The Pirates (27 – 18), fresh off of their 14th comeback victory of the season last night, will look to take game 2 of the 3-game set against the Cubs (18 – 26). Francisco Liriano (2 – 0, 1.64 ERA) will take the hill for the Bucs while Jeff Samardzija (2 – 5, 3.49 ERA) will look to maintain his dominance against the Pirates.
Hurdle’s Quotes
On if he thinks this team has more power potential than the previous two years – “I think there’s potential for power. How it plays out, time will tell.”
“What I look for in an offense are runs scored and runs driven in“.
“When you have guys in the lineup that can redirect a game with one swing then it’s always nice to have. Most of the prolific offenses are ones that have the ability to change a game with one swing of the bat.”
On the team being able to mount late-game comebacks – “I think the mindset was developed, actually, the last month of the season (last year). I think the guys came into spring training with a little rock in their shoe.”
“What I do like is the guys that we added, A.J. has an edge, Grilli has an edge, Martin has an edge, and the guys internally, Walker and McCutchen, they have another year under their belt that know that if you want to do significant things here, there’s gotta be times when you do things differently.”
On being able to avoid another late-season collapse – “We expect to deal with this. We expect to get to that point again (in playoff position), then when we get to that point again I do think we have a better understanding. We have to control the grind, we have to eliminate distractions, and we just gotta play the game.”
On solving Samardzika – “Were due. That’s what I tell my guys, were due. See him up, get a good pitch to hit, hit it where it’s pitched. If he comes up with that stuff he had opening day, it will be a challenge. The first thought’s the most important thought, I’m going to see the ball up, I’m going to get a good pitch to hit and I’m not going to miss it.”
Other Notes
— James McDonald’s side sessions are going well. He will throw another side session on Friday. Jeff Karstens next appearance is still TBD while Charlie Morton will next pitch in Buffalo on Sunday. He will throw 6 innings or 90 pitches.
— One of the main reasons that the Pirates have been able to comeback 14 times this season has been their ability to score after the 6th inning. They have outscored their opponents 93 – 55 from the 6th inning on this season.
— The Pirates 27 – 18 record is their best start since 1991 when that squad went 30 – 15 after 45 games, it’s a better start than what the 1992 team had through 45 games (24 – 21).
— Since April 8, the Pirates are tied with the Cardinals and Yankees for the best record in baseball (26 – 13).
First pitch is set for 7:05.
For in-game updates and news follow Travis on twitter at @TBerardi_OVA
(Photo Credit: ROOT Sports)
