Fernando Abad was sent down today. Enerio Del Rosario and Aneury Rodriguez (who has a 6+ ERA at AAA) were taken off the 40 man and are now just playing at AAA. No one else wants em, for good reason. Not sure why we do. We added one of the Cards triple A rejects, Chuckie Fick, RHP age 26, and his 4.68 ERA/1.49 WHIP and 4.25 K/9 rate to the ML roster. Luhnow picked him up because he drafted him when he was with the Cards. This is like Ed Wade with the Phils/Phil Garner with the Tigers. Geez.
The place is almost full – guess it’s say goodbye to Wandy – night. Nah. Most people are here for the after game concert. Most Astros fans have absolutely no idea how good he was and for how long. He won’t be missed, except by me.
1st – Armando Galarraga trots to the mound wearing Happ-less’s old uni #30 and I hope it isn’t a bad omen. Sterling Marte Ks. Alex Presley hits an upper deck homer on the second pitch. McCutchen pops up, Garrett Jones hits a FB down the middle 420+ feet, Maxwell runs it down onto the Hill, catches it and then drops the ball as he trips over his feet (I absolutely HATE that damm Hill) and it goes for a triple. Jones hit the ball even further than Pressley did. Walker flies out to the LF bullpen.
Pirates 1 Stros 0
Wandy walks onto the mound in a Pirates uni.
I thought I would cry, but I don’t. But that’s like me. I haven’t cried at funerals, ever – somehow, even though I’m saying goodbye, it takes me a while to realize that they’re really gone and gone forever. I’m sure it will hit me and hit me hard sometime this winter that my favorite players have gone and my baseball team is dead. Hating the murderers doesn’t do anything because dead is dead. Revenge is a dish best tasted cold, as my daddy sez and Nolan Ryan proved, but even the pleasure of watching Nolan’s sour face as ex-Stro Lance Berkman beat his Rangers out of a WS didn’t do anything to cut the pain.
Astros go 1,2, walk to CJ, 3
2nd – Mondie?? Rahggie? finds a slider and gets flyout, then 2 swinging Ks. Wandy walks Maxwell. Still not sure what to call him – Maxie? Then Bennie Francie walks, too. Bixie, playing SS (uhoh) sac bunts em over. Corporan better squeeze. But no, RBI single men on first and third. Mondie gonna squeeze? I don’t think so – looks like he doesn’t know how to bunt. And he Ks swinging on 2 curves. Altuve strands em.
Stros 1 Bucs 1
3rd: Wandy grounds out, Sterling Marte hits a ball to shallow center that Maxie-poo makes a great running catch on. Remembering the 05 team and how Willy-T absolutely couldn’t make a play like that – could NOT come forward. You know that the pennant winning 05 team got shutout EIGHTEEN times?! Pressley walks. McCutchen grounds to CJ.
Downsie-doo flies out (hope it’s him that Steven Pearce is replacing. Remember when Pearce was gonna be the Next Big Star for the Pirates? Didn’t work out real too good but he can play first or corner OF and Downs is teh sukc.) CJ hits a solid liner right at Neil Walker. Julio Daniel walks, Justie-poo lines out to short.
I was wondering why we aren’t calling up any actual young players, then realized that – hey, we can’t do that until September because otherwise we’d have to pay them, so it’s Old Guy retreads for us.
4th: Mondie hangs a slider and Neil Walker hits an upper deck homer. Otherwise, it’s 2 grounders and a K.
Pirates 2 Stros 1
Wandy gives up walk #5 but that’s it.
5th: Mondie gives up a single but strands him. 75 pitches. He better pitch all 9 he wants to be sure.
Astros have 5 walks, ONE hit so far. So Altuve singles, Downsie-doo gets an IF single to short. CJ flies out to center, Altuve on 3rd. Julio Daniel pops up to short right. Justie hits a fly ball to the corner of the RF bullpen that Pressley doesn’t get – 5 more feet and it woulda gone out and it’s a 2 run triple. Francie grounds out.
Stros 3 Bucs 2
6th: McCutchen singles. Millsie-poo out, but Mondie stays. Garrett Jones grounds to Downsie-doo, who tries to make a cute throw from his knees and his throw hits McCutchen in the back so no outs, men on first and second. Good bye Mondie. Well, you know this bullpen, so there goes the game and most likely, those runs gonna score. Wandy isn’t dumb – he knew all he had to do was hold on until bullpen time.
Wesley Wright out. Neil Walker hit by 0-2 pitch, bases loaded, nobody out. Alvarez chops one in front of the plate for a DP – out at home and first. He’s left (hahaha) in to face righty Barajas and first pitch hits Corporan on the hand – passed ball (JD says he was expecting a breaker and Wesley threw a FB). Tie score. Too bad Corporan hadn’t thrown to 3rd for that DP out. But he pops up to short right and Altuve makes a great sliding catch to end it.
Stros 3 Bucs 3
Wandy back out. Groundout, K. PH Scott Moore in – he’s a LEFTY (no righty PH) and he hits an IF single to second that Walker can’t make a clean play on. Jose singles to center. Men on first and second, 2 out. Pirates manager doesn’t even think about pulling Wandy because he knows that Downsie-doo sucks and sure enough, he pops up.
Thank goodness there are 3 more innings left to play because we haven’t won an extra inning tie game this YEAR.
7th: Chuckie Fick in to pitch. Could he possibly be worse than Rhiner Cruz/Enerio Del Rosario? We’ll see. Barmes singles. Wandy sac bunts. Then nice sliding catch by Maxwell. Then a groundout.
Well, Wandy won’t win, but he won’t lose neither.
RHP Chris Resop and he gets 1,2,3.
8th: Fickie back out. Since he’s already Chuckie, is he Fickie anyway? McCutchen walks. Single to right and it’s first and 3rd, none out. Millsie-poo out. Chuckie out. So much for him being a 2-3 inning long reliever. Froddy coming in. Walker pops up. Alvarez Ks. Barajas lines a single to left, McCutchen scores the winning run and Garrett Jones is out at 3rd on a 7-6-5.
Pirates 4 Stros 3
Froddy gets another blown save and goes to 1-9. At least I’m assuming he will, because the Astros are highly unlikely to come back against Brad Lincoln.
Bennie Frannie pops up. Bogusevic in to PH and he Ks. Corporan hits a bloop single to center and Schafer pinch runs – which really is bout all he is any good for. Scott Moore up and Schafer steals on the first pitch. Moore pops up.
9th: Wilton-ie Lopez in – should we call him Tunnie? He gets 1,2,3 out.
Jason Grilli in to close because Hanrahan is unavailable. Doesn’t matter – he gets 1,2,3 out.
Twelfth loss in a row and we are almost halfway to the ML record of 23 straight losses (since 1900).
sigh
Altuve gets his 36th multi hit game, Astros make 3 really nice defensive plays and also don’t get shut out.
Oh yeah – Chuckie Fick is not better than the guys he replaced.
Tomorrow, it’s Lucas Harrell, now the staff ace, vs James McDonald. Lucky 13.
Tags: Houston Astros, Pittsburgh Pirates
Our strategy of putting the other team in so many save situations that their closer is too tired to pitch another one almost paid off! Surely next time it will work!
Maybe Wandy will win a World Series game.
Neil, a cunning plan!
I was afraid Wandy was getting Butterflies when he got on the mound, but he
held his own against this club. Glad he didn’t lose his game……..now he can go forward to help the Pirates win.
i think he DID get butterflies. i hope he gets a Ring, like lance berkman did. and like i hope michael bourn and hunter pence do.