Pirates vs. Red Sox : 6.25.11

Recap: The Pirates were able to eke out a win last night behind some great starting pitching (Maholm - 5 1/3 innings, 6 hits, 1 ER, 3 BB, 2 K's), some timely hitting (Overbay - 2 for 4 with 1 RBI and 1 R against a lefty after being benched for the Baltimore series) and finally some great work from the bullpen as a whole (3 2/3 innings, 3 hits, 1 BB, 2 K's, 0 runs).  The biggest moment of the game had to be David Ortiz's at bat against Jose Veras in the 8th.  With runners on 2nd and 3rd and 2 outs, Ortiz is sent to the plate to pinch hit.  Veras who had already given up 2 hits, is left in the game (instead of being lifted for a left handed pitcher) and promptly gets Ortiz to ground out to Cedeno who was playing up the middle with the shift on.  The entirety of the at bat came in a deluge that distracted Ortiz and allowed Veras to get the out.  After that "the Hammer" came in and went 1, 2, 3 against the top of the Red Sox order and the game was over.

Pitching Probables:

 Jeff Karstens (4-4, 2.54 ERA) vs. Tim Wakefield (4-2, 4.26 ERA)

Matchup (sort of): Did you know that Tim Wakefield (who is 44 years old) is the last active major league player who was playing the last time the Pirates had a winning season.  The year was 1992 and Wakefield, then a 24 year old, was a starting pitcher for your Pittsburgh Pirates.  Wakefield has had one hell of a career.  After being released by the Pirates following the strike season of 1994, Wakefield moved on the the Red Sox and has become the team leader in games started, innings pitched and with 10 more victories the leader in career wins passing legends Roger Clemens and Cy Young, talk about good company.  Wakefield's best year statistically was his first year with the Red Sox in 1995.  That year he went 16-8 with a 2.95 ERA and 1.18 WHIP in 27 starts including 6 complete games.  Eventhough Wakefield has had the majority of his success while pitching for the Red Sox, he was instrumental in helping the Pirates reach the playoff in his rookie year of 1992.  Wakefield's first win with the Bucs came on July 31, 1992 when he beat the Cardinals in St. Louis with a complete game, 146-pitch shutout.  That year he finished 8-1 with a 2.15 ERA and also had 2 complete game victories over the Braves in the NLCS.  The only time Wakefield has faced his old team was he he pitched seven scoreless innings at Fenway Park on June 18, 2005.  Wakefield has announced that he will retire at the end of this season and when he does there will be no one left in the major leagues that has been on a winning Pittsburgh Pirate team, unless...

Prediction: I know I really didn't talk about any matchup's in the matchup section and rather used that space to talk about Tim Wakefield, the knuckleballer, and his amazing career.  With that being said, the Pirates have faced a knuckleballer this year in the Mets, R.A. Dickey and fared much better against him the second time they faced him.  The Pirates also have Jeff Karstens on the mound tonight who is 1-0 with a 0.65 ERA in four June starts.  Although Andrew McCutchen was 0 for 3 last night and has struggled against knuckleballers, I think he will be the player the Pirates need him to be tonight.  I also fully expect Garrett Jones to be in the lineup tonight against the right handed pitcher so look for him to have a good game.  Also, congrats to Chase d'Arnaud who made his major league debut last night at 3rd base and promptly hit his first triple.  Chase is the Pirates best infield prospect and more importantly best shortstop prospect, so he will be one to watch.  All of the above leads me to believe that the Pirates will be relaxed and will play well in front of another huge crowd tonight.  I look for the Pirates to chase Wakefield and hang on for the win.  Pirate 7 - Red Sox 5.  Let's Go Bucs!