McCutchen With Three More Hits, Pirates Beat Red Sox

Photo Credit:  MLB Daily Dish

The Pirates brought their bats tonight, touching up the Boston Red Sox pitching throughout the game on their way to a 7-4 victory under the lights at JetBlue Park in Ft. Myers, Fla.

Andrew McCutchen continued his impressive spring at the plate, going 3-3 with 2RBI to lead the Bucs.  Cutch had two doubles and a single, and he looks incredibly comfortable at the plate, taking what the opposing pitchers are giving him.  He is hitting .455 this spring, and the offseason work, including the altered batting stance, appears to have really paid off.  Before Spring Training began, I predicted McCutchen would have a huge season, and he’s off to a great start.

As for the rest of the offense, it was a productive night against Red Sox pitching.  Jose Tabata and Clint Barmes both had strong nights at the plate.  Tabata had a pair of hits and two RBI’s, while Barmes continued his hot streak at the plate with two knocks of his own.  It’s no secret that McCutchen and Tabata, as well as Neil Walker garner a lot of attention, but the wild cards of this team are the guys like Rod Barajas, Casey McGehee, and yes, Clint Barmes.  Barajas and Barmes have started out strong this week, which is a great sign.

Shairon Martis took the bump for the Bucs tonight and pitched well, giving up only two hits in his two innings of work, while Chris Resop pitched a scoreless third inning.  There is a litter of relievers competing for those available bullpen spots, and Resop showed tonight why he will occupy one of those spots on Opening Day. 

Unfortunately, the same could not be said about Tony Watson tonight, which has been the case in each of his performances.  Tonight, he gave up two runs on three hits in a pair of innings.  He has yet to have a quality outing, and if this continues, he’ll find himself in Altoona or Indianapolis.  The Pirates’ pitchers did give up a lot of hits tonight, twelve in fact, but they squandered a number of opportunities and the Pirates pitched their way out of trouble on a number of occasions.

The Pirates played well tonight overall, earning their 3^rd win in Grapefruit League play.  Aside of Pedro Alvarez’s 0-3 performance, the Bucs’ projected everyday starters continue to hit the ball with much consistency as they close out the first week of Spring Training play.  With a 3-4 record, the Pirates will face the Minnesota Twins tomorrow afternoon at McKechnie Field.  First pitch is scheduled for 1:05pm.

Grapefruit League Record:  3-4

And…

As Always…

Let’s Go Bucs!