earned) and seven hits in six innings for the Pirates, striking out two and walking one. If you take away those mistakes to Soriano, he has a pretty good night, but unfortunately, they counted.

The series goes to a rubber match on Wednesday, as old friend Tom Gorzelanny (2-5, 3.41) takes on Brad Lincoln (0-2, 6.00) at 2:20 p.m. at Wrigley. It's old Pirate pitching prospect against new Pirate pitching prospect - how's that for drama?

Cleveland: Always the Elixir for Whatever Ails Pittsburgh

If there was ever a town that could understand what the Pirates are going through, it's Cleveland, Ohio. As they struggle right now to maintain any shred of self-respect they have left to try and woo LeBron James, their city was probably a little bit distracted from a weekend series featuring two teams with a combined record of 51-86.

SILVA & STOMACH FLU BEAT WEAK PIRATE LINEUP

Chicago Cubs pitcher Carlos Silva, battling a stomach flu, gave up four hits, struck out five and walked one in an easy 6-1 win over an impotent Pirates lineup this afternoon at PNC Park. 

The game was played in front of an estimated 3,000 fans who turned out for the highly-anticipated debut of new Pirate pitcher Dana Eveland (above), whom general manager Neal Huntington called a "probable upgrade" to the Pirates' current starting rotation. So what's that mean, he's probably better than Charlie Morton? That should generate some excitement.

Eveland gave up six hits and three runs in his five innings of work, getting tagged with his first of many Pirate losses surely to come. But honestly, he had little to no chance to win with the lineup the Pirates threw out on Monday. Delwyn Young (.238) 3rd? Lastings Milledge (.246) 5th? We also got Bobby Crosby (.239) 6th, Jason Jaramillo (.195) 7th, and Ronny Cedeno (.240) 8th. I guess Jeff Clement was unavailable, because he would've been perfect in the clean-up spot. After seeing this motley crew of a batting order, no one should be surprised that the Pirates turned in six hits and one run on the afternoon.

Thankfully, it should be an exciting 24 hours (by Pirate standards), as the draft takes place at 7 Eastern tonight and Strasburg Mania hits tomorrow at 7:05, with Jeff Karstens taking the hill for the Bucs. It would've been nice to see Brad Lincoln in that spot, but the Pirates probably didn't want to give us too much excitement in one week.

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TODAY'S HEADLINES

A big night for Neil Walker, Strasburg vs. the Bucs, why a Pittsburgh council member says you should root for the Flyers, The Pens' Student Flush, Howard Baldwin's hopes for Hartford hockey, a new team for Bruce Davis, an update on Herb Pope, Houston baseball fare and big trouble for Big Mama lead a jam-packed edition of Headlines:

PIRATES CONTINUE STRANGE OWNERSHIP OF CUBS

They scored two runs. They went to battle with a less-than-intimidating 3-4-5 of Andy LaRoche (.248), Garrett Jones (.261), and Ryan Church (.204), a trio that's hit a combined 10 home runs - less than eight individual players in the NL. (And by the way, fun sidenote: I just realized that Jose Bautista, Ty Wigginton, and Jose Guillen have combined for 40, yes 40, home runs this season.) But somehow, some way, the Pittsburgh Pirates won their sixth game over the Chicago Cubs in seven opportunities this season, by the final score of 2-1. And as usual, it wasn't easy.

Ross Ohlendorf, who has been the victim of poor run support throughout the season, allowed only three hits and one run over seven innings, that one run coming as a result of an left fielder (Church) who doesn't understand the words "I got it, I got it, I got it, I got it!" when screamed by his center fielder. 

For his efforts on the mound, Mr. Wonderful walked away with a no-decision and continues to search for his first victory of 2010, despite giving up two runs or less in four of six starts. Maybe he can throw a perfect game to get a W. They seem to be quite prevalent these days.

Ironically, it was the aforementioned Jones that supplied the bulk of the Pirate offense on Monday, hitting a solo shot in the sixth and scoring the winning run in the eighth after a double to right. 

Neil Walker, one of the few Pirates who is hitting, had another two hits and upped his average to .321 since being recalled from Indy. Walker's had at least two hits in four of his seven games for the Bucs in 2010, and thankfully has replaced the dreadful Aki Iwamura for the foreseeable future as the regular 2B. 

The light-hitting Bobby Crosby capped off the Pirate "attack" with the eventual game-winning pinch hit in the eighth, scoring Jones. Like most Pirate wins, it wasn't  exactly pretty; but at this point, we'll take 'em if and when we can get 'em. 

