Duke Shelled; Braves Avoid Sweep

Count me among those feeling a little overconfident after the Pirates shut out the Braves over the first two games of this series. A nice 3-0 win on Friday, led by a solid Paul Maholm start, and a 10-0 beat down on Saturday, with Ian Snell pitching well and Craig Monroe jacking a pair of three-run homers. I figured red-hot Zach Duke could keep it up against this weak Braves lineup. I was sorely mistaken. Today, Duke had what would have been considered a bad start for him in '07, the nadir of his career. Duke allowed 6 runs and 12 hits in 6 innings. He was even helped out by 2 double plays and a couple of base running errors by the Braves, so it could have been worse. The final score, after Craig Hansen and Donnie Veal relieved, was 11-1. Ugly.

I'd be hard pressed to come up with any positives from this game. Let me think...Um, no injuries occurred. And all 13 position players entered the game. Delwyn Young got another at bat and played some center field. Andy LaRoche now has a 4 game hitting streak, which ties his Pirate high from his one hot streak last year. So, yeah. Not much. And now the 11-1 Florida Marlins come to town for three games. Eep.