Ross Ohlendorf pitched well again and this time was rewarded as the offense continued to get just enough. Jamie Moyer was also strong but was a tough luck loser.
Moyer got out of a two one, one out jam in the first as the Pirates collected two hits. He retired 8 straight before giving up a lead off single to Andrew McCutchen in the fourth. After two straight whiffs, Ryan Doumit reached on infield hit. Bobby Crosby walked to load the bases. Andy LaRoche hit a dribbler that Moyer fielded and threw wildly on. He was charged with a run scoring error and LaRoche got an RBI on the play. The Pirates collected no more hits on the day and the no one scored again.
Moyer whiffed eight and gave up five singles over six innings. Ohlendorf allowed five hits – no more than one in any inning – over seven innings. He also struck out eight. Ohlendorf walked just one and also hit one. Joel Hanrahan and Octavio Dotel worked a perfect inning to close out the game.
The Good
A three game winning streak.
Ohlendorf picks up his first win of the year.
The Bad
The Bucs offense has been stagnant. The club needs a three HR game from someone.
The Rest
Nearing the halfway point, the Pirates had three starting pitchers (granted they all haven’t been in the rotation all year) pick up their first win of the season. Speaks volumes as to the current location of this club in the standings.
The eight whiffs represented Moyer’s season high. Last time he whiffed eight or more was 6/24/08 against Oakland. He is now 6-8 against the Pirates.
Andy LaRoche batted 51 times in June and drove in one run. He was credited with an RBI in yesterday’s game, giving him one RBI so far for July. Would anyone mind if I pin all my hopes for the success of the Jason Bay trade on Bryan Morris?
This was Ohlendorf’s first career decision against Philadelphia and his third start. His eight Ks are the 2010 high water mark and his second best ever.
The Pirates are 29-51 through 80 games. They were 37-43 at this mark in 2009 and 38-42 in 2008. The Pirates need to go 53-29 the final 82 games to avoid another losing season.