The two teams lock horns again at PNC on Tuesday at 7:05, as Ted Lilly (3.63, 1-4) meets Jeff Karstens (4.78, 1-1). Offense, as always, will be optional.

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CUBS AVOID SWEEP, EDGE PIRATES

Derrek Lee, Marlon Byrd, and Alfonso Soriano had three hits each to pace the Chicago Cubs in a series-ending 4-3 victory over the Pittsburgh Pirates on Sunday. The Cubs win ended a seven-game losing streak to the Pirates dating back to 2009.

This one was all but a cakewalk for the much-maligned, well-compensated Cubbies on Sunday. Facing a 3-1 hole for much of the game, Chicago rallied for two runs in the bottom of the seventh against Pirate reliever Evan Meek, then went ahead in the bottom of the eighth on a Xavier Nady pinch-hit, go-ahead single off of DJ Carrasco. The blown lead wasted a solid effort from starter Ross Ohlendorf, who threw six innings of four-hit, two-run ball.

The Pirate bats were mostly quiet on Sunday, with only six hits off of Cubs starter Ted Lilly and none against the Chicago bullpen. Bobby Crosby had two singles for the Bucs, Ryan Doumit had the team's lone extra-base hit (a double) and Lastings Milledge drove in two. 

The 16-21 Buccos now travel to Philadelphia for a two-game set against the defending NL Champs starting Monday. Charlie Morton will face Kyle Kendrick in that one, while Zach Duke now has the task of dueling with Roy Halladay on Tuesday.

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PIRATES CONTINUE DOMINANCE OF CUBS

I thought Tom Ricketts now owned the Cubs, but it appears I've been mistaken - they're obviously owned by the Pittsburgh Pirates, strange as that sounds.

After a 10-6 win over the Cubs on Friday, paced by five hits each from Garrett Jones and Andrew McCutchen, the Pirates jumped on Ryan Dempster for three runs in the top of the first on Saturday, and light-hitting Jeff Clement added a much-needed insurance home run in the 9th to upend Lou Piniella's team, 4-3, on Saturday. The win was the Bucs' seventh in a row against the Cubs, and their ninth win over Chicago in their last 11 meetings. I'd try to explain it, but frankly, I'm at a loss.

In this one, Octavio Dotel made it very interesting late in the game, but ultimately blew away Ryan Theriot and Marlon Byrd in succession to earn his seventh save. Paul Maholm gave up eight hits and two earned runs over six innings to raise his record to 3-3 on the year for Pittsburgh. 

The Pirate offense was far less potent than it was on Friday, yet was still efficient enough to pull this one out. Andrew McCutchen and Clement each had two hits for the Bucs, and Ryan Church drove in two on the afternoon.

The Pirates now sport a 16-20 record heading into Sunday's series finale, when Ross "Mr. Wonderful" Ohlendorf (3.00, 0-1) battles Ted Lilly (4.88, 1-3). The Buccos then travel to Philly for games on Monday and Tuesday, when the highly-anticipated faceoff of Roy Halladay and Charlie Morton goes down.

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CHARLIE MORTON AND HIS GREAT STUFF FINALLY WIN A GAME

We've been hearing about Charlie Morton's "Great Stuff" for what feels like decades, even though he hasn't even been with the organization for a year. In his first five outings of 2010, his earned runs were, in order, 8, 6, 5, 5, and 3, all losses. His ERA ranged between a low of 12.57 and a high of 21.60. To say that great stuff was not making much of a difference would be a fair assessment.

Thankfully, Morton appears to have turned it around of late, making some inroads in his previous start and finally getting his first win of the season last night in a 4-2 decision over the Chicago Cubs.

Morton went six innings, allowing five hits and two earned runs while striking out three and walking not a single Cub. His ERA was "lowered" to 10.30 in the process, the lowest it's been all season.

The Pirates are 12-15, and Morton has basically sunk their ship in at least four of those games. He may be just one man, but getting him to be even passable as a starter could make a noticeable difference with this team's results. Plus, there's the added benefit of less stress on the Pirate bullpen, which has logged about 26 innings in Morton's five previous starts. So consider last night a potentially big step, being extremely cautious in that enthusiasm.

As far as the Bucco offense, they had nine hits and four runs off of Cubs starter Ted Lilly in a balanced attack, featuring four players with at least two hits. Ryan Church homered for the second time in the series and Garrett Jones knocked in two to lead the charge.

