The Pirates christened the Marlins’ new stadium last night with a victory in their first trip to the futuristic ballpark. With tonight being their last game there of the season, the Pirates were looking to Kevin Correia to help get them the two-game sweep. Despite scoring in the first inning for the fourth consecutive game and a sole home run for Michael McKenry, the Pirates were unable to capitalize as they drop the series finale to the Marlins 6-2.
Correia, who has had an up and down season so far, wasn’t at his best tonight. His command struggled early on as he walked Jose Reyes to leadoff the game. Reyes would come around to score on an RBI double by Hanley Ramirez. The fourth inning is when Correia fell apart after loading the bases twice in the inning. The Marlins would score four runs on two two-run singles and another on Ramirez’s second double of the game.
The concern about Correia is his control. Last season, he walked just 39 batters over the course of the entire season. This season, he already has 15. While Correia hasn’t pitched as bad as people want to say he has, he still has to be looking over his shoulder about keeping his spot in the rotation. With Brad Lincoln pitching a gem on Monday to improve his record to 3-0, pressure is being added for Correia to go out and execute each time. Jeff Karstens is continuing his rehab on his right shoulder inflammation and when he returns, it’s likely that Correia will lose his spot in the rotation.
The Pirates will travel to Washington for another two-game series, this time with the Nationals. The Pirates were able to take two-of-three from the Nats last week in Pittsburgh. Tomorrow will have Erik Bedard (2-4, 2.57 ERA) making his return from his back spasm injury that he suffered against the Nationals last Wednesday. Taking the hill for the Nationals will be Gio Gonzalez (4-1,1.94 ERA). First pitch is scheduled for 7:05 p.m. ET.
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