Series Thread: Marlins at Pirates

[Darkstone42]

1-1 in the bottom of the 5th with Stewart on first and one out.

 

[Darkstone42]

Morton gave us seven strong, but this lineup is weak between Sanchez no longer knowing how to hit, and Nix and Stewart being in there, and the Bucs haven't given him any support.

 

[element1286]

Seriously what happened to Gab? I know he's not good, but for a guy with a decent track record of being an ok hitter, he has been just terrible since May.

 

[Darkstone42]

Seriously what happened to Gab? I know he's not good, but for a guy with a decent track record of being an ok hitter, he has been just terrible since May.

He can't even hit lefties anymore. I wonder if the lack of lefties we faced for so much of the year and the resulting limited at bats got him out of rhythm. Maybe the knee issues he had in the past have caught up to him. Maybe he had a few seasons of just playing over his head, and this is the real Gaby. I'm not sure.

But Polanco has given us the lead!

 

[Darkstone42]

Polanco steals second. He slides really late, I'm noticing.

 

[Darkstone42]

Hughes in for the 8th. Walker out of the game. I hope this is all precautionary.

 

[Darkstone42]

Can we trust no one at third base? That should have ended the inning.

 

[Darkstone42]

Wilson gives up a single, but it just loads them up.

 

[Darkstone42]

Credit where credit is due, that was a nice piece of hitting by Baker. Fastball 95 mph on the hands, and he shot it the other way to stay away from the shift.

 

[element1286]

So why is Watson not pitching this inning?

 

[Darkstone42]

Stewart at least temporarily saved a run with an excellent pitch reception in a 3-1 count. Caught in on the heel of his mitt to keep most of the glove in the zone.

 

[Darkstone42]

So why is Watson not pitching this inning?

Hopefully not an injury...

But if it's a day off, once trouble started, that should have gone out the window.

 

[element1286]

Wilson has been a huge disappointment this year, just no control, let alone command.

 

[Darkstone42]

Watson is clearly unavailable today, because on comes Gomez after Wilson walks in the go-ahead run.

 

[Darkstone42]

On the other hand, why were the fans booing? I know they're frustrated, but why would you boo your own pitcher in a tie game? It's not especially helpful...

 

[Darkstone42]

Unless a guy has been wildly overworked, if he's one of your bullpen horses, you do not rest him in a tight ballgame. You let a natural opportunity rest him. A blowout, a day off, whatever.

If Hurdle's just refusing to use Watson to give him a day off, it's inexcusable. Especially in a playoff push.

 

[Darkstone42]

We need another arm. We have to replace Wilson.

Of course, none of this happens if Harrison makes a routine play. And if Hurdle doesn't pull Hughes for "matchup" reasons.

 

[Darkstone42]

This is an atrocity. And with Martinez in for Marte (why is Martinez still on the roster?) and Walker already out, there's little chance of a comeback.

 

[element1286]

No idea, I've seen it talked about in other places, but for whatever reason NH/Hurdle will not carry just one shortstop. Which makes little sense considering the weakness of the bench, and the fact that Martinez has not once played ss, but is consistently hitting. And it's not like they don't have a guy who can stand there, and not embarrass himself, a la Josh Harrison. And if something did happen to Mercer they could just bring up a ss the next day from Indy.

 

[element1286]

Marlins turning Bryan Morris into a legit reliever, frustrating the Pirates whiffed so bad on him.