Tag: Ross Ohlendorf

Orioles  13,  Pirates  3
Indianapolis area native C Jake Fox beat up on the Pirates' pitching this afternoon in Bradenton, with two booming home runs and 4 RBI.  The first homer capped a 6-run 3rd inning, when Pirates' starter Ross Ohlendorf gave up four singles and a double before the homer.  Fox struck again in the 7th -- Scott Olsen gave up a double to DH Matt Wieters, followed by Fox's second homer.  Olsen surrendered a single and a walk after the homer, and he was relieved by Mike Dubee.  Dubee struck out the first batter he faced, then gave up an RBI single, before ending the inning with a fly out.  The Orioles added 3 runs in the 8th off Joe Beimel.  A double, a walk, and a single loaded the bases, then a single and two ground outs drove in the runs.  Former Indy Indian C Michel Hernandez singled for the Orioles in the top of the 9th, and scored on an RBI triple off reliever Sean Gallagher.  Daniel McCutchen pitched 2 scoreless innings for the Pirates, allowing 3 hits.  

While the Orioles were busy posting 20 hits, the Pirates managed 8.  Two of those were by 3B Pedro Alvarez, who also had the Pirates' only extra base hit, a double in the 7th, which was ruled a ground-rule double.  That made a difference, because 2B Neil Walker had opened the inning with a walk.  He raced around and crossed the plate on Alvarez's double, but then was called back to third base when the umpires ruled it a ground-rule.  Walker was left standing on third base, when a strikeout and a ground out ended the inning.  

The Pirates did score one run in the 2nd inning.  1B Lyle Overbay began the rally with a single lined into right field.  RF Matt Diaz grounded to short, forcing Overbay out at second, but Orioles' shortstop (and another former Indy Indian) JJ Hardy made a throwing error on his relay to first, allowing Diaz to reach second base.  Diaz advanced to second on a fly out, and scored on C Jason Jaramillo's RBI single.  LF Jose Tabata led off the 5th inning with a walk, and moved to second base on Walker's ground out.  CF Andrew McCutchen plated Tabata with a single up the middle.  Overbay reached base on a catcher's interference call, then Diaz brought in McCutchen with a line drive single into right field.  

Also getting into the game:  LF John Bowker, 3B Andy Marte, Corey Wimberly in center field, RF Miles Durham, RF Steve Pearce, 2B Josh Harrison, pinch-hitter Pedro Ciriaco, 1B Garrett Atkins, C Dusty Brown, and SS Josh Rodriguez.  Durham entered the game to play right field in the top of the 8th.  In the top of the 9th, he crashed into the wall trying to catch the ball that turned out to be a triple.  Durham was down for a few moments, but was able to get up and walk off the field under his own power.  Pearce took over for Durham in right field, then singled in the bottom of the inning.  Josh Rodriguez also singled in the 8th inning, and Josh Harrison worked a walk in the 9th.  

Twins  4,  Pirates  2
The Pirates fell to a 3-3 record in Grapefruit League play this afternoon at McKechnie field.  Both teams posted 9 hits, but the Twins did a better job of pushing runs across.  Ross Ohlendorf made the start and was charged with the loss, but the only run he gave up was unearned, and 4 of the 5 outs he recorded were strikeouts.  The run came in the top of the 1st, on a walk, a passed ball, and an RBI double.  Ohlendorf got the first two outs in the top of the 2nd, then gave up a single, and by then he had reached his pitch limit.  Mike Dubee, up from minor league camp, finished the inning for Ohlendorf, blowing three pitches past Jason Repko for a strikeout.  Tony Watson pitched the 3rd inning, and gave up a run on a walk and an RBI double.  

The Pirates got one run back in the bottom of the 5th.  RF Andrew Lambo started the rally with a ground rule double down the left field line, and then he scored on LF Jose Tabata's single up the middle.  Mike Crotta pitched 2 scoreless innings, working around a hit in each (4th and 5th).   Joel Hanrahan took over for the 6th.  The first batter he faced, 2B Luke Hughes, drove a 3-2 pitch over the left field wall to give the Twins a 3-1 lead.  After the homer, Hanrahan got two outs, then loaded the bases with a walk and two singles.  Hanrahan was relieved by another minor league pitcher, Tom Boleska, who needed just one pitch to end the inning with a fly out, leaving all three runners stranded.  

