Chicago Cubs Paul Maholm praised for his excellent game against Pittsburgh Pirates – MLB News
As Chicago Cubs on Tuesday, July 24, beat the Pittsburgh Pirates by 5-1, praises started pouring on the starter Paul Maholm who pitched eight solid innings to give the Cubs their second consecutive win against the Pirates.
The Cubs second win came at a time when they had previously snapped the five-game winning streak of the Pirates. It would, probably, be not be easy without the invaluable contribution of the starter Paul Maholm.
That was something acknowledged even by the Pirates' manager Clint Hurdle. Tuesday’s best pitching will remain a source of pride for Maholm given the increasing rumours about the fate of other Chicago Cubs pitcher as Trade Deadline nears.
"We know Paul," Pirates' manager Clint Hurdle said. "Paul had four consecutive games of six innings with one run. I think he broke or tied a record that's been around for 94 years or something, or whatever. He's capable of getting outs, too. He pitched very effectively tonight."
In his eight inning spell, Maholm gave up only a run, having seven strike-outs to his credit with 3.88 ERA. His rival, James McDonald – on the other hand, gave up no less than five runs in his six inning spell.
While the credit goes to the solid show by the Cubs’ offence as well, it was Maholm who overcame the otherwise belligerent Pittsburgh Pirates' offence.
Maholm attributes the success on the field to his coordination with the catcher and the bullpen. That coordination, as results suggest, have been enormously successful, helping the team outshine their rivals.
Strict professionalism, along with coordination is what actually characterises the approach of this talented pitcher.
"Whenever I was out in the outfield warming up, I talked to the bullpen catcher and the bullpen coach and just said hello to the pitching coach," Maholm said. "Those guys, I'm close to. I told them hello and that we're not friends for the next three hours and I'll talk to you tomorrow.”
Maholm so far has a 9-6 record in the season with 3.88 ERA. It will be interesting to see how successful he remains in the encounters ahead against the rival teams.
Tags: