Pittsburgh @ New York preview

Last Meeting ( Sep 15, 2010 ) Pittsburgh 7, NY Mets 8

Charlie Morton turned in a quality start last time out. Unforntunately, those have been few and far between for Morton and the Pittsburgh Pirates this season.

Morton will be looking to prove that he deserves a spot in the Pirates future when they close out a four-game series against the New York Mets on Thursday.

The worst pitcher in the majors by a wide margin statistically speaking, Morton’s 9.05 ERA is nearly one and a half runs higher than any pitcher with at least 40 innings under his belt this season. Only wild left-handers Oliver Perez and Dontrelle Willis have posted worse WHIPs than Morton’s 1.92.

Morton came over from the Atlanta Braves as part of the Nate McLouth trade last season and was expected to fill in at the back of the rotation with respectable results while he adapted to his first extended look in the majors. He did just that in 2009, going 5-9 with a 4.55 ERA in 18 starts. That performance earned him a spot in the 2010 rotation, where things went wrong very quickly.

The 26-year-old went 0-5 in April while allowing at least five runs in each start to close the month with a 12.57 ERA. He earned his lone win in May but then lost four more while surrendering 21 runs – 18 earned – in 18 innings to finally earn his demotion back to Triple-A.

With Pittsburgh well out of contention, the club decided to give Morton another chance down the stretch, bringing him back up on August 29. He promptly got shelled for eight runs – seven earned – over 3 1/3 innings in a loss at Milwaukee and suffered another setback against Washington on September 5, yielding six runs – two earned – in 3 2/3 frames.

Morton managed to pull himself together last weekend, limiting Cincinnati to three runs and six hits in 6 1/3 innings. He did not factor in the decision.

The Pirates have some exciting young hitters in their lineup with Pedro Alvarez, Andrew McCutchen, Jose Tabata and Neil Walker, but they have not been nearly as successful at developing pitchers. Their best chances for future aces – Jameson Taillon and Stetson Allie – have yet to throw a professional pitch after being drafted in June.

That lack of pitching has been evident the past two night, as New York has amassed a total of 17 runs in a pair of wins. The Mets took the series opener on Monday as well, 1-0 in 10 innings.

New York will send Mike Pelfrey to the mound on Thursday looking for the sweep. The 26-year-old right-hander bounced back from a pair of losses with a strong outing last weekend, holding the Philadelphia Phillies to two runs in 7 1/3 innings while striking out five to earn the win.

He faced the Pirates back on August 20, surrendering two runs – one earned – on six hits in eight innings to pick up the win. Pelfrey has faced Pittsburgh three times in his career, going 2-1 with a 4.34 ERA.