Pirates 9, Mets 3: Luckiest. Inning. Ever.
by Charlie Wilmoth on Jun 1, 2011 10:43 PM EDT
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PrintThere was a moment in the first inning of this one when there was a man on base, and Jason Bay hit a ball to deep right center. Andrew McCutchen ended up running about 30 yards (EDIT: epoc says in the comments that it was almost 60 yards, according to the Mets broadcast) to make a spectacular catch to end the threat, but as the ball was hanging in the air, I was worried that it would land and the Mets would get that one run, because if they did, the Pirates' offense would have to score at least two runs to win the game.
As it turns out, the Pirates did find ways to score. Sort of. I felt bad for Mets starter Chris Capuano, who pitched very well for six innings and then got stuck with a ridiculous five-spot in an absurd seventh inning. McCutchen started things off with an infield single, and then Neil Walker laid down a great bunt with the Mets' third baseman playing way back; everyone was safe. (And by the way, the bunt wasn't really a sacrifice but rather a response to conditions on the field. Good play by whoever called it.) Matt Diaz then had another infield single to load the bases. Chris Snyder hit the ball to shortstop and the Mets threw to third. The runner should have been called out by force, but Willie Harris also tagged the runner, which I think confused the ump, who called him safe. Lyle Overbay followed with a single to right that glanced off Angel Pagan's glove. After a Ronny Cedeno strikeout, Xavier Paul pinch-hit and singled to right. Then Jose Tabata grounded into a fielder's choice for an RBI Josh Harrison capped things off with another RBI infield single.
Yes, that's right - that's five infield singles in one inning, plus a couple other lucky breaks. The Pirates added four more runs in the eighth in another long inning, but by that point, they had all they needed. Kevin Correia was the latest Pirates starter to post a quality start, allowing two runs in six innings while striking out four and walking two. Honestly, the Pirates probably won this game on merit. But a whole boatload of luck didn't hurt.
******
Just a reminder that I'll be on 104.7 FM after the game.
UPDATE: The radio interview got bumped until later this week. I'll let you know when it will run.
UPDATE: I forgot to mention that Correia's win tonight gave him eight for the season, most in the majors. That's not a statistic I pay a lot of attention to, for obvious reasons, but it's still pretty cool.
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Karma...
That is all I have to say…
by Joey Mooney on Jun 1, 2011 10:11 PM EDT via mobile reply actions
McCutchen's catch
He ran 171.6 feet to catch that ball, as per the Mets’ broadcast. So almost a full 60-yard dash. Amazing play.
5.46
By the very unscientific method that is my Timex watch. From bat contact to catch.
The glare of the spotlight is harsh, and the pressure that success breeds immense. We revere our heroes, but expect much. And criticism can come as easily as praise.
3 more trials have the avg around 5.5
All three were 5.46-5.62. All three thoroughly impressive
The glare of the spotlight is harsh, and the pressure that success breeds immense. We revere our heroes, but expect much. And criticism can come as easily as praise.
60-yard dash
ML average is about 6.8, and that’s full-out, head-down sprint. Cutch had to turn and keep his eyes on the ball as he ran. Unbelievable.
Unbelievable seems like the right word for it
So I ran about 10 more trials. All in the same range. That was incredible
The glare of the spotlight is harsh, and the pressure that success breeds immense. We revere our heroes, but expect much. And criticism can come as easily as praise.
I have a feeling
that the distance will turn out to be closer to 50 yards if someone actually measures. Still pretty darn good, though!
I think you're right
Given that the American record in the 55m dash (about 181 yds) is 6 flat. That being said, those 6 yards is 2 strides, or about a second
The glare of the spotlight is harsh, and the pressure that success breeds immense. We revere our heroes, but expect much. And criticism can come as easily as praise.
55 meters is about 60 yards, not 181 yards
I think you meant to say 181 /i/feet/i/
Thank you, I did.
Given that difference of 10 feet, its about 1 second. Still too small a gap between a baseball player going towards the wall and a world class runner on indoor conditions
The glare of the spotlight is harsh, and the pressure that success breeds immense. We revere our heroes, but expect much. And criticism can come as easily as praise.
Wow
That is unreal. That’s also borderline World Champion caliber (if they ran the 55m at Worlds). I’m beginning to believe this combination of distance and time alot more
The glare of the spotlight is harsh, and the pressure that success breeds immense. We revere our heroes, but expect much. And criticism can come as easily as praise.
wow, thanks
I was wondering what the time was on that. That’s incredible. He ran a bee-line route, too. That was the best catch I’ve seen in a long, long time.
yep, web gem indeed, and will be on the year end highlight reel for sure
good diving catch by Paul too late in the game
To me, what made it even more impressive was the fact that he didn’t have to dive full out to catch it, but had enough speed and vision to catch up to it and slide feet first, making it an easier catch for himself(though no less impressive) and avoiding the almost definite injury that would’ve happened had he crashed into the wall like that.