The Pirates go for the three-game sweep at 7:05 tonight, with Randy Wells (3.45, 3-0) taking on Brian Burres (6.00, 1-1).

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PIRATE NEWS AND NOTES

For the three of you who still care, some notes on our historic Pittsburgh Pirates:

--A day after setting the record for their 17th consecutive losing season, the Pirates allowed eight straight hits to the Cubs to start last night's game, which tied a MLB record. In case you're wondering, yes, they lost 9-4. High points included Garrett Jones' 19th home run and the Arnold Palmer 80th birthday ceremony. Kevin Hart vs. Carlos Zambrano at 12:35 today. [ESPN, PG]

--Vote in the Sports Pickle poll for the Pirates' high point in the past 17 years (not counting the Arnold Palmer ceremony).

--Lengthy articles on 17 were all around. Here's one from ESPN.com's Howard Bryant ("Lost Pirates recharting their course") with a quote from old friend Tom of Rum Bunter fame.

--And from SI's Joe Posnanski, "Pittsburgh's certainly not alone in baseball's era of futility". Some great/bad stats in here.

--Danny Murtaugh for the Hall of Fame? Sure, why not. It's not like we have many other candidates from the organization. [PB&G]

--Jason Bay hits the town in Boston. Apparently he stole Frank Sinatra's hat for the occasion. [Boston.com]

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HISTORY MADE AT PNC

The Pirates finally met the inevitable at PNC Park on Monday, losing their 82nd game of the season and clinching a 17th consecutive losing campaign, the new high-point in futility for North American pro sports teams. The previous record was 16 straight seasons by the Philadelphia Phillies from 1933-1948, the long-running blueprint of bad baseball. Prior to their banner 78-76 campaign in 1932, the Phillies also had losing records in each season from 1918 through 1931. But contrary to popular belief, their organization was never owned by any ancestors of the McClatchy or Nutting families.

In a fitting display of impotent offense that managed just two hits, the 54-82 Pirates were taken down by the 69-67 Chicago Cubs by a 4-2 final on Labor Day. Derek Lee homered twice and drove in three for Chicago, which dealt rookie Daniel McCutchen his first Major League loss. Brandon Moss (double) and Andy LaRoche (HR) had the two Pirate hits.

The Pirates, who have lost 10 of 11, fell to 2-7 against the Cubs on the season. They've got six more shots at the Fightin' Piniellas before the season is over, including a Tuesday matchup of Ryan Dempster and Zach Duke at PNC. 26 games remain on the Pirates' 2009 schedule, so they would have to go at least 9-17 to avoid the 100-loss plateau, which they've surprisingly achieved only once (2001) during the streak and seven times in club history.

Dubious distinction: Pirates set futility record with loss to Cubs [Trib]

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17-2

Wednesday night: Rockies 8, Pirates 0
Thursday night: Rockies 10, Pirates 1
Friday afternoon: Cubs 17, Pirates 2

1-11 this month
7-19 since the break
46-69 overall
A starting pitcher that gives up 10 earned runs in an inning
A manager that leaves a pitcher in long enough to give up 10 earned runs in one inning
A team that's been outscored 35-3 in the past three games

I'd say this was rock bottom, but then again, I've said that about 100 times before.
Can we just keep talking about Sean Paul instead?

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ABOUT THIS LASTINGS MILLEDGE CHARACTER

As you've probably heard, the Pirates just traded for the talented, colorful, and sometimes troubled young man shown above, one Lastings Milledge. The 24-year-old, who was the 12th overall pick by the New York Mets in the 2003 MLB Draft, has a very high ceiling, much higher than that of departed OF Nyjer Morgan, who was the epitome of a "sell high" player if the Pirates ever had one.

But talented 24-year-olds don't just go from team to team to team in a span of three years unless there's a catch, and you can be sure that there's a big one with Milledge. You see, his behavior is, shall we say, erratic at best. For example one, let's go to old friend Wikipedia:

Prior to the 2003 amateur draft, he was expected to be among the top three selections, but as draft day approached, press reports from 2002 resurfaced regarding Milledge's expulsion from Northside Christian High School after his junior year for allegedly having sex with a minor. He subsequently transferred to Lakewood Ranch High School where he finished his education and amateur baseball career.

