Marshall, Santos (MLB.com)
7:05 PM, FSNP, KDKA
Sean Marshall (0-0. 8.31) vs. Victor Santos (1-1, 4.66).
I'd heard very little about Sean Marshall before seeing a photo of his rather peeved-looking face on the Pirates' website today, so here are the results of some web research. Marshall is 23 and was chosen in the 6th round of the 2003 draft. This article argues that he probably shouldn't be in the big leagues right now, and based on the numbers, I agree. He's only had ten starts at Class AA and has never played at Class AAA. With Mark Prior and Kerry Wood on the shelf, Marshall beat out Jerome Williams (who should start against the Bucs on Saturday) and a number of Cubs prospects for the fourth spot in the rotation with an okay spring. He doesn't throw that hard, but he has a terrific curve and he kept the ball down in his big-league debut on Sunday against the Cardinals. He's also a very big guy, at 6'7".
...The Pirates are down 2-0 in the third. Sean Casey has left the game with an injury.
...The Bucs are down 6-2 after Santos gave up a three-run triple to Matt Murton. Now Ryan Vogelsong is in the game. Ugh.
Vogelsong was terrible, but homers from Nate McLouth, Craig Wilson and Jason Bay have the Bucs back in the game. 8-6 Cubs in the 6th.
...Ugh. Ugly loss. Damaso Marte looked fine; both Wilsons continued to hit; Joe Randa made a nice double play; Jeromy Burnitz, McLouth and Bay homered; Matt Capps pitched 2/3 of an inning without incident.
Beyond that, the Bucs were bad. Casey got hurt; Santos was awful; Humberto Cota still stinks; and Vogelsong was just terrible. I know it's early, but I wouldn't be opposed to releasing him at this point. He can only be used in situations where the Bucs are out of the game, and even then he can't be depended upon to pitch multiple innings because he gets hit so hard. Surely someone from Class AAA could do better. Am I being too impulsive? Should the Bucs wait to see if Jim Colborn can get to him, or have we seen enough?