Jose Veras pitched a 1-2-3 inning in the top of the 8th for the Pirates.  Justin Thomas gave up another unearned run in the top of the 8th.  With one out, a fly ball to center field should have been either an out or a harmless single, but CF Gorkys Hernandez had trouble with the windy conditions.  He dropped the ball, then when he tried to pick it up off the ground, he dropped it twice more.  That allowed the runner to reach third base (3-base error).  An RBI single brought him in from third base.  Chris Leroux finished things up by retiring the side in the top of the 9th.  The Pirates rallied again in the bottom of the 9th.  With one out, DH Steve Pearce lifted a double into center field.  C Dusty Brown lined a single into right field, plating Pearce from second base.  Pedro Ciriaco pinch-ran for Brown, and he reached second base on RF Starling Marte's ground out, but another ground out by LF Alex Presley ended the game.  Marte had singled in the 7th inning, but was out at second on a force play.

Also getting into the game:  SS Corey Wimberly, SS Chase d'Arnaud, 3B Garrett Atkins,  2B Brian Friday, and 1B Josh Fields. 

A few roster moves by the Pirates today:

Several players have been removed from the 40-man roster and outrighted to AAA Indianapolis:� LHP Justin Thomas, RHP Sean Gallagher, RHP Steven Jackson, 1B Jeff Clement, and OF Brandon Moss.

Of these, Thomas, Jackson, and Moss are now all free to declare themselves minor league free agents.� Clement does not have enough service time to get to be a free agent, so he's "stuck" on the Indianapolis roster.� He's had knee surgery, and hopes to be ready by spring training.� Gallagher does have the service time, but the Pirates are probably negotiating with him to try to keep him.

LHP Wil Ledezma has signed a one-year contract with the Pirates for 2011.

RHP Jose Ascanio and 1B Steve Pearce (who has also had knee issues) are officially off the DL and back on the 40-man roster.� RHP Ross Ohlendorf also falls into this category.

�

On to Wednesday's winter league action, with Pirates' players and friends:

PUERTO RICAN LEAGUE

Senadores de San Juan� 4,� Gigantes de Carolina� 3� -- San Juan rallied from a 3-1 deficit to score one run in the 5th and 2 runs in the 6th for the win.� Los Gigantes scored one run in the 4th on a double and a single.� They added 2 runs in the 5th, on two singles, an error, a walk, and a sacrifice fly.� Benji Gonzalez made a pinch-hitting appearance for Los Gigantes in the 8th inning, but flied out.� He remained in the game at third base for the final inning.

Criollos de Caguas� 4,� Indios de Mayaguez� 0� -- 3B Ramon Vazquez and SS Luis Figueroa each had one hit for Los Criollos in their win.� Vazquez's single in the 5th drove in one of Los Criollos' runs.� They also scored 2 runs in the 4th on two singles and two errors, and another run in the 6th on two singles and a sacrifice fly.

As expected, shortly after the Indianapolis Indians' season ended, the Pirates made the phone call to bring up seven players to the big league club.� Some of the call-ups were expected, but there were surprises too.

Pitchers Brad Lincoln and Justin Thomas, who are already on the Pirates' 40-man roster and have spent time with the Pirates already this season, were both recalled.� Catcher Jason Jaramillo and shortstop Pedro Ciriaco are also on the 40-man roster, and both were expected to be brought up.� Jaramillo spent the first half of the season with the Pirates, while Ciriaco came to the Pirates' organization in a trade from the Diamondbacks at the end of July.� It's the first trip to the majors for Ciricao.

The other four players were not on the 40-man roster and have to be added.� Outfielders Brandon Moss and Alex Presley (photo) did not expect the call up for just that reason -- they didn't think the Pirates would want to bother adding them to the roster and pay them to spend a lot of time on the bench.� But Presley was going to need to be added to the 40-man roster after the season in order to prevent him from being eligible to be taken in the Rule 5 Draft.� The Pirates' outfield is going to be crowded with outfielders looking for a chance to play and hit.� Pitchers Brian Bass and Steven Jackson have both pitched for the Pirates at some point this season, but were removed from the 40-man roster.� Now they are being addd back on, to help bolster the Pirates' bullpen.

In order to make room on the 40-man roster, the Pirates had to make other moves.� Pitcher Ross Ohlendorf and Jeff Clement were both moved to the 60-day disabled list.� Infielder Akinori Iwamura and catcher Erik Kratz were both removed from the 40-man roster and designated for assignment.� The Pirates had been trying to find a spot for Iwamura with another team, but have been unsuccessful.� Kratz was the feel-good story of the summer with his call-up during the All-Star game, but he lost out in the numbers game.

