Walking the Plank: Weekly Review: July 1-7: Cubs and Brewers

Chicago Cubs Series Record: 3-1.. my reaction to Joe Maddon

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Milwaukee Brewers Series Record: 2-1

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Pirates Record and Standings: 44-45, 4th Place NL Central, 2.5 GB 1st Place!

Trivia Question of the Week: Who was the last Pirates position player to make the All-Star team? (Answer is at the bottom!)

What a week for the Buccos! The Pirates are flying high into the All-Star break taking 3 out of 4 against the Cubs and 2 out of 3 against the Brewers. It feels so good to beat up on the Cubs and to finally beat the Brewers in a series. We get a little break from baseball this week, but we get to watch Bell smash some homers tomorrow night and Bell and Vazquez play in the All-Star game! Here are my 3 big takeaways from this week's amazing games: 

1. Offensive Firepower!!

Who is this Pirates offense and what have they done with the real Pirates? Going into the season, we all thought the offense was going to be a liability for this team, but it has mostly carried the team the past two months. The Pirates had blowout wins of 18-5 against the Cubs and 12-2 against the Brewers! The Pirates have been on a roll lately with blowout wins. 

2. The Cubs Suck and Joe Maddon is a Jack-A$$

We all already knew this about the Cubs and Maddon, but this week just helped to cement these thoughts even more. I absolutely loved the 18-5 win against the Cubs on ESPN and all the ESPN broadcasters who were there for the Cubs were just like...

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3. Adam Frazier and Josh Bell... That is All

Bell hit 5 HRs to warm up for Derby night tomorrow and Frazier had a ridiculous week going 18/30 and batting .600 in the month of July so far; oh yea, Frazier also had a 5 hit night against the Cubs. What a week for these two!

Position Player of the Week (Last week: Kevin Newman): Adam Frazier. No surprise here. Frazier must have read my post last week when he "Walked the Plank," because he had an absolutely ridiculous week batting .600. Kudos to you, Mr. Frazier! Honorable Mention: Josh Bell

Pitcher of the Week (Last Week: Joe Musgrove: Chris Stratton. I have not been high on Stratton at all this season, but he pitched 6 scoreless innings for the Pirates this week albeit none of the innings he pitched were in high leverage situations. With continued success, we may be seeing Stratton in some more crucial innings. Honorable Mention: Richard Rodriquez and Dario Agrazal

Moment of the Week (Last Week: Houston Blow Out Win): Josh Bell's 3-HR Night Against the Cubs on Monday Night. This was a tough call between Bell's 3-HRs and Frazier's 5-hit night, but I got to give it to the 3-HR game! Honorable Mention: Frazier's 5-hit game

Who Walks the Plank (Last Week: Adam Frazier): Clint Hurdle. I am not a Clint Hurdle fan and think he has done a pretty good job with the cards he has been dealt this season, but not pinch running for Melky and pitching Neverauskas in a one run game are inexcusable, and may have costed the Buccos a win in a tight divisional race. Enjoy your swim, Mr. Hurdle!

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Trivia Answer: Josh Harrison in 2017! If you are like me, you would have guessed Starling Marte, but he was 2016 and Harisson made it the year after! 

Upcoming Games: Home Run Derby, All-Star Game. Away: 3 Games Series vs. Cubs

Record Prediction (Last Week: 5-2- I have really been killing it with these predictions): Since I have been doing so well with my predictions, I am going BOLD this week and say Josh Bell is going to win the HR Derby and then homer AGAIN in the All-Star game. When we get back to real baseball on Friday, I think the Pirates will take 2 out of 3 against the Cubs to be at .500 heading into a crucial week against the Red Birds and in state rival Phillies. 

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