Aaron Thompson Comes Up Big In Pirates' Unexpected Shutout Win
by Charlie Wilmoth on Aug 24, 2011 3:55 PM EDT
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PrintIf you told me that the Pirates would get four hits, rely on Aaron Thompson and Jason Grilli to get through seven innings, and win against the Brewers, I'd have thought you were crazy, but that's exactly what happened. The Bucs scored twice on sacrifice flies, Thompson got through 4.1 scoreless innings, and then the often-walktastic Grilli had four strikeouts and no free passes in 2.2 innings. Also, Joel Hanrahan got three whiffs while picking up the save, which is a great sign given how poorly he's been pitching recently. Hey! Awesome. And welcome to the Show, Aaron Thompson.
***
The Pirates also signed pitcher Mike Loree out of independent ball and will send him to Altoona. He was a 50th-round pick by the Giants in 2007 and flamed out in Class A, but he evidently took a big step forward in his second year in independent ball, posting more than a strikeout per inning. The Pirates are probably mostly just trying to fill space with all the injuries they've had recently.
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I hate the Brewers
and they STANK
Players who should be in the Hall of Fame: Pat TIllman, Dwight White, Donnie Shell, L.C. Greenwood, Ray Guy, Steve Tasker, Jack Butler, Greg Lloyd, Andy Russell, Cris Carter, Kevin Greene, Curtis Martin, Willie Roaf, Andre Reed and Jerry Kramer
CM PUNK IS MY HERO
Canal Chronicles resident Steelers Fan
no this time it will be a hurricane
" Lord Stanley, scratch their names on your fabled cup" Mike Lange june 12, 2009
by oldtimehockey09 on Aug 25, 2011 1:06 AM EDT up reply actions
The Mets...
may lose about half of their homestand to Irene
Thompson did not get the win, though
right? Headline sounds like it, but I think Grilli picked up the W (not that it matters).
Correct. You’re right, that was ambiguous.
by Charlie Wilmoth on Aug 24, 2011 4:20 PM EDT up reply actions
Yeah, Grilli gets the W because he finished the 5th inning. A starter would have to be ahead and throw at least 5 innings to be considered for a dubya
Isn't that just an unwritten rule though?
I thought technically the official scorer could award the W to any pitcher on the winning team
Pretty sure that the part about a starter needing to go 5 to get the win
is a written rule.
I think that the scorer can only make judgements with regard to a relievers. For instance, if in the game the Pirates were up by 7 instead of 2 and Grilli came in and got the last 2 outs in the 5th while giving up 5 or 6 runs, the scorer would likely opt to give the win to the next reliever instead of the ineffective Grilli.
by WestCoastBuc on Aug 24, 2011 5:58 PM EDT up reply actions
Correct
The starter can only get a win if he pitches at least five innings (Rule 10.17(b)).
If the starter doesn’t pitch five innings but would otherwise have gotten the win, the scorer gives the win to the relief pitcher who “in the scorer’s judgment was the most effective”.
Thank you sir.
I’ve been lurking for a while and finally got around to registering. Anyhow, I was definitely less than optimistic when they sent Grilli out there, but damn. Well done, and props to Veras for being Good Veras today.
welcome sir
at first glance i thought your name was “McClouth” lol….sorry for the insult of such a name haha
Thats what she said! - Michael Gary Scott
I interpreted it as a hip-hop MC
“I’m MC Clutch and I’m here to say — " * hits a double down the line in the 9th *
Dean Wormer
Do you think you can steer yourself clear to give me one more chance to write about Lars?
by senatorblutarsky on Aug 24, 2011 5:56 PM EDT up reply actions
Looking at Mike Loree
Last year his WHIP was high at 1.6 with a bloated ERA and even the prior year in independents he wasn’t so good.
http://www.baseball-reference.com/minors/player.cgi?id=loree-001mik
This year for the Long Island ducks…his WHIP is down considerably and he’s pitched better.
http://longislandducks.bbstats.pointstreak.com/player.html?playerid=127690 which probably correlates with his ERA.