Luck goes both ways.
There were a bunch of bleeders and bloopers against Morton last time. We’ll get the opposite luck again eventually.
by Adam Reynolds on Jun 1, 2011 10:25 PM EDT via mobile reply actions
I’ve always thought of the Pirates as the exception that proves the rule that luck evens out.
You're entitled to your own opinions. You're not entitled to your own facts.
8 wins for Correia, and the same amount of total road wins as 2010.
by Adam Reynolds on Jun 1, 2011 10:38 PM EDT via mobile reply actions
Random spot for this comment
but with that lack of prospect-related fanposts to the right I’ll throw it in here.
Heard a good portion of the pre-game interview with the Curve pitching coach today. He said that he would imagine Bryan Morris would eventually get a shot in the rotation again, but he also seemed to indicate that Morris is likely a reliever long-term, and that that route might be his quickest to the majors.
Disheartening if that’s how it works out.
i kind of thought so
There were a lot of reports to that effect when Morris was moved into the bullpen late last year. A lot of scouts really feel his stuff plays way up out of the ‘pen. It’s a bit disheartening considering the ceiling he had, but he’s never gotten results as a starter (aside from 40 IP at Bradenton last year), and there have always been considerable questions about the CH and command. Plus he’s already 24 and still in AA. It sucks that he’s essentially our only return for Bay, but I’ll be happy to get a good 8th-inning guy out of him.
Anything else of interest from that interview?
Didn't catch the entire thing.
Just the end. It went kind of like this
(In response to Morris moving back into the rotation) …“Well…..I’d imagine he may get back into the rotation at some point, we’ll have to see. He’s shown that he can be very effective out of the bullpen, and that may be the quickest route to the majors for him. We’ll have to see what the Pirates want us to do as far as that goes.”
His tone of voice indicated his opinions on the matter moreso than his words did, although I suppose tone is subjective and somebody else could have heard the same interview and gotten a much different impression.
thanks
As a relief prospect, I still think Morris is pretty good. The FB/CU combo is wicked, and like I said I’ve heard it plays way up in relief (I’ve only ever seen him as a starter).
I don't think the front office...
is ready to pigeon hole him yet. I think he’ll get another opportunity to start. There are not a lot of high ceiling guys in the system above AA and Huntinton has always said Morris had the best upside and stuff. But, like epoc said, I think whether or not his change up develops will eventually determine his role. Brad Lincoln is still a starter so I see no reason why Morris would switch now.
#AllTheBuntsAreBad!
agreed
morris is relieving right now but pitching multiple innings. IMO, they are just building up his arm strength for a return to the rotation
agree as well
if crotta got to remain a starter, then they should give morris every chance as well. granted there was less competition for roster spots in the high minors, but morris is much more of a prospect than crotta ever was.
Crotta had timing on his side
He was just ahead of the wave of pitchers, so they actually had a rotation spot for him. Had he been a year or two behind, piggybacking starts in WVa or whatever, he’d be straight to the ’pen (or only starting for development/arm strength purposes).
Anyway, believe me, I hope Morris returns to the rotation; I’m just hearing the pessimism from his coach.
one other factor
I believe Morris will go back to starting for now, but if he can’t make the majors as a starter by June 2012 (I mean “make” loosely, in the sense, be (close to) ready for the majors), he will go to the pen, since 2012 is his last option year.
Most wins through season's one-third mark since 1999
They were 29-25 through 54 games in ‘99, and they’ve had a couple of 27-27 marks (1993 and 1997) during The Streak Years. This year’s 26-28 would be their fourth-best total.
Correia
According to the broadcast, for those who missed it, Correia’s ML-leading 8th win makes this the first time a Pirate’s pitcher has had sole possession of the Wins lead on June 1 or later since Vern Law in 1960. That is phenomenal, though not in the good way.
Yeah...go back through the Pirates pitchers since, like, forever...
…it’s not that impressive. I mean, a good amount of good seasons, but not many long-time Pirates pitchers were truly elite.
Santa Roberto Clemente
Ora Pro Nobis
@ChristianTappe
Yeah but...
Cy Young Drabek didn’t do it and if you were Correia would you act like its not a big deal?
by Joey Mooney on Jun 1, 2011 11:10 PM EDT via mobile up reply actions
Oh I know...I'm just saying that it's kind of surprising that the Pirates
have never really had a truly elite starting pitcher
Santa Roberto Clemente
Ora Pro Nobis
@ChristianTappe
Crazy cool
caught some of this game and wow, awesome stuff, i saw Cutch’s catch and the last 2 innings, i missed our big 7th though. Lets hope the offense doesnt stop for Maholm again
We have to unify and watch our flag ascend!