As a result of the incident, Milledge was passed over in the 2003 amateur draft until the Mets selected him as the twelfth overall pick in the first round. The Mets began contract negotiations with Milledge, but the talks were interrupted in early August 2003, when the Mets learned of allegations of additional sexual misconduct against Milledge during his time at Northside.

That's certainly newsworthy. But wait...there's more. Fast-forward to 2007:

In May, it was reported that Milledge appeared in a rap song, "Bend Ya Knees," by Manny D, a childhood friend. The song contained the words "b***h", "ho", and "n***a". The Mets organization responded by saying, "We disapprove of the content, language and message of this recording, which does not represent the views of the New York Mets."

OK, so he's proven that his judgment is not the best. But I'll be he's got some great intro music each time he comes to bat.

Make no bones about it: dealing Morgan and P Sean Burnett for Milledge and reliever Joel Hanrahan this afternoon was somewhat of a calculated risk (although USA Today is calling it a potential heist for the Pirates). But really, aren't all trades?

As previously stated, Morgan's value was peaking right now. Yes, he was a nice guy who fans enjoyed, and yes, he played solid defense; but you can't overlook the fact that A) he couldn't get on base nearly enough, and B) he's been thrown out 10 times in 28 stolen base attempts this season. Plus, he's four years older than Milledge. Burnett has had a good season by his standards, but he's very replaceable. The most interesting question I can think of regarding his departure is whether or not someone will return the favor and build a shrine to him as he did for Nate McLouth.

In Hanrahan, the Pirates pickup a flamethrower who reaches the high 90s. True, his ERA is an unsightly 7.71 this season in 32 innings, and he's a ghastly 5-for-10 in save opportunities; but his strikeout to walk ratio this season is an impressive 35:14. That's at least something to work with.

Pirate clubhouse reaction has been the typical, boo-hoo variety. Jack Wilson, obviously long overdue for a plane ticket out of the Burgh, had this to say:

"The bottom line is, even if this trade does work out, it's not going to matter to 80 percent of the people in here," Wilson said. "And over the years, these trades haven't worked. Show me the ones that have worked."

Wilson described himself as "beyond, beyond tired" of such moves.

"We know that they're looking to the future, which doesn't say much about 2009," he continued. "That's probably what's so shocking. We're five games out, and we lost two or three of our everyday players. That's what hits us the most. You can understand if it's the end of July. You see that stuff coming. ... They're businessmen. They're trying to achieve winning baseball in Pittsburgh. The biggest question is: When is that going to be. When do things start turning around? It's just hard for guys who have been here and seen these exact same trades happen and seen it absolutely do nothing. I've been here nine years. I've seen these trades 2 or 3 times a year every year and still haven't had a winning season. You hope, eventually, some of these trades will work out. It's just they haven't yet. They think they're getting deals they can't pass up. I guess. I guess. I guess. Whatever."

In his haste to push his employer down the stairs, Wilson failed to realize that many of his very teammates (the Brothers LaRoche, Freddy Sanchez, Delwyn Young, Brandon Moss, Jason Jaramillo, etc.) were acquired via these trades that "haven't worked". Hopefully, the next Huntington deal can include either Wilson, Ian Snell, or Adam LaRoche, three veterans who have clearly soured on the Pirate experience and are not part of the future.

In Washington, acting GM Mike Rizzo is telling Nats fans they just acquired "two cornerstones of the organization". That's right, now Nyjer Morgan and Sean Burnett are cornerstones of an organization. Comments like that will probably ensure that Rizzo's title will never go beyond "acting".

As for the on-field product, the Pirates shut out the Cubs, 3-0, behind three hits from Freddy Sanchez and seven innings (and eight Ks) from Ross "Mr. Wonderful" Ohlendorf. Don't look now, but the last-place Buccos are only six games out of first.
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UPDATED: "I PITY THE PIRATES!"

Those are the words of none other than Laurence "Mr. T." Tureaud, who threw out the first pitch and sang "Take Me Out to the Ballgame" at yesterday's Pirates-Cubs contest. At the conclusion of his seventh-inning serenade, he proclaimed to the denizens of the Windy City that he "pities the Pirates".

Hey T, I love ya, but we're not the ones who've lost eight in a row. I guess we know what a payroll of $135 million and the great Lou Piniella buys you: a 21-22 record and a one-game lead over the Pirates near the end of May.

Full T hijinks at the 1:30 mark:

UPDATE:

T and Pirates PR guru Jim Trdinich, from Jim's Facebook page

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