Tim of Pirates Prospect’s already has his info up. Sounds like a soft tosser according to Tim. I’m thinking Zach duke/Tom Gorzalonny.
http://players.piratesprospects.com/2011/08/mike-loree.html
A very nice homestand against some pretty good opponents especially
after the struggless we had had coming in.
Don’t know if he can keep it up, but a strong series both at bat and in the field for Harrison with a couple of nice plays on D and 3 XBHs.
61-68
They can still hit .500
The Cardinals are on a freefall.
September games can be very strange.
Andy LaRoche once hit three home runs in a September game.
Let’s get this done.
Cutch
hit 3 HR against the nationals in August 09…
by BlindSquirrel on Aug 24, 2011 8:34 PM EDT up reply actions
That is correct.
I was there. 2 HRs, 2 2Bs* and a single. Buncha RBIs.
All overshadowed because that was the infamous Zach Duke 8 2/3 game.
*—One of the doubles was hit into the right-center gap, and all 2,000 people in the ballpark immediately leaped to their feet and implored him to go for three, since he already had the single, double and homer. Alas, he pulled up short, as he would for the rest of his career.
not sure if there will be a minor league thread today
but Robbie Grossman just hit his 13th HR of the year.
BA up to .295
OBP will be around .427
SLG around .452 or so
disappointing that he s still in A+
haha...
I knew you’d have this posted somewhere. Congrats for consistency. Awesome run Grossman is on right now. Slg % now over .450. I think he is hitting himself into top 10 status. Loving the seasons he and Marte are putting together. If I’m not mistaken Starling drew a couple of BB’s last night with no K’s. Hopefullty he can continue to develop in this area because everything else is coming along nicely.
#FreeJoelHanrahan!
#AndAlltheBuntsAreStillBad!
this may sound dumb, mainly because ANGUS is saying it, but...
maybe the Bucs want him to help Bradenton make the playoffs or something???
altoona is out of it, but the marauders are in 1st place, thanks to guys like Grossman.
am i reaching on this one?
by white angus on Aug 24, 2011 10:03 PM EDT up reply actions
Well, even though I agree with your first point
the rest of what you write makes sense to me too. He and his teammates would probably enjoy a shot at the playoffs and I can’t imagine that an extra couple of weeks in Altoona will make much difference in his development.
by WestCoastBuc on Aug 24, 2011 10:13 PM EDT up reply actions
it makes sense
and is entirely possible.
However, it bothers me that they’ve kept Grossman down for that reason, when he could have had close to 2 months in AA. As reasons go, minor league championships are the worst, and the FO has given indications before that it feels similarly.
by BurgherKing on Aug 24, 2011 11:32 PM EDT up reply actions
yeah, thats why i feel weird about it.
but still, i can see why they are doing it NOW. grossman has really picked it up over the last few weeks and bradenton is playing very well. no point in promoting him now.
Agreed
Plus, if he stays down, and they make the playoffs, he’ll still be getting ABs while Altoona will be getting tee times. Think he’ll go to AFL? He’s at a level too low,IIRC, but each team gets so many exceptions.
by Wizard of Woz on Aug 25, 2011 8:40 AM EDT up reply actions
He has 100 K's this year...
I’m sure that more than anything is the main reason they kept in Bradenton. He’ll be starting in AA next year at age 22 so he’ still age appropriate.
#FreeJoelHanrahan!
#AndAlltheBuntsAreStillBad!
Hanrahan's Slider and 3rd pitch
Joel really gutted out a save today with basically just his fast ball. Doesn’t appear that his slider is moving or fooling anyone (though I think his last strikeout was on a high slider – thanks ump, bout time). Slider hasn’t been effective for a couple of outings, now. Does anyone think he can be effective with 1 pitch? Has he ever had a changeup?
by Central*Scrutinizer on Aug 24, 2011 5:50 PM EDT reply actions
Word from the PG guy...
@msanserinoMichael Sanserino
Alex Presley and Chase d’Arnaud will rejoin #Pirates Thursday in St. Louis
Since the Pirates currently have 13 pitchers on the roster, one would assume that the moves will be Thompson and Ciriaco.
