For a very, very long time on WHYGAVS, I’ve been writing about Neil Walker and Andrew McCutchen. For the great majority of the time, they’ve been abstract concepts, the guys off in the distance that provide the hope that we all need to keep going. And tonight, they batted 1-2 and McCutchen had four hits, three for extra bases, and Walker added two, including a triple, and they scored five of the Pirates’ six runs and Walker turned a really nifty double play at second base and the Pirates won and whoa, it’s a weird feeling to see two young guys key a win like this after waiting for stuff like this for such a looooong time.
That’s not to get ahead of myself with Walker, because we all know he’s coming back to earth from his current .351 batting average, but when guys like Freddy Sanchez would rip four hits and spur a win last year it always felt like finding an old box of cereal that wasn’t stale. Games like tonight aren’t like that.
Abstract expressions of relief and hope aside, wins like this one are always nice to see. The Giants started a subpar pitcher and the Pirates, lead by McCutchen, Walker, and Ryan Doumit (two hits with a big homer, four RBIs) pounded him into submission. Paul Maholm backed it up with a nice start and everyone hung on for dear life with Octavio Dotel and Lastings Milledge running a figure-eight on his way to what was almost a game-tying double by Freddy Sanchez (how awesome was Lastings’ huge grin after making his diving catch on the track?) but before the ninth inning it was a solid game and a nice win. It’s always good to get a win after a loss with Lincecum looming.
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