OnlyBucs

I turned the game off before the first inning even ended. But I saw enough to hear the Dodgers announcers say, "The Pirates are a team the Dodgers should beat up on. At least win the series if not sweep them." So much for respect. And of course the Pirates proceeded to humiliate themselves 17-1.

-Corey Dickerson is starting to hit again.  good to see



-Elias Diaz, while defensively poor to very poor, has some real thump in his bat.



-Brault should probably be optioned at this point.  He's just not getting it done.   I don't know who should come up though.   Clay Holmes should probably get his workload because, why not?



Mercer keeps hitting (as usual when the summer comes).  .708 OPS now and keeps climbing.  too bad his defense is sub-par or he would be in line for a decent year overall.       



Dodgers had 9 extra base hits.   :-/



We had more errors than xbh again, something i think we do far too often as a team and is an interesting measure of lineup futility. Although 2 errors were on the pitcher, so at least there's that.

666F677678020 wrote: -Corey Dickerson is starting to hit again.  good to see



-Elias Diaz, while defensively poor to very poor, has some real thump in his bat.



-Brault should probably be optioned at this point.  He's just not getting it done.   I don't know who should come up though.   Clay Holmes should probably get his workload because, why not?



Mercer keeps hitting (as usual when the summer comes).  .708 OPS now and keeps climbing.  too bad his defense is sub-par or he would be in line for a decent year overall.       



Dodgers had 9 extra base hits.   :-/



We had more errors than xbh again, something i think we do far too often as a team and is an interesting measure of lineup futility.    Although 2 errors were on the pitcher, so at least there's that.


I think Diaz could give them stability behind the plate despite his short comings on defense. He seems to have a live bat, one that could give more production than Cervelli for a cheaper rate. I would try to move Francisco if someone will take him and ride it out with Diaz and Stallings. The catching situation won't get much better moving forward from getting a better offensive/defensive combo of a player. Diaz can hit; not play defense; Stallings can't hit ... our top catching prospect is years away, Stafford, and his defense sucks.

4561757D78140 wrote: A ray of joy in Buccoville tonight. 



Black Bears defeat Muckdogs 3-1





By the way our team is the West Virginia Black Bears of Morgantown WV.  Bucs Short-Season Low A team.


Cool! Hearing that our Black Bears Beat the team with the worst name in sports (Muckdogs??? really? Yuckdogs!!) is a balm and a salve to my wounded Pirate fan soul.




Being a member of the Ol' Farts here at OBN I have no doubt that you would enjoy going to a Black Bears game. So much like and old time game when we were young. Kids playing their hearts out, making mistakes, some very basic but still giving their all. Only thing I don't like is they have the DH.



As for MilB names I suggest that you go to the MiLB site and check out names from other leagues for some really off the wall names.

I've always like the Batavia Muckdogs as a name.

It just feels so hopeless with this team after games like this. It just feels like there is no end in sight and things are going to get a lot worse before they get better. I’m just so worn out with everything associated with this team from the lying front office to the managing and play on the field. It absolutely sucks.

I agree. Good summary of my attitude right now.



Hopeless is a good word for being a fan of this team. So is the phrase "worn out." So is the phrase "no end in sight."

373E362729530 wrote: -Corey Dickerson is starting to hit again.  good to see



-Elias Diaz, while defensively poor to very poor, has some real thump in his bat.



-Brault should probably be optioned at this point.  He's just not getting it done.   I don't know who should come up though.   Clay Holmes should probably get his workload because, why not?



Mercer keeps hitting (as usual when the summer comes).  .708 OPS now and keeps climbing.  too bad his defense is sub-par or he would be in line for a decent year overall.       



Dodgers had 9 extra base hits.   :-/



We had more errors than xbh again, something i think we do far too often as a team and is an interesting measure of lineup futility.    Although 2 errors were on the pitcher, so at least there's that.


When I look ahead a year or two and imagine the Pirates regularly fielding all of the following:

C- Elias Diaz

1B-Josh Bell

RF- Gregory Polanco

3B- Colin Moran



I say to myself we'll need Ozzie Smith and Bill Mazeroski at short and second to even come up with an average defense. Thank goodness Meadows looks to be cut out of a different cloth than those four future DH's.

I chose to suffer through most of the game --- brutal, just brutal game to watch.



First, I know that Kingham is no all-star, but I believe the Bucs should commit to inserting him in the starting rotation for a month or more and see what works out. None of his pitches seemed to have any 'zip' last night and his location was horrible.



Second, I am glad that Diaz is hitting with some authority this year, but they really need to try and tone down his aggressiveness in throwing behind runners. He lacks consistency with his throwing to do this on a regular basis.



Third, the starting pitchers should buy Tanner Anderson a good dinner today. He took more lumps than he deserved, but he was pitching as well as he could.



Fourth, so much for any confidence building coming out of the series wins against the Mets and Padres. I know that there was no reason to suspect such, but 17 - 1.



Fifth, Hurdle talks about getting the subs some regular playing time so they are better prepared when they are asked to pinch hit or perform in a tough situation. If so, why wasn't Moroff used earlier.



Lastly, I expect things to get better after Rodriguez completes his rehab assignment and is ready to help the Bucs.

Last night was ugly. Kingham didn’t look prepared to play. Anderson, who is more an organizational filler, looked completely overmatched. By the time Brault got in the Dodgers were in an all-out feeding frenzy.



I won’t pretend to focus on long-term problem solving, but will just look at tonight’s game. Nova is pitching and he may be our best bet to minimize the carnage. He is a veteran and he has been solid his last four starts: 2-0, 1.75 ERA, .86 WHIP. Somebody needs to step forward and show some confidence and leadership. He has a tough task. The Bucs are reeling and leaderless. Here is his chance to put a tourniquet on the wounds LA has inflicted this season.