Pittsburgh Pirates: Regular season results for April – MLB 2011 - Part 3
Securing a comfortable 3-1 win in a four match series against Cincinnati Reds, Pittsburgh Pirates had improved their win-loss record to 8-8. Clint Hurdle and his men were hoping to achieve impressive results in second half of the month and also top the wild
card standings table. However, as it turned out, the Pirates failed to win a single game in a three match series against Florida Marlins.
Unable to handle the pressure in tense situations, the Pirates clearly looked short of confidence. Marlins made most of the available opportunities and they thrashed their opponents 6-0 in the opening game to take 1-0 lead in the series. Josh Johnson was
the star of the show for Marlins as he gave up no runs and allowed just two hits in seven innings to help his side demolish the Pirates.
The Pirates manager, Clint Hurdle said, “If you're going to start a franchise and pick a pitcher, you're not going to go wrong picking him.”
A similar pattern of play was observed in game two of the series as the Pirates lost 0-6 for the second straight time in the series. It was an embarrassing loss for Clint Hurdle’s side considering the depth they had in their batters line-up.
Although the Pirates put up a brave fight in third and final game, they fell short of their targets once more to suffer their first series sweep of the month. The loss also damaged their win-loss record to 8-11. Team manager, Clint Hurdle aimed to bring
improvement in the hitting department for the upcoming games to give fans something to cheer about.
Showing great fighting abilities, temperament and determination, the Pirates bounced back strongly in a four match series against Washington Nationals. The first game of the series was cancelled due to bad weather conditions. The Pirates dominated their
opponents in almost all aspects in the following game to secure a comfortable 7-2 win.
Andrew McCutchen, once again, produced a stand out performance as he singled, scored three runs and stole two bases to help Pittsburgh Pirates score five in the first innings. “They should have figurine day every day,” McCutchen said with a smile. “I'm always
looking to get to the next base any time I'm on base. The first thing is to get on, which I did. Once I get on, I like to create a little havoc to help out the guy hitting behind me.”
The Pirates manager added, “Andrew is such a threat every time he gets on base. He really gave us a spark.”
Although the Pirates lost their way a bit in second game, they were back to their very best in third and final game to take the series 2-1. With a series win over Colorado Rockies, the Pirates ended the month of April with a satisfactory 12-15 win-loss record.
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