Tonight, the Pirates play the Padres from Pittsburgh in the final game of this series tonight. Whoever wins takes the series win.

Pitching Match-Up

Pirates
John Van Benschoten
(1-2) 8.27 ERA with 19 K's this season

Padres
Josh Banks
(2-4) 3.51 ERA with 29 K's this season

Low-Down
If you ask me who the one starting pitcher in the Pirates line-up I would replace would be, I would say Van Benschoten. He really is not of Major league talent, and all he does is raise his ERA. I doubt he last more than 3 innings.

Key Factor
Tonight's key factor will be the Pirates offense scoring fast and often. I don't trust Van Benschoten on the mound, so the Buccos need to score quickly. Adam LaRoche had his first multi-home-run game last night with his 13th and 14th homers. He will be one of the guys to get us out of holes if we fall into them. Losing Xavier Nady, a.k.a. the Un-Tier, to the Yanks will hurt our offensive production in the long haul, but at least we got a decent pitcher in return that can maybe take over for Van Benschoten.

Prediction
Pirates- 9, Padres- 5
I wouldn't doubt 80% of the runs that San Diego scores tonight come off Johnny V, but at least our bullpen has some good relievers. I think the offense will dominate and bring home a "W". 9-5 Buccos.

-Mike Greenspire

Tonight the Pirates take on the San Diego Padres from PNC Park.

Pitching Match-Up

Pirates
Yoslan Herrera
(0-1) 19.50 ERA with 5 K's this season

Padres
Clay Hensley
(1-0) 0.00 ERA with 3 K's this season

Low-Down
Herrera did ot have a good outing last time against Colorado. His ERA rocketed up to 19.50 after giving up plenty of runs in one inning of work. I think that he will do better at home, and the Padres line-up is not terrific, either, so I see his ERA shooting downwards fast tonight.

Key Factor
Tonight's key factor will be for Herrera to not dig holes for the Pirates offense to climb out of. He needs to get his pitches under control and keep the Padres from getting base-runners. If the Pirates can put some run support up on the board, I think Herrera will play more relaxed and comfortable.

Prediction
Pirates- 8, Padres- 5
I think the Pirates are doing quite good lately for what people give them credit for. Ryan Doumit is doing great the past few games, so I see him being one of the offensive players to watch out for. 8-5 Bucs.

-Mike Greenspire

The Pirates play the Astros from Houston in the 2nd of this 3-game series tonight.

Pitching Match-Up

Pirates
Paul Maholm
(6-6) 4.10 ERA with 82 K's this season

Astros
Jack Cassel
(1-0) 6.28 ERA with 6 K's this season

Low-Down
Paul Maholm is th best pitcher on our team, and I don't care who the Astros send out there, he will pitch a better game than him. The offense had a good night last night, as Steady Freddy Sanchez hit an inside-the-park home run that helped the Pirates score 7 runs in the ninth to win the game.

Key Factor
Tonight's key factor will be how well the Pirate offense does to give Maholm run support. I believe that Maholm can get us out of any jam, but the offense is random at best and that will be what makes or breaks this game for the Buccos.

Prediction
Pirates- 10, Astros- 4
The Pirates need this game to maybe start a run at ending up at or above .500. The Astros are worse than the Pirates and that is fact, and I think that tonight will prove me correct. 10-4 Bucs.

-Mike Greenspire

Tonight the Pirates play the Rockies in the 3rd game of this 4-game series from Denver.

Here is tonight's scheduled pitching match-up.

Pirates
Zach Duke
(4-6) 4.40 ERA, 44 K's this season

Rockies
Aaron Cook
(11-6) 3.57 ERA, 67 K's this season

Low-Down
Zach Duke is a good young pitcher, but has trouble against proven pitchers liek that of Aaron Cook. He needs to figure out the offense of Colorado quickly if he hopes to win, because by the 4th inning, this game could be blown wide open by the Rockies.

Key Factor
Tonight's key factor will be how well of a 1st and 2nd inning Duke pitches. If he can give up only 2 or 3 hits in the first two, and not allow any runs, than the Pirates have a chance to take control of the game.

Prediction
The Pirates are too sloppy in this seris for me to favor them tonight, so I think the Rockies win the game, 6-2. Although, since I'm going against my team in this one, they'll probably win. I still pick the Rockies.

-Mike Greenspire

I am Mike Greenspire, and I have been blogging since August of 2007, and apparently I'm pretty good at it (at least that's what they tell me LOL). I'll share a little about myself to you fellow bloggers!

I am originally from Pittsburgh, PA, so my favorite teams are the Steelers, Penguins, and Pirates. My favorite NBA team is the Magic, but since this is an MLB site, I'll stick to my favorite baseball teams.

I am also a big fan of both the Red Sox and SF Giants. I don't know why, they just appealed to me.

My blog elsewhere is called MGKB Sports with Mike Greenspire. The MGKB comes from Mike Greenspire Knows Best, which I absolutely DO NOT, but that's why we write, to hear other opinions as well. My blog here will be called Pirates Tonight with Mike Greenspire. Hope you enjoy!

Take care, and keep checking in, because I promise to have something sports-related up soon!

-Mike Greenspire