Altoona Curve 5, �Richmond Flying Squirrels 2 (box)

Ross Ohlendorf made the most of his rehab start with the Curve on Wednesday. �He set down the first 7 batters he faced, then gave up a walk. �Ohlendorf tried to pick off that runner and made a throwing error, which allowed the runner to move to second base, but he left the runner stranded on second. �In the 4th, Ohlendorf gave up back-to-back singles with one out, but he kept them from scoring too. �He started the 5th inning by giving up a hit on a ball that barely got away from the plate, and C Hector Gimenez made a throwing error on the play, allowing the runner to reach second base. �That was all for Ohlendorf for the night, and Jared Hughes came on to finish the inning, still not letting the runner score.

Richmond's only runs came in the 6th inning, when Hughes gave up a single, an RBI double, and an RBI single. �Hughes also made a throwing error on a pick-off attempt in the 7th, but didn't let that runner score. �He gave up a walk and a single in the top of the 9th, and was relieved by Danny Moskos. Moskos ended the game with two strikeouts, earning his 6th save. �The win was credited to Hughes -- his 5th of the season, in his first non-start appearance of the season.

Hector Gimenez was the offensive star of the game, going 4-for-4 with a double, two homers, and 3 RBI. �CF Gorkys Hernandez and 1B Matt Hague had two hits each. �The Curve scored 2 runs in the top of the 1st (without Gimenez's help). �SS Chase d'Arnaud opened the game with a double lined into left field. �Hernandez's single put runners on the corners. �3B Jordy Mercer brought in d'Arnaud with a sacrifice fly, and 2B Jim Negrych brought in Hernandez with a single.

Gimenez's first hit was a double in the 2nd inning, when he was left stranded. �He singled in the 4th and was again stranded. �In the 7th, Gimenez blasted a solo homer over the left field wall. �In the top of the 9th, LF Alex Presley singled, and Gimenez followed with his second homer, this one sailing over the right field wall for 2 runs.

Alex Presley's single extended his hitting streak to 19 games (the team record is 21). �(He waited until the 9th inning to do it -- just for the suspense.) �RF Miles Durham did not have a hit, stopping his hitting streak at 8 games. �Gorkys Hernandez was back in the line-up after having been involved in a collision with Jose De Los Santos on Monday. �De Los Santos has not played again since the collision.

Presley is now hitting .369, second-best in the Eastern League. �2B Josh Harrison is third with a .359 average.

LHP Corey Hamman has been reassigned to the Curve from the Indianapolis Indians.

Altoona Curve 9, �Richmond Flying Squirrels 1 (box)

Rudy Owens shot down the Flying Squirrels on Tuesday night with 6 no-hit innings and 11 strikeouts. �He was one walk away from a perfect game -- after mowing down 17 straight Squirrels, Owens walked Richmond relief pitcher Craig Whitaker. �Owens was clearly not pleased with himself with that walk, but he held on to strike out the next batter. �He was relieved after the 6 innings due to the pitch count. �He had thrown 97 pitches at that point, and his limit was 100. �Owens struck out the side in the 1st inning, one in the 2nd and 5th, and two in the 3rd, 4th, and 6th. �He got a little help from his friends, of course, with SS Chase d'Arnaud and 1B Matt Hague making two critical fielding plays in the 5th and 6th respectively.

Reliever Jeff Sues earned his 4th save of the season with three strong innings of work. �He gave up an unearned run in the 7th, when the lead-off batter reached on a fielding error by 3B Jordy Mercer, and two singles followed. �Mercer made another error in the 8th, but Sues worked around it, and kept that runner from scoring.

The Curve posted 13 hits on their way to 9 runs. �LF Shelby Ford, who has been struggling over the past month, led the way by going 3-for-3 at the plate. �That doubled his hit total for the season, and lifted his average to .188. �D'Arnaud and Ford started the scoring in the 1st inning, when d'Arnaud singled and Ford doubled, moving d'Arnaud to third. �Mercer's RBI ground out brought in the run.

D'Arnaud and Ford got another rally started in the 3rd inning, this time reversing the hits -- d'Arnaud doubled and Ford singled. �Mercer again brought a run in, this time with a sacrifice fly to score d'Arnaud. �Ford stole second, and he scored on 2B Jim Negrych's single up the middle.

