And so after a long spell of losing, the Pirates somehow manage to win “the bullpen game.” The unorthodox combination of Jeff Karstens, Donnie Veal, Steven Jackson, Jesse Chavez, and Matt Capps shut down the Dodgers tonight, holding them to just one run on seven hits. Veal was particularly impressive; his huge, bending curveball was nearly unhittable and while he did bean Jon Garland, he didn’t walk anyone. Remember the difference between Evan Meek last year and Evan Meek this year before giving up on Veal entirely, because Veal really does seem to have good stuff.
There’s not much else to say about this one; it was a solid team effort that resulted in a win. It feels like a huge occaision, but only because of how poorly the team has played of late. If anything, it’s a perfect illustration of this post by Charlie from this afternoon about why the Pirates probably won’t lose 110 games next year. Honestly, if they could just sprinkle maybe three more games like this in before the season ends, I’ll go into the off-season feeling much better about things than I do right now. Is that too much to ask for?
