Dodgers Destroy Pirates; No One Notices

by Charlie Wilmoth on Sep 18, 2011 11:47 PM EDT

LOS ANGELES, CA - SEPTEMBER 18: Hello Kitty characters perform before the game between the Pittsburgh Pirates and the Los Angeles Dodgers on September 18, 2011 at Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Stephen Dunn/Getty Images)

I'm not even really sure what to say about this one, except that I feel dumb even typing about a late-September, 15-1 Pirates loss on a Sunday in which the Steelers also played. Four separate Dodgers had three or more hits, including James Loney with five and Jerry Sands with four.

Brad Lincoln gave up a solo homer to Matt Kemp in the first en route to allowing six runs in 1.2 innings, and after that, it just seemed like one reliever after another getting sent out to slaughter. There's no need, I don't think, to run down the list, but Daniel McCutchen in particular seems bent on squandering all the good luck he's gotten this season - today was the third straight outing in which he gave up three or more runs.

The Bucs used 21 players in this one. A pinch-hit appearance by Matt Pagnozzi! Pedro Ciriaco in left field! Aaron Thompson doing ... whatever! Good show, but I've got to say, I really wish the Pirates had considered some Corey Wimberly and Brian Bixler cameos. And was Eric Hacker not available?

The Pirates are now 68-85. This season can't end soon enough.

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The Pirates obviously scheduled this loss for the day of a Steelers shutout win so nobody would notice.

You're entitled to your own opinions. You're not entitled to your own facts.

by WTM on Sep 19, 2011 12:00 AM EDT reply actions 1 recs

If it were 9/11, that would be a double-whammy!

Thank you Ned Colletti.

by ryebr3ad on Sep 19, 2011 6:06 AM EDT up reply actions

Yep.

I also had a family picnic yesterday afternoon so yeah, they knew I’d be too busy to watch it.

Bob Nutting ist sehr schlecht.

So onto my love rocket, climb, Inside tank of fuel is not fuel, but love.

by IAPiratesFan on Sep 19, 2011 8:05 AM EDT up reply actions

Finished the game and flipped over to see this abomination of a game. I flipped away when I knew it was out of hand…..

by lfhlaw on Sep 19, 2011 12:12 AM EDT reply actions

and BTW how do 'Hello Kitty's' Perform?

I mean what kind of voices do they have? or do they just dance around looking cute?
Did Randall Simon come out with a bat? Did anyone come out with bat lol?

by lfhlaw on Sep 19, 2011 12:13 AM EDT reply actions

Did anyone come out with bat lol?

Certainly not for the Pirates

"WHITESNAKE! DOKKEN! NIGHT RANGER!" -- Ronny Cedeño

by Superstar25 on Sep 19, 2011 12:14 AM EDT up reply actions 4 recs

rec

Free your ass and your mind will follow.

by cocktailsfor2 on Sep 19, 2011 1:22 AM EDT up reply actions

Eric Hacker?

I would have loved to hear the return of the Eric Hacker Clapper

"WHITESNAKE! DOKKEN! NIGHT RANGER!" -- Ronny Cedeño

by Superstar25 on Sep 19, 2011 12:13 AM EDT reply actions

Embarrassing performance

to be sure, and a flashback to 2010, when blowouts were common. Arizona is up next, and they are trying to clinch their division. After that, six games left with the Reds and Brewers, and so all we can do is see if the club can regroup and compete the way we’ve seen for most of the season.

by SteelStealth on Sep 19, 2011 12:18 AM EDT reply actions

So I guess

We will end the year on 12 game skid. Does anyone seriously see us winning any of the next 9 games playing at AZ, Cincy at PNC and then 3 at Milwaukee? Right now I have absolutely no confidence in anyone we send to the mound as a starter. What in the heck is our starting rotation going to be next year??

by fitguync30 on Sep 19, 2011 12:19 AM EDT reply actions

Well, it’ll be the same, and they’ll look better only because players are never as bad as they look during a bad streak.

Also, we can handle Cincy, so I think we can get some wins off of them.