We’d scored a grand total of 9 runs when Paul was in the game during his first 10 starts, and then had the 10-0 outburst last week, so we’ll just have to wait and see whether it was simply horrible luck that caused Paul to get the worst run support ever or if last week’s game was the anomaly.
Hey New YorK...
How I Mets your mother !
"I'm gonna go get the papers, get the papers." - Jimmy Two Times
by Elektrostal_Kid on Jun 1, 2011 11:22 PM EDT reply actions
Dear Sabers: Wins Matter
A starting pitcher’s performance might not always be reflected in his record, although it often is; more importantly, a team’s record is usually reflective of the performance of the starting 5.
There is a correlation there
Generally good pitchers have better records. But there’s a much stronger correlation between other metrics (FIP and xFIP) and success. I mean, who is pitching better right now? Maholm or KC?
The glare of the spotlight is harsh, and the pressure that success breeds immense. We revere our heroes, but expect much. And criticism can come as easily as praise.
Dear CO_Bucs:
For a team, yes. For an individual, absolutely not. Want proof? Maholm this year.
Thank you Ned Colletti.
by ryebr3ad on Jun 1, 2011 11:32 PM EDT via mobile up reply actions
+436844378448
Boom
Should the Pirates keep Neal Huntington?
http://www.bucsdugout.com/2011/5/16/2174135/poll-should-huntington-be-retained
by Kosstic518 on Jun 2, 2011 7:36 AM EDT via mobile up reply actions
So Hultzen apparently wants 13 mil. Yeah, no.
Thank you Ned Colletti.
by ryebr3ad on Jun 1, 2011 11:30 PM EDT via mobile reply actions
Good.
Maybe everyone will price themselves out of the running and the FO will have to take Rendon.
(But I really expect them to screw this up).
17 road wins
The Bucs have equaled last year’s road win total with 50 games left. Good lord they were bad on the road last season.
It's a good day to be a Pirate
Also, their next road series win will be one MORE....
….than ’09 and ’10 COMBINED. (They actually won 4 series last year and 3 in ’09…guess they got swept more last year)
Santa Roberto Clemente
Ora Pro Nobis
@ChristianTappe
y'know what's really funny?
You say “their next road series win” and nobody blinks an eye. It seems likely that will happen again reasonably soon.
Last year the phrase “next road series win” may as well have been “when pigs fly.”
Looked to me
from the replays like Harris never kicked the bag on Snyder’s grounder, so saying the runner “should have been called out,” I dunno. I’m baffled why he thought it was a tag play, unless the last thing he expected was a throw from short and just had a brain cramp, but then he was covering the base, where he should have been ….
What the hell. Bad luck/general bungling couldn’t happen to a nicer team.
Just watched it several times and it looks to me like Harris’ foot is on the bag.
by Charlie Wilmoth on Jun 2, 2011 1:59 AM EDT up reply actions
I thought his foot barely touched the bag, but it was so brief it could easily have been missed by an umpire watching the tag.
by thecheeseisblue on Jun 2, 2011 2:48 AM EDT up reply actions
it was quite clearly touching the bag
all i can figure is the ump’s view must have been blocked
Unless
you meant “should have been out, but Harris botched it,” instead of “should have been out but the ump missed the call.”
Looked to me like Harris was on the bag
But really who cares? The reality is that it was what the ump said it was.
still should have been a fielder's choice, not a hit
and Pagan’s botch should have been an error and I think there was 1 other that the Mets screwed up
That force play at 3rd had to be one of the worst calls I've ever seen in my entire life.
The umpire must have been hit in the head with a back of bricks before that one. Talk about a fucking moron.
Ya the play at 3rd was a bad call but..
I put more blame on the mets 3rd baseman for being in a bad position and just barely touching the BACK SIDE of the bag. in that situation you have to have your foot right on the bag. Not barely touching the back end and stradeling the bag like a tag play. I think the 3rd baseman was more to blame for a piss poor foot positioning
age of last winning season: 5
Correct.
If Harris just holds his glove up, chances are very good that the out is called.
By trying to make the tag, the umpire is going to assume that his foot was not on the bag at any time.
It was, but only for a split-second on the back corner (from the umpire’s POV)
Free your ass and your mind will follow.
by cocktailsfor2 on Jun 2, 2011 10:39 AM EDT up reply actions
That play just shows
that in a bang-bang play, the umps generally go along with how well/smart the players are playing.
Harris was way out of position and made what should have been an easy play look hard, so he’s not going to get a close call. Same principle as when a catcher gets crossed up and has to drastically move the mitt — even if the pitch ends up in the zone it’s more likely to be called a ball because the umps assume something went wrong.
This.
It’s what I call the Safe/Out on General Principles play, the main principle being: If you look like a dumbass making an easy play look hard, or try to pull a dumbass play (going first to third on a single to left, say), you better have the tag waiting or be safe by a mile or you’re not getting the call.
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