Walking the Plank: Weekly Review: June 25-30: Astros and Brewers

Houston Astros Series Record: 2-1... WOW!

Milwaukee Brewers Series Record: 1-2...sad

Pirates Record and Standings: 39-43, 4th Place NL Central

Trivia Question of the Week: Who leads the Pirates for most triples this season? 

A very good week for the Pirates that had the potential for being great if they could have won one more of the close games in Milwaukee. The Pirates had an amazing series in Houston where they were the first road team this season to win a series there, but they faltered in Milwaukee losing 2 out of 3 in three very close and good games. Josh Bell was named an All-Star and will be participating in the HR Derby, which is AMAZING news, but Felipe Vazquez not making the All-Star team is a big disappointment... Here are my 3 big takeaways from this week's amazing games: 

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1. Home Runs Galore!

When I got out of work on Thursday afternoon halfway through the Pirates vs. Astros game, I was shocked when I saw all my ESPN alerts for Pirate HRs! On Thursday, the Pirates hit 5 HRs against the Astros, which even included HRs from Stallings and Newman. Not only did Newman hit a HR on Thursday, but he also hit one the day before and the day after to have 3 in a row! For a team who was not looked at as having a lot of power, the Pirates had a juiced up week.  

2. Bullpen Improvement

The Pirates offense has been the biggest reason for their recent success, but their bullpen is finally starting to perform to the level that was expected during the preseason. Rich Rod has not given up a run during June, Liriano may have been one of the best steals of free agency, Crick (except for giving up the go ahead run today) and Vazquez are always great, and the middle relief made up of Holmes, Feliz, and Stratton has steadily improved. 

3. Maybe.. the Pirates won the Gerrit Cole Trade? 

This may be an unpopular opinion with some Pirate fans, and I am not 100% sure on this, but it looks like the Pirates may have won this trade. Do not get me wrong, Gerrit Cole has been great for the Astros, but Musgrove and Moran have also been very good for the Pirates and have filled huge roles. Also, the Pirates clearly were not going to get all of Cole's potential out of him, so maybe it was best they moved on to other players. Feliz has had some good and some very awful moments and Martin looks like a promising OF prospect. Time will continue to tell the fate of this one!

Position Player of the Week (Last week: Bryan ROYnolds and Jose Osuna): Kevin Newman. This one was easy. Newman had a monster of a week where he hit three home runs in three consecutive nights! Newman is not known for his power at all, so these home runs are a comlete shock for fans. Oh yea, his 19 game hitting streak was a pretty good accomplishment too... Kudos to you, Kevin Newman; also, congrats to being the first two time position player of the week winner!

Pitcher of the Week (Last Week: Richard Rodriquez): Joe Musgrove. There were a lot of good pitching performances this week, but no better than Musgrove mowing down his old team; Musgrove pitched 6 scoreless innings with 5 strike outs against one of the best lineups in baseball. We tip our caps to you, Joe! 

Moment of the Week (Last Week: Bryan Reynolds 3-Run Go-Ahead HR): Houston blow out. Remember when the Pirates blew out the Astros? Remember when they did it again the night after? (Cue the spongebob meme) I usually pick an individual players moment of the week, but these wins against one of the best teams in baseball were remarkable. The Pirates won the series with a run differential of 26, which is truly amazing! 

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Who Walks the Plank (Last Week: Jung Ho Kang): Adam Frazier. Frazier started 5 games this week at 2B, and went hitless in 4 out of 5 of those games. For a guy who is known to get on base and bat close to .300, his .254 batting average does not cut it, especially with his below average defense. We need you to be better, Adam, or it may be time to put Newman at 2B and bring back up Cole Tucker. Enjoy your swim, Mr. Frazier! 

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Trivia Answer: Adam Frazier! He has 4 triples this season while Bell and Marte trail with 3 each. 

Upcoming Games: Home: 4 Game Series vs. Cubs, 3 Game Series vs. Brewers

Record Prediction (Last Week: 4-2- almost happened, but sadly finished 3-3):  The Pirates are back home against two division rivals and they are currently in a pretty good place. I think the Pirates keep up their recent trend of being hot going into All-Star week and take 3 out of 4 against the Cubs and 2 out of 3 against the Brewers to finish the week at 5-2. Buccos will go into the All-Star game one game under .500, you heard it here first! (or you heard my hopes and dreams...)

Thanks for reading and let me know what you think in the comments below. Try to stay positive Pirate fans and Lets Go Bucs!!

-Aaron, TGYK