That Maholm guy

Buster Olney opens up his ESPN blog today with more on Paul Maholm than I've read from anyone in Pittsburgh (insider only, sorry). The main point of the article is that he made his first career start not really even knowing if he had a house that was still standing (his house being a couple miles from the coast in Gulfport). Since he had just about anything but baseball to think about he didn't worry a whole lot about the Milwaukee Brewers before his first start and he got word before the game that his wife's family was OK and the house Paul and his wife had just bought were OK, with only some minor damages. Olney then talks about the other Maholm struggles we've heard more about, the liner off his face, and his mom's recent and losing struggle with colon cancer. He's still got his head screwed on pretty well, too as Olney closes with this:

The Maholms had already bought another home in Bradenton, Fla., where the Pirates have spring training, and they figure that this fall, some family or friends will be sharing their home in Gulfport. Then they will sell the place. "With a lot of people needing a house," he said, "it's kind of ridiculous for me to have a house just sitting there, unoccupied. Someone else should have it."

Meanwhile, Dejan reports that Mackanin is still talking out of his ass after Maholm's good outing last night: "When you see a performance like that, you want it to make an impression on Oliver Perez in our next game. On our whole staff," Mackanin said. "If I was a pitcher, it would make an impression on me." Maholm has the only two wins and only three outings of seven innings plus by the entire starting staff since his call-up. Mac(k) weighs in again:

"To me, that's pitching," Mackanin said. "You don't just pound the fastball. You hit the corners. You're in and out. You change speeds. ... I just can't say enough. He dominated the whole game."

Sheesh, Mac(k) is really hard on Perez, who I'd assume that statement about the fastballs was directed. Jerry Narron also gushes:

"I've heard the past couple of years how good the pitchers are in their organization," Cincinnati manager Jerry Narron said. "Let me tell you: Maholm and Duke are definitely big-league."

The article also mentions our left fielder, who's having an OK second season:

"My goals have changed throughout the season," Bay said. "A month ago, I was shooting for 25 homers. To get 30 in my second year is something I'll never forget. Same with the RBIs. I thought 80 would have been good at one point. You've got to keep adjusting."

These are the things that keep me watching at the end of a year like this.