The Curve sent 10 batters to the plate in the 4th inning, as they added on 5 runs. �CF Alex Presley led off with a walk, and stole second base. �C Hector Gimenez doubled Presley in, then moved to third base on Owens' sacrifice bunt. �D'Arnaud brought in Gimenez with a sacrifice fly. �That cleared the bases with two outs, but the Curve got going again. �Ford singled and Mercer reached base on a fielding error by the Richmond third baseman. �Hague doubled, scoring both Ford and Mercer. �Negrych walked, and then RF Miles Durham singled to bring in Hague. �Matt Hague doubled again in the 9th inning, and added one more run to the Curve total when Durham singled again.

Chase d'Arnaud, Matt Hague, Miles Durham, and Alex Presley each had two hits in the game. �Presley's hitting streak is now at 18 games. �The Altoona team record in 21. �Durham's hitting streak is now at 8 games.

Ross Ohlendorf will be making a rehab start with the Curve on Wednesday night.

Philadelphia Phillies �5, �Pittsburgh Pirates (and Altoona Curve) 3 (box)

Several members of the Altoona Curve traveled north with the Pirates to play in two games at Citizens' Bank Park in Philadelphia. �The starting lineup was about what the Pirates' starting nine will be on Opening Day, except for the pitcher -- Zach Duke will be the Opening Day starter, and Ross Ohlendorf made tonight's start. �Unfortunately, it was not a good night for Ohlendorf. �He began the game by giving up a double and two singles to the first three batters he faced, bringing in one run. �He did settle down at that point and retire the next 8 batters he faced, but then surrendered a single and a 2-run homer to Ryan Howard in the 3rd inning. �Back-to-back doubles brought in another run in the 4th, and Chase Utley added a solo home run in the 5th. �Three relievers, Javier Lopez, DJ Carrasco, and Evan Meek each pitched a scoreless inning when Ohlendorf headed to the showers after 5 innings (9 hits, no walks, 5 runs, 3 strikeouts).

The Pirates' 3 runs all came in the 3rd inning, with the major league starters still in the game. �With one out, CF Andrew McCutchen doubled into left field, and he scored on RF Garrett Jones' liner into center field. �Jones advanced to second base on the throw in from the outfield, which was not even close as McCutchen streaked towards the plate. �LF Lastings Milledge brought Jones in from second base with another line drive into center. �Milledge stole second base, then he scored from there when 1B Jeff Clement singled. �The Pirates posted a total of 10 hits, with McCutchen picking up a second hit, and 3B Andy LaRoche also singling twice. �Ross Ohlendorf also had a hit.

From the Curve, two players got into the game: �2B Chase d'Arnaud and LF Miles Durham. They each had a turn at the plate in the 9th inning, but both grounded out. �Still, they got to play on a major league field, and were clearly having fun.

Rays 8, �Pirates 2 �(box)

The Pirates struggled again today in Grapefruit League action, losing to Tampa Bay by a score of 8-2. �Rays' starter Matt Garza held the Pirates to just 4 hits in his 7 innings of work. �One of those hits was a home run into the bullpen by 1B Jeff Clement. CF Andrew McCutchen and LF Brandon Moss also singled off Garza, while RF Garrett Jones smacked a triple in the 6th inning.

Ross Ohlendorf made the start for the Pirates, and he had a tough afternoon. �In the 1st inning, he got the first out, then gave up a walk, a triple, and a 2-run homer, to give the Rays a 3-0 lead. �Four more runs were added in the 3rd inning, which began with a double and a 2-run homer. �After a walk and a single put runners on the corners, the Rays tried to bring in a run with a sacrifice bunt, but Ohlendorf pounced on the ball and fired to C Ryan Doumit, who tagged out the runner coming from third. �That didn't stop the Rays' momentum, though. �Two more RBI singles added 2 more runs for a 7-1 lead. �A double, a ground out to advance the runner, and a sacrifice fly brought in the Ray's eighth run in the 4th inning. �All 8 runs were Ohlendorf's responsibility; he gave up 10 hits and walked 3 (one intentional), and did not strikeout out anyone. �Four relievers, Octavio Dotel, Brendan Donnelly, Vinnie Chulk, and Jean Machi, each pitched one scoreless inning. �All but Machi allowed a hit, and all struck out one except for Chulk who struck out two.

The Pirates' rallied for one more run in the 9th inning, with two outs already recorded. �Moss bounced to third but was safe on a throwing error. �SS Ramon Vasquez singled, and C Jason Jaramillo slipped a grounder past the third baseman, off the third baseman's glove, which allowed Moss to score.

Also in the game for the Pirates: �CF Starling Marte, RF Jason Cooper, 3B Jordy Mercer, and 2B Brian Friday.

