I’ll admit that I’m a little less disappointed that the Pirates are blacked out tonight, but that’s only because Indianapolis is playing in Durham with Jose Ascanio on the mound and Jose Tabata presumably making his Indians’ debut. So while I’ll have to miss Lastings Milledge and the new-look Buccos for the second time in a row, I’ll at least be at the Indians’ game getting a look at these guys and hopefully some good stuff to share here.
As for the real Pirates game, Virgil Vasquez makes what’s likely his last start for a while against Craig Stammen. Stammen’s having a weird rookie year. His ERA is pretty high (4.46), while his WHIP is pretty good (1.22), but his strikeout rate is pretty terrible (4.0 K/9). He hasn’t walked many hitters, though, and he’s holding the opposition to about a hit an inning. He’s actually pretty similar to last night’s starter, John Lannan, so hopefully we can throw some runs up against Stammen as well. The lineup is the same as last night, with the lone exception of Garrett Jones moving to first base and Brandon Moss moving to right field. Wouldn’t want Steve Pearce to get too comfortable out there.
