BUC FEVER...CATCH IT!:

Pirates spring to 3-0 start with sweep (Dejan Kovacevic, 4/05/07, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette)

Spring training must not mean much.

Take Jose Bautista, owner of a .182 average in the Grapefruit League and zero hits in his final 19 at-bats.

Worst hitter on the team.

Or Tom Gorzelanny, owner of that 7.96 ERA and the 15 walks that had everyone muttering all of March.

Worst pitcher on the team.

Well ...

It was Bautista who went 3 for 5 with three RBIs, continued sound defense and some slick baserunning to help the Pirates rally once again past the Houston Astros, 5-4, last night at Minute Maid Park.

It was Gorzelanny who shrugged off some shoddy work behind him to strand seven runners, limit the Astros to three runs in five sweat-filled innings and take the victory.

And it was the team as a whole - a collection that never put much of anything together while in Bradenton -- opening the 2007 season with a three-game sweep and taking sole possession of first place in the Central Division, a game up on the Milwaukee Brewers.

Duke, Snell, Gorzelanny, Maholm is a fine first four and if Tony Armas has anything left and can stay healthy they have a decent enough 5-man rotation to not be a bad team. The question is whether they have sense enough to deal Salomon Torres and the 4th outfielders they start in center to add some more pieces to an emerging team.

Posted by Orrin Judd at April 5, 2007 7:00 AM