Who will be the fifth guy in our rotation then besides
Morton, Karstens McDonald and Lincoln, or is the likely plan to make another roster move for Monday’s game?
by WestCoastBuc on Aug 24, 2011 6:32 PM EDT up reply actions
yup
officially recalled before his start. so i’m assuming they send down as thunder points out thompson and ciriaco. could be leroux though and thompson to the pen?
Thats what she said! - Michael Gary Scott
Leroux has earned a roster spot
by virtue of plunking Morgan. Good to see Hurdle and Searage having the pitchers throw inside more often lately.
by Central*Scrutinizer on Aug 24, 2011 8:17 PM EDT up reply actions
Next year when Smizik needs another example of how Pirates pitchers always fall off the cliff after one good year.
"When I put on my uniform, I feel I am the proudest man on earth."
-Roberto
by blackjackfishtaco on Aug 24, 2011 7:28 PM EDT up reply actions
Hopefully at least
a split with St. Louis and maybe winning 3 of 4. The Cards have been awful lately and are looking like they are quitting on LaRussa. Their offense was pretty weak in the LA series. Let’s hope that continues this weekend. Looks like we get our first look at a Cutch, Jose and Presley outfield.
Story about Grilli
So apparently a Pirates scout was watching the Iron Pigs to scout somebody else, but Grilli had a strong outing. After the game, they come to talking, and Grilli tells him about that wacky contract clause (if another team expressed interest, the Phils had to bring him up or release him). Scout calls NH and tells him about this. In the meantime, Grilli asked the scout if he knew about the clause, and he said no, so Grilli calls his agent, and finds out that no other teams know about it. So he gets his agent to start passing word around, but NH was first in line.
Weird story, but apparently true, per my buddy who knows a thing or two.
Several (or more) veterans...
have had that clause in their contracts if they sign a contract that puts them in the minors. It happens every season. Usually it happens early in the season, where the player has to be put on the 25 man roster by a certain date, or he can ask for his release. As BostonBuc mentions, Millwood had that in his contract.
Ah, right
I’m familiar with the early season ones (in fact, didn’t we have a pitcher with one of those in the last few years?), but not the ones simply triggered by another team calling.
The funny part of the story, of course, is that Grilli’s agent had simply failed to put the word out. Not that suitors would have been beating down the doors, but you’re not going to ask about a Grilli-like pitcher out of idle curiosity unless you have some reason to think you can get him cheap. Such as, free.
Players sometimes have handshake-type agreements that the team will let them go if another team is interested. I don’t recall an actual contract clause, though.
I still find it interesting that the Phillies weren’t interested enough to call Grilli up. Their bullpen isn’t that great, although they don’t use it much.
You're entitled to your own opinions. You're not entitled to your own facts.
"Their bullpen isn’t that great, although they don’t use it much."
Quite the Catch-22, it would seem…
The bullpen isn’t very good, so they don’t use it much / they don’t use it much because it isn’t very good.
Free your ass and your mind will follow.
by cocktailsfor2 on Aug 25, 2011 11:34 AM EDT up reply actions
Actually
they don’t use it that much because their starters are good enough that they don’t need to use it that much.
Yes... I know.
But it does mean the ’pen gets a bit rusty, too…
Free your ass and your mind will follow.
by cocktailsfor2 on Aug 25, 2011 1:38 PM EDT up reply actions
So,
to beat the phillies you have to score a bunch of runs off the starter? Makes sense.
(ignoring just running up their pitch counts because it is a valid point and isn’t as facetious. Also: Halladay doesn’t care about pitch counts)
by BlindSquirrel on Aug 25, 2011 7:45 PM EDT up reply actions
I don't know if the Bucs had a contract like that
but Chris Resop had a contract like that with the Braves — maybe that’s what you’re thinking of. If he wasn’t in the majors by June 15, anyone else could claim him.
The Braves did call him up on June 15, had him pitch 2 innings, then stuck him on the DL till they waived him in August and the Bucs picked him up.
Not actually affiliated with whygavs.
by WHYG Zane Smith on Aug 25, 2011 1:50 PM EDT up reply actions
DT mentioned this...
on the air today on 970 ESPN. Very interesting stuff.
When I heard the Bucs offered him the contract, I had an inkling that they were the first to know about (other than the Phils themselves, obviously) that contract clause.
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