Thank you Ned Colletti.

by ryebr3ad on Sep 19, 2011 6:15 AM EDT up reply actions

Well, at least we can take comfort in the fact that those responsible for this got big extensions and promotions.

by dirkcalloway on Sep 19, 2011 12:37 AM EDT via iPhone app reply actions

uhhh

huhuhuhuhuh

That’s funny.

huhuhuhuhuh

Free your ass and your mind will follow.

by cocktailsfor2 on Sep 19, 2011 1:23 AM EDT up reply actions

I’m cool with it. What’s a blowout game in September? Beats having a stick in the ass about things.

Thank you Ned Colletti.

by ryebr3ad on Sep 19, 2011 6:14 AM EDT up reply actions

Glad you’re cool with it. I feel better now.

by dirkcalloway on Sep 19, 2011 6:56 AM EDT via iPhone app up reply actions 1 recs

hahaaaaa!

dueling sarcasm… love it. rec’d

by white angus on Sep 19, 2011 7:20 AM EDT up reply actions

I'm

not cool with it. This sucks bad—— wow does mid July seem like forever ago.

by JSteelers86 on Sep 19, 2011 6:57 AM EDT reply actions

wow does mid July seem like forever ago

You need the right psychology. Think of it as a receding shoreline as you drift further and further out into the ocean on a calm, sunny day.

You're entitled to your own opinions. You're not entitled to your own facts.

by WTM on Sep 19, 2011 9:56 AM EDT up reply actions

You look down at the small ice floe and think about your ungrateful children who no longer wish to feed you. You wonder whether it would be better to stay here and die of exposure or jump in the water for a quicker end. The only certainty is the icy grasp of death…

by Aphthakid on Sep 19, 2011 11:26 AM EDT up reply actions

That sounds like the world's worst text adventure.

You are standing on an ice floe. Water extends in all directions, dotted with ice floes similar to the one on which you are currently standing.

A bathtub is here.

Exits: Down

What would you like to do?

by Vlad on Sep 19, 2011 1:23 PM EDT up reply actions 1 recs

+1

by JRoth95 on Sep 19, 2011 3:44 PM EDT up reply actions

14-36

in the past 50 games

Guess Sleepy Russell wasn’t to blame after all.

by BadAndy on Sep 19, 2011 7:56 AM EDT reply actions

Duh.

Give any manager a lot of talented players and they can make him look like a genius.

Give him a bunch of bad players and they make him look like an idiot.

So onto my love rocket, climb, Inside tank of fuel is not fuel, but love.

by IAPiratesFan on Sep 19, 2011 8:07 AM EDT up reply actions

Give him a bunch of bad players and they make him look like an idiot.

This should appear with disclaimer language on the front page of all Pirates’ managers’ contracts.

You're entitled to your own opinions. You're not entitled to your own facts.

by WTM on Sep 19, 2011 9:50 AM EDT up reply actions

Give a manager a bad player

and he’ll lose for a day.

Give a manager a bad G.M. and he’ll lose for two decades.

by bucdaddy on Sep 19, 2011 11:52 AM EDT up reply actions

There is some merit to his point, though.

Russell was free of some of the specific faults for which we’ve been beating up Hurdle in recent weeks, like the relentless bunting and the low-percentage base-stealing.

by Vlad on Sep 19, 2011 10:36 AM EDT up reply actions

Russell was free of some of the specific faults[ . . . .] like the relentless bunting

Is this true? Not to question you, because I’m sure your memory is sounder than mine, but I seem to remember us being pretty bunt-happy under JR too. Was there a big difference?

by Garrett122 on Sep 19, 2011 11:01 AM EDT up reply actions

Last year we had 58 bunts

this year, so far, 72. I guess this only counts successful ones, the ones that show up as SH on Fangraphs.

by Wizard of Woz on Sep 19, 2011 11:27 AM EDT up reply actions

so that should put us at about 125 or so this year*

*conservative assumption

by Mr. E on Sep 19, 2011 5:42 PM EDT up reply actions

#6 Pick or BUST

I hope we lose out, if we did we would even have a shot at #5.

Should the Pirates keep Neal Huntington?

http://www.bucsdugout.com/2011/5/16/2174135/poll-should-huntington-be-retained

by Kosstic518 on Sep 19, 2011 8:50 AM EDT reply actions

Man,

that never gets old.

I could just read that in every post, every day.

Oh, wait.

Free your ass and your mind will follow.

by cocktailsfor2 on Sep 19, 2011 11:03 AM EDT up reply actions

And people sulking about the teams performance doesnt get old?

Id rather go about my fandom realistically and positively than all those wallowing in their despair. The people who are disappointed are those with unrealistic expectations.

This has been my favorite season of any I can remember. I dont understand how people can be depressed about what went on this year.

Should the Pirates keep Neal Huntington?

http://www.bucsdugout.com/2011/5/16/2174135/poll-should-huntington-be-retained

by Kosstic518 on Sep 19, 2011 12:59 PM EDT via mobile up reply actions

You are, of course, allowed to express your fandom as you'd like.

Just as I am free to comment on how, in almost every thread, you post about how you hope we lose, to get a higher draft pick.

I sure as hell don’t hope they lose.

Free your ass and your mind will follow.

by cocktailsfor2 on Sep 19, 2011 1:46 PM EDT up reply actions

At the very least

The Pirates won’t have that horrible burden of picking #1 or #2. The pressure is off. Who cares who is chosen #6?

by pineapplepete on Sep 19, 2011 9:41 AM EDT reply actions

I do.

by Vlad on Sep 19, 2011 10:37 AM EDT up reply actions

You’re definitely on the wrong blog to be asking that question.

by Aphthakid on Sep 19, 2011 11:23 AM EDT up reply actions

Pedro Ciriaco in ...

OK, now you’re just making shit up.

by bucdaddy on Sep 19, 2011 9:45 AM EDT reply actions

Hoping to see win No. 70

in person next Sunday.

Hoping.

by bucdaddy on Sep 19, 2011 10:05 AM EDT reply actions

Well...

if they haven’t hit 70 by the end of the day Sunday, they probably won’t. Since the last 3 games of the season are in Miller Park.

by Thunder on Sep 19, 2011 1:15 PM EDT up reply actions

Wow, just 1 game from catching the Cubs. I didn't think we stood a chance of doing that...

…oh wait, they’re BEHIND us in the standings.

by Brakeman8 on Sep 19, 2011 11:00 AM EDT reply actions

I don't really care so much if we hit 70 wins, or miss 90 wins . . .

but I’d like to see us stay ahead of the Cubs.

by Garrett122 on Sep 19, 2011 11:01 AM EDT up reply actions

er . . . that should be miss 90 losses, obviously.

by Garrett122 on Sep 19, 2011 11:02 AM EDT up reply actions

...at this point,

I don’t really care so much if we miss 90 wins.

Free your ass and your mind will follow.

by cocktailsfor2 on Sep 19, 2011 11:06 AM EDT up reply actions

That is fortunate

You're entitled to your own opinions. You're not entitled to your own facts.

by WTM on Sep 19, 2011 12:18 PM EDT up reply actions

I'm trying

to keep on an even keel.

Free your ass and your mind will follow.

by cocktailsfor2 on Sep 19, 2011 12:30 PM EDT up reply actions

Season is already over for most of us. Wish a guy like Hague would have been called up, I would have probably paid more attention.

by CO_Bucs on Sep 19, 2011 11:19 AM EDT reply actions

No Hague because...

The Pirates seem to feel that it is more important to see a 15 year veteran play, to determine whether to try and resign him. Because either A) his skills changed so much when he got traded, or B) the Pirates didn’t scout him before trading for him.

Yesterday was the first game that Lee has not played since his acquisition that was not directly related to his injury.

by Thunder on Sep 19, 2011 1:21 PM EDT up reply actions

The Pirates seem to feel that it is more important to see a 15 year veteran play, to determine whether to try and resign him. Because either A) his skills changed so much when he got traded, or B) the Pirates didn’t scout him before trading for him.

Or C: They don’t plan to carry Hague on the 40-man roster this offseason, but would like to keep him in the system as upper minors depth in case he IS able to elevate his game another notch or two in 2012 and in that way become useful. As such, they would prefer to run the small risk of seeing him chosen in the Rule 5 rather than the larger risk of adding him to the 40-man now, bringing him up for a handful of at-bats, and then throwing him onto the waiver wire during the winter meetings.

Makes sense to me.

by Vlad on Sep 19, 2011 1:36 PM EDT up reply actions

As such, they would prefer to run the small risk of seeing him chosen in the Rule 5 rather than the larger risk of adding him to the 40-man now, bringing him up for a handful of at-bats, and then throwing him onto the waiver wire during the winter meetings.

I think this is extremely likely. I doubt they’ve made a definite decision on whether to protect Hague and didn’t want to force it for the sake of a few Sept. ABs.

You're entitled to your own opinions. You're not entitled to your own facts.

by WTM on Sep 19, 2011 4:00 PM EDT up reply actions

I'm slightly curious...

Hague hit .309/.372/.457 at Indy. Exactly what would he have to hit to elevate his game another notch or two?

by Thunder on Sep 19, 2011 6:10 PM EDT up reply actions

Steve Pearce’s career line in AAA is 281/352/483. So, okay, Hague is the next Steve Pearce.

You're entitled to your own opinions. You're not entitled to your own facts.

by WTM on Sep 19, 2011 6:39 PM EDT up reply actions

Our first basemen this season...

.240/.311/.385.

by Thunder on Sep 19, 2011 7:01 PM EDT up reply actions

. . . which includes some of Pearce's.202/260/255

To be clear, I’d have brought Hague up, if nothing else to cut down on pinch-out appearances by the likes of Paul and Jaramillo. I just don’t see it as some sort of slam dunk. If raw minor league stats meant everything, Wily Mo Pena and Josh Fields would be in the majors now instead of just finishing up 1.100+ OPS seasons in AAA.

You're entitled to your own opinions. You're not entitled to your own facts.

by WTM on Sep 20, 2011 7:37 AM EDT up reply actions

Show power, draw walks, or improve his defense enough to be a plausible backup at a secondary positon (probably 3B, but corner OF is another possibility). Any one of those three would do the trick. More than one would make it a slam dunk.

As things are, he’s old enough that he doesn’t have a lot of projection remaining, he’s locked into one defensive position, and he projects for something like a low-.700s OPS in the majors. There are dozens of minor league free agents with that profile available every offseason.

by Vlad on Sep 20, 2011 4:08 PM EDT up reply actions

a low-.700s OPS in the majors. There are dozens of minor league free agents with that profile available every offseason.

Too bad we can’t seem to identify any of them.

You're entitled to your own opinions. You're not entitled to your own facts.

by WTM on Sep 20, 2011 7:27 PM EDT up reply actions

Just once

I’d like to be pleasantly surprised when I turn off the game in despair/disgust during the 1st 3 innings, then check the score later.

Hasn’t happened in weeks, if not months. Oh well. Here’s hoping for a good game Sunday. See you there, bucdaddy.

by JRoth95 on Sep 19, 2011 3:47 PM EDT reply actions

can't do it without O

After April and May I figured we’d have some sort of stretch where our offense clicked and we were dropping 6-10 runs for a week or two. jokes on me I guess

by Mr. E on Sep 19, 2011 5:45 PM EDT up reply actions

just checked this out:

the pirates have only 13 wins this season by 5 or more runs in a game. the largest margin of victory in any one game was the 10-0 shellacking of the Cubs. the 10 runs also matches the season high for runs in a single game, achieved only 3 times this year.

opponents have scored in double figures against us in 10 contests… with 8 of them
happening after the allstar break

in the first half of this season, we outscored the opponents by 8 runs.
in the 2nd half of this season, we are being outscored by 104 runs.

so it looks like the starting pitching got tired, and the bullpen got worn out. the offense has really never clicked at all this season. our best offensive output in a series this season was 4 games against the mets in may when the bucs put up 25 runs. none of the other series came close to that number.

but i still believe that being in 1st place 90+ games into the season is NOT a fluke, and the team was not “playing over their heads”… you cant be 7 games over .500 that late in a season and tie it to luck.

this team just has to remind itself on how it became a mini-contender

by white angus on Sep 19, 2011 6:11 PM EDT up reply actions

half that staff is on the DL for the year. I think that ’splains it

by Mr. E on Sep 20, 2011 3:41 AM EDT up reply actions

Improvement?

On balance, is anyone really convinced that the Bucs have improved this season? The fact that their play at this stage of the season is as pathetic as last year leads me to believe the first half of the season was nothing more than a fluke.

by docr1973 on Sep 19, 2011 9:46 PM EDT reply actions