Monday, August 04, 2008

Heading west

Just the other day I wrote at FanHouse that it's stupid to count the D'Backs out of the NL West race because they have Dan Haren, Brandon Webb, and Randy Johnson. We get to see all three of them this week starting with Haren tonight. This is a huge series for the D'Backs as the Dodgers have become a serious threat and they just can't afford to lose games to a team like the Pirates at home with their aces on the mound.

Tonight, the Bucs send Yoslan Herrera out to the mound to pitch for his job. He's pitching for his job because Ross Ohlendorf turned in a 7 and 2/3 inning gem last night against Toledo, holding them to six hits, three runs, and striking out nine. Herrera hasn't had a start even resembling that with the Pirates, but in his last two outings he has managed to keep things close and give the Pirates a chance to win. That seems to be about his ceiling to me and the most we can hope for against the D'Backs tonight.