MVN - Most Valuable Network

Game #41: Bay’s Bop Beats Birds

Busch Stadium | 1:15 | Snell vs. Joel Pineiro | Box

There are few things better than beating Tony LaRussa two out of three.

Jason Bay didn’t start but came off the bench to deliver a game breaking three run homer in the 8th. He came up with the scored tied at 5 and blasted a pitch from Jason Isringhausen. The Pirates tacked some more on against Ron Villone in the 9th to seal the deal.

Ian Snell looked like someone else again. Certainly not at all like the Ian Snell that this club needs. He was lifted after the fourth for a pinch hitter after giving up 11 hits and five runs. The bullpen came through allowing just three hits the rest of the way. John Grabow recorded two outs on three pitches to earn the win.

Faced with becoming the full time starter, Ronny Paulino had multiple hits. Back up back stop Raul Chavez drove in his first run since July 7, 2006 with a 9th inning pinch hit double.

Pre-Game Thoughts
Last time Joel Pineiro tossed it against the Buccos, he was sharp. That was back on 4/24/08 and he allowed just one run in seven innings pitched.

He is having a steady 2008. He has allowed more than three earned runs just one time in six starts. His 2008 got a slow start due to some shoulder issues.

His career mark against the Pirates is 3-0 with an ERA below 2.00. The Pirates who spent a good chunk of time in the AL have seen a lot of Pineiro. Nobody has hit him particularly well. The club as a whole had hit .268 against him.

Ian Snell is hoping (or at least I’m hoping) for a return to the form that he showed in the first half of 2008. If there is anything positive about his 2008 it is that his gopher is starving. He allowed 22 homers in 32 starts in 2007. After 8 starts in ‘08, he has yielded 3. That is a pace of 12 homers allowed, assuming he makes 32 starts this year.

Snell chucked it 4/23/08 against the Redbirds and got a no decision. Snell is 3-3 with a 3.71 ERA against St. Louis for his career.

Albert Pujols has been trouble for a lot of pitchers. Snell is standing in that line. Phat Albert is 11-19 with four homers off of Snell. Amongst pitchers against whom he has 20 PAs, Pujols is hitting better against only one - Odalis Perez. He has more than four homers off of only two pitchers.

This entry was posted on Thursday, May 15th, 2008 at 6:43 am and is filed under Away, May, 2008 Pittsburgh Pirates, Ronny Paulino, Ian Snell, St. Louis Cardinals, Jason Bay, Game Threads. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.