THE BULLPEN

Put me in coach! Your Pittsburgh Pirates continue their series tonight at PNC Park against the Milwaukee Boo Crew. These are your keys to tonight's game. 1)Pirates fans are ready to put the Jolly Roger on the side of a milk carton because it hasn't been seen in these parts in a while. The Pirates suffered their third loss in a row last night. Did the Pirates forget where they put the Jolly Roger? Right this ship and hoist the colors! 2)With 76 wins, the Pirates are only 6 victories away from breaking the dreaded 20 year losing streak. Tonight they try to change course with RH Charlie Morton on the mound. Ground Chuck is 5-3 with a 3.42 ERA. Give Ground Chuck a side of beef with plenty of Hit, Run, & Score! 3)The Pirates made a move yesterday to try and bolster the offense, acquiring OF Marlon Byrd and C John Buck from the Mets. Byrd has 21 homers and 71 RBIs this season. He owns left-handed pitching with 7 homers and leads the Majors with a .455 BA against lefties since June 28. Milwaukee starts former Pirates LH Tom Gorzelanny, 3-5, 3.60 ERA. Give him a shot of vitamin B! As we look at the standings, the Pirates loss, coupled with a St Louie win puts the Bucs 1.5 games back in the NL Central. Cincy was on the losing end of the St Louie victory so they fall to 4.5 back but are only 3 games behind the Pirates. Time to get back on course. Let's Go Bucs!!!!!