When Paul Maholm threw a third-inning curveball that was so ugly that it shocked Albert Pujols into a strikeout, I was surprised. When the inning ended five batters (three walks and a bases-loaded double) later, I was much less surprised. Maholm completely lost his handle on the strike zone in the third inning today, and when that happens to a pitcher like him things are going to get ugly. The game probably wasn’t completely over when Maholm left the game in the next inning, but the decision to employ Brian Bass, who hadn’t pitched in a game since May 2nd, in the long man’s role instead of DJ Carrasco when Maholm came out of the game in the fourth inning probably sealed the deal.
There’s not much else to say about this game, but it is worth noting that in the early going, Ryan Ludwick robbed Pirate hitters of several hits (probably extra bases worth) because he was shaded heavily into the left-center field gap. Which is exactly where John Russell and Gary Varsho place Lastings Milledge and one of the things that earns them the most crap from fans.
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