�

The Pirates were scheduled to play a split-squad game against the Phillies this afternoon, but that game was cancelled due to rain. �The Indianapolis Indians did not have a game scheduled today.

�

Lehigh Valley Iron Pigs 2, �Indianapolis Indians 1

A home run by 1B Miles Durham gave the Indians their only run in this afternoon's game in Bradenton. �That run wasn't enough, though, as the Iron Pigs tied the game in the 5th with another solo home run, and then rallied to score again in the 8th inning. �Tribe starter DJ Carrasco pitched 2 innings and allowed one hit, while striking out 3 batters. �Reliever Corey Hamman was charged with the loss, as he gave up a single, followed by a stolen base, and then an RBI single by former Indiana University player Kevin Mahar for the winning run. �DH Bobby Crosby had 2 hits for the Indians.

�

Astros 11, �Pirates 1 �(box)

Righty�Ross Ohlendorf struggled through his roughest start of the spring, as he allowed 7 runs (4 earned) on 9 hits and 3 walks over 3.2 innings this afternoon. �The first two runs came quickly in the top of the 1st, on 3 hits and a walk. �1B Jeff Clement's missed-catch error at first set up the Astros to score two unearned runs in the 2nd. �Run #5 came in the 3rd inning, when Ohlendorf walked a batter, then made a wild pickoff throw for an error, which was followed by an RBI double. �When he got into trouble again in the 4th inning, Ohlendorf was relieved, earlier than had been planned. �Jack Taschner finished the 4th and pitched a scoreless 5th inning. �Then Anthony Claggett pitched 2 innings and gave up 3 more runs on 5 hits. �Steven Jackson gave up a solo home run to former Pirate and Indy Indian Matt Kata in the 8th inning for the Astros' final run. �Jeremy Powell pitched a 1-2-3 inning to finish up the 8th.

The Pirates responded to the Astros' first inning rally with a run -- but it was their only run of the game. �With two outs, RF Garrett Jones singled into right field. C Ryan Doumit worked a walk, and�Jeff Clement brought in Jones when he slipped a single through the right side of the infield. �Clement singled again in the 4th inning -- the only Pirate batter to have more than one hit. �The minor leaguers staged a small threat in the 9th inning, when SS Chase d'Arnaud singled into left field, and PH Gift Ngoepe walked, but two pop outs ended the threat and the game.

Others who got into the game: �3B Jeremy Farrell, C Erik Kratz, CF John Raynor, 1B Steve Pearce.

Twins 5, �Pirates 4 �(box)

Three Pirates homered this afternoon, but it wasn't enough to beat the Twins at Fort Myers, Florida. �C Jason Jaramillo got the Pirates started with a solo blast over the right field wall in the 3rd inning. �2B Delwyn Young had the next shot, which came with SS Ronny Cedeno on base in the 6th inning to add 2 runs. �Moments later, 1B Jeff Clement contributed his own solo homer, for the Pirates' 4th run. �Young's homer was his fourth in five games. �Unfortunately, those four hits (three homers plus Cedeno's double) were the only hits the Pirates had in the game. � 1b Steve Pearce was the only Pirate to reach base on a walk.

The Twins scored their runs one at a time, on 9 hits. �Pirates' starter Ross Ohlendorf gave up 2 runs on 4 hits in 4 innings of work. �The first run came in the 2nd inning, on an RBI ground out with runners on second and third bases. �After Jaramillo tied the score in the top of the 3rd, DH Jim Thome un-tied it with a home run off Ohlendorf in the 4th. �The Bucs' 3-run top of the 6th game them a 4-2 lead. �Chris Jakubauskas and Javier Lopez each pitched a scoreless inning, with Lopez picking up two strikeouts. �Jack Taschner took the mound in the 7th, and gave up a homer to 3B Brendan Harris, to cut the Pirates' lead to one run. �Brian Bass pitched the 8th inning and was charged with a Blown Save when he gave up a run on a sacrifice fly to tie the game at 4-4. �Then in the bottom of the 9th, a hit and a walk-off RBI double by 3B Luke Hughes gave the Twins the win.

Also in the game: �SS Jordy Mercer was the lucky minor leaguer who got to join the big club for the day. �2B Doug Bernier, RF Jose Tabata, 1B Steve Pearce, LF Jon Van Every, PH/DH Brian Myrow, 3B Pedro Alvarez, 3B�Neil Walker, and C Erik Kratz all got to play too.

�

In minor league camp, Octavio Dotel threw 24 pitches in a minor league game, but it was not a AAA game. �The Indy Indians did not have a game today.

