Thoughts On The First Series

PITTSBURGH, Pa. / April 9, 2010

This Pirates-Dodgers series was my first career three-game series as a fan. Although Thursday's game was obviously disappointing, I can't say that I've been swayed from my belief that the Pirates will win the World Series. Here's what I saw:

All the starting pitchers threw well. The top three of Duke, Ohlendorf, Maholm all put together solid starts against one of the league's best lineups. While none was overpowering, that's not their game. They kept the team in each game and were able to recover from setbacks. Duke in particular pitched great with men on base and could have pitched at least one more inning if he hadn't been pinch hit for. Ohlemdorf and Maholm were victimized a bit by their defense. Maholm was charged with four runs but I was pleased with his pitch economy.

The top half of the lineup looks good. Akinori Iwamura has a lot of patience and is well suited to the leadoff spot, a role he filled for a pennant winning club in Tampa. Cutch is Cutch and Jones is the MVP. Doumit already has a three-run homer which is what you want in a cleanup hitter. And Milledge has been hitting the ball well even though he has only two hits to show for it. "Even though" is one of the few connecting words that requires a comma before it, yet I still omitted it.

Teams shouldn't run on the Pirates outfield. Aside from Ryan Church the other four outfielders all have strong and accurate arms. Dodgers 3B coach Larry Bowa seemed intent on challenging them today and was rewarded with two outs on plays at the plate. Expect that to continue until teams wise up.

Hayden Penn could not be released soon enough. Penn had an awful career, an awful spring, and was released. The Pirates picked him up and after an awful performance for them in the Grapefruit League, he made the team. Surprisingly, his performance in the first game was awful. He now has over a 9.00 career ERA. There is no "He has a 9 ERA but a lot of talent" or "He has a 9 ERA but it would be 2.25 with good luck." He can't pitch in the major leagues.