Game 86: Pirates at Brewers

Maholm and Davis at eight.

After a surprisingly tough series at Houston, the Pirates can move on and continue their long winning streak in Milwaukee.

Game 85: Pirates at Astros

Ohlendorf and Oswalt at two in a likely Game 7 NLCS preview.

Game 84: Pirates at Astros

McCutchen and Moehler at eight.

Remember, the Bucs can't win EVERY day. And each loss will make the second-half comeback that much more remarkable.

Game 83: Pirates at Astros

Sixth day of Lincolnmas vs. Wandy Rodriguez at eight.

Obviously, the ascent to the wild-card begins with fifth place, but don't lose sight of the big picture, where these Bucs go all the way.

Off day

Everyone rest up for this crucial series with the hapless Astros. Fifth place could be on the line.

Game 82: Phillies at Pirates

Blanton and Karstens at one.

These two teams are looking pretty evenly matched. I'd say if the Pirates meet the Phillies in the playoffs, the series would go five or seven games.

Game 81: Phillies at Pirates

Kendrick and Maholm at seven.

The sizzling magical Pirates are the hottest team in all the majors.

Game 80: Phillies at Pirates

Moyer and Ohlendorf at seven.

Pirates are heating up. Playoff odds up 2000% in the last few days.

This would make a good song for the fireworks show.

Game 79: Phillies at Pirates

McCutchen and Hamels at seven.

Playoff teams usually win at least six games in July.

Cereal bowl night. All fans get a Pirate cereal bowl.

Game 78: Pirates at Cubs

Fifth day of Lincolnmas vs. Tom Gorzelanny at two.

If you add some ELO to the playoff odds, they show some life.

At the end of June the Pirates are at an inflection point. They need a lot of ELO. Perhaps the front office could add an ELO post-game concert this weekend. They would jazz up Saturday's Zambelli fireworks and subtly increase the playoff odds.

Game 77: Pirates at Cubs

Karstens and Lilly at eight.

Until the hapless Cubs are willing to dive at liners, Lilly will never win.

Game 76: Pirates at Cubs

Maholm and Wells at eight.

If the Cubs' infielders aren't willing to dive for Big Z, don't expect Wells to get much help tonight. Advantage Bucs.

Game 75: Pirates at A's

Ohlendorf and Gonzalez at four. Winning on the road is HARD.

Game 74: Pirates at A's

McCutchen at Cahill at ten.

A lot of drama packed into the playoff odds.

Game 73: Lincolnmas IV

Lincoln and Sheets at ten.

Defensive shifts would be more entertaining and perhaps more effective if they occurred right before and during every pitch. For example, two seconds before each pitch every infielder sprints toward the plate. Hitters could not concentrate with that kind of distraction, especially if a strategically-chosen subset of Bucs either jumped into the air, or dove in a strategically-chosen direction.

Game 72: Pirates at Texas

Karstens and Feldmen at eight.

Maybe Maholm needs to rest up for the playoff run like Duke.

Game 71: Pirates at Rangers

Maholm vs. Nippert and the lowly bankrupt Rangers at eight.

Game 70: Pirates at Rangers

The NL Central's hottest team take on the hapless, small-market Rangers at eight.

Ohlendorf and Hunter are the starting pitchers.

Off day

No game for the red-hot Pirates.

Game 69: Indians at Pirates

Masterson and Lincoln at one thirty.

Fueled by last night's win, the Pirates' playoff odds surge to 24 percent of a percent of a percent. This is exciting and magical.

Game 68: Indians at Pirates

Playoff odds now at nine percent of a percent of a percent.

This number should be getting bigger as the season progresses.

Huff and Karstens at seven.

Game 67: Indians at Pirates

Neil Walker cures the sick then hits dingers into the river. Show starts at seven.

Game 66: Pedromas II

Pedro cures the sick then hits dingers into the river. Show starts at seven.

Game 65: Pedromas!

Duke and Danks and the beginning of the Pedro Alvarez Era at seven.

Please join us at six along the banks of the Allegheny to collectively will Pedro to walk across the river during the pre-game show.

Pedromas!

We are hardly ready.

I vote we go with Bones' plan, i.e., collectively will Pedro to make his PNC entrance and debut after walking across the river. In full gear, bat in hand.

Because there is no plan B.

Game 64: White Sox at Pirates

Brad Lincoln and Freddy Garcia at seven. Hopefully the Bucs will not pick up any bad habits from these hapless American League teams.

Off day

Pirates get the day off to travel home from Detroit for a six-game homestand against the hapless American League.

Hopefully the vuvuzelas will sweep into PNC to better express our will.

Game 63: Pirates at Tigers

Karstens and Galarraga at one. The Bucs should start planning entertaining stunts for Pedromas. I'd be entertained if fans lined the banks of the Allegheny, and willed Pedro to walk across. Of course if this only has a 37% chance of working, safety measures could be put in place.

Game 62: Pirates at Tigers

Maholm and Bonderman at seven. As the hapless Tigers continue to try to showcase Don "Mr. October" Kelly to the Bucs' brass, expect to see Kelly lead off or bat fourth, at either SS, 2B, RF, or most likely, 1B.

Game 61: Pirates at Tigers

Ohlendorf and Verlander at seven. Might be a good day for JR to rest most of the team for the wild-card race.

Game 60: Pirates at Nationals

Duke and Hernandez at seven, in a likely preview of NLCS game 2.

Game 59: Pirates at Nationals

Merry Lincolnmas! The huge national media swarm that has descended upon this series will finally get to see what they came for - phenom Brad Lincoln's debut against a last place hapless opponent. What better present for Lincolnmas than ... Tabatamas?

Game 58: Pirates at Nationals

Karstens and Strasburg at seven. Typical move from the