Bucs Sweep Padres: Team stays hot as Cards come to town

The Pittsburgh Pirates just continue to win. After a tough stretch in which they were swept by Washington and lost 2 of 3 to the Reds, the Pirates returned to their winning ways by winning 10 of their next 12 games. Last night Pittsburgh finished off a 3 game sweep of the San Diego Padres at PNC Park. The sweep did not come easy, as all 3 wins were decided in the late innings. This current hot streak that the Bucs are on could not have come at a better time, as Thursday night they will begin a crucial 4 game set with the first place St. Louis Cardinals at PNC Park.

 The series began in exciting fashion on Monday night. AJ Burnett pitched excellent, allowing just 1 run over 7.2 innings of work, but the Pirates could not get much going offensively. With the game tied at 1 in the bottom of the 9th, Pedro Alveraz came to the plate with runners on 2nd and 3rd. The Big Bull delivered, hitting a single to drive home the winning run. More drama was to follow the next night.

Francisco Liriano pitched 6 innings of 2 run ball, but again the Pirates bats struggled to get runs across the plate, in spite of San Diego using their bullpen early as a result of a long rain delay. The Padres defense did not do the Bucs any favors, as Justin Upton robbed Andrew McCutchen of a potential go-ahead homerun in the bottom of the 6th. The Bucs hung in, however, and they were rewarded when Gregory Polanco drove home Sean Rodriguez with a double in the bottom of the 8th to make it 3-2. Mark Melancon shut the door and the Pirates ran their win streak to 4 games, counting the 2 wins over the Clevland Indians in the last series. This win was also significant because it was the first time the Pirates had ever won a series against San Diego at PNC Park. Charlie Morton got off to a slow start on Wednesday night, allowing 2 early runs through his first 2 innings of work. But Morton battled and did not allow a single run thorough his next 4 innings, giving the Pirates a chance to win.

With the game tied at 2 in the bottom of the 8th, Polanco again had a chance to be a hero when he came up with 2 outs and Travis Ishikawa on 1st. He did just that, driving a deep double off of the Clemente wall, scoring Ishikawa and giving the Bucs a 3-2 lead. Pittsburgh would add 2 more runs in that inning, and Antonio Bastardo shut the door in the 9th for his first save of the season.

So, this sets the stage for the Pirates biggest series of the 2015 season. Pittsburgh currently sits 4.5 games behind 1st place St. Louis, and this 4 game set could help make or break the division race. Baseball is so hard to predict, but my gut tells me that this series will be split 2 games apiece. Anything can happen, however, and this will be fun to watch.