Cleveland @ Pittsburgh preview
PNC Park
Last Meeting ( Jun 25, 2009 ) Cleveland 2, Pittsburgh 3
Two last-place teams desperate for something to go right meet for a weekend series in Pittsburgh. Both the Indians and Pirates have endured plenty that went wrong lately.
The Pirates have been outscored 60-33 in losing 11 straight, their second-longest skid in 55 years. It did little to squelch team president Frank Coonelly’s belief in management. Coonelly gave contract extensions to both general manager Neal Huntington and manager John Russell.
Snapping the losing streak won’t be easy against Cleveland’s Fausto Carmona.
Carmona pitched a complete-game gem against Washington in his last start, allowing just one run on three hits. Carmona has been a hard-luck loser lately, going 1-4 in his last six starts despite a nifty 3.02 ERA.
It has done little to take away from his rebound season. Carmona battled confidence and mechanical issues last year that forced the Indians to send him all the way to the Arizona Rookie League.
He has regained command of his sinker this season, done a better job of keeping the ball down in the strike zone and the results are evident. Carmona (5-5) has pitched two complete games this season and has already matched his win total from a year ago.
The Indians haven’t won since Carmona last pitched and are coming off a three-game sweep at the hands of the New York Mets. It’s bad, but nearly as bad as what the Pirates have endured.
Pittsburgh hasn’t won since June 5 and is stuck in the midst of its longest losing skid since dropping 13 in a row in 2006. Paul Maholm has been as equally impressive as Carmona lately.
Maholm is 1-0 with a 1.78 ERA in his last four starts and has allowed more than two runs just once in his last six outings.
Amidst all the losing, both the Pirates and Indians have turned to their top prospects with mixed results. Pirates third baseman Pedro Alvarez is hitless in his first six at-bats. He went 0-for-4 with three strikeouts Thursday against the Chicago White Sox and was booed off the field.
The Indians recently promoted catcher Carlos Santana, one of the top prospects in baseball. Santana had two hits in Thursday’s loss to the Mets, raising his average to .273. He already hit his first major league home run and has hit safely in four of his first six games.