Weekend in Hollywood

Wow. 1 Blowout, 2 blown games in extra innings and one blown gasket for Ian Snell. That's what you call a productive weekend.

But seriously, Ian Snell rocks. He - get this - wants to win. And he plays for the Pirates. There's the rub. His tirade was priceless - here's part of it:

"I [f*&%ing] hate losing. I hate when the team doesn't bring out its full potential. And if they fine me, fine me. I don't care. Because this is getting stupid. We're better than what we're showing."

Folks, that's emotion from a Pirate player.

Protest
So, as everyone now knows, there's a protest planned for Saturday's Bob Walk bobblehead night. In principle, I am with this group - but I just don't see their method proving fruitful. Buying a ticket, watching the game get blown out of hand in the first 3 innings, then walking out for an inning, then RETURNING to your seats? Sorry guys, the only way to protest is to NOT buy tickets and protest outside the venue. I've stood by my stance to not purchase anything from the Pirates this year. I've gone to several games, but only on my company's tickets and parking pass.

Altoona Curve
Altoona split a series this weekend with Reading, playing the 4th game at 9:30AM Monday.
Friday: W 4-2, Pearce: 2/3 - 2B, 3B, RBI; Cutch 1/4
Saturday: L 3-1, Brazelton took the loss (4 IP, 3ER, 2BB, 2K), Walker: 1/3 - 2B, BB; Cutch 0/4
Sunday: W 5-4, Herrera gets the W (5IP, 6H, 2ER, 5K, 1BB), Walker: 0/2 - 2BB; Cutch 1/3 - BB
Monday: L 4-3, Walker: 0/3 - BB, Pearce: 1/4, Cutch 1/4

A good weekend for the Pens
The Pens drafted Angelo Esposito at 20 on Friday night, which is about 19 spots lower than he would've gone about 3 months ago. The Pens really seem to have gotten a steal with this pick. If Espo shows up ready for camp in a few months, I think he'll find himself alongside Sid for years to come.

And the old heads return:
Recchi & Roberts sign on for another year. Rex at an incentive-laden 2M deal and Roberts for 2.5M. Hearing Roberts' comments about staying with the Pens gave me chills this morning on the ride to work. He was saying that he couldn't see himself in another jersey & he understands the risk it would be for the Pens to extend him for more than 1 year at a time. (It's amazing that some professional athletes actually understand the business.)


My prediction for the night: The Pirates don't lose.