The Pirates are like the little girl with the curl in the nursery rhyme: when they win, they win very, very close and when they lose, their losses are horrid. When they lose, they are outscored 141-30. On the other hand, when they win, they outscore their opponents 63-37. What they need is a few more close ones; the more the better.
To date, Charlie Morton hasn't managed to get it done. Everyone seems to agree he has a great fastball, but that seems to be it. He has trouble controlling his breaking stuff. He has trouble with the changeup. One talk show host complained that with bases loaded last night, the count 2-2 on slumping Aramis Ramirez, he threw him a changeup for a ball. Ramirez ended up hitting a sacrifice fly. The trouble is you can't be a one-pitch pitcher and pitch effectively in the major leagues. You need to show hitters something besides the fastball. At 26, Morton isn't exactly a kid; you would think if he was ever going to be able to throw the breaking ball effectively, he would have shown it by now.
Hope, like love, springs eternal. After all, Charlie doesn't have to actually win the games. All he has to do is keep them close — close enough for Ryan Church to hit his third home run, preferably a walk off.
Article comments
1 - Matthew T. Sussman
Uh oh. The Pirates are "winning big." The plan is awry!
2 - Jack Goodstein
Big trouble here in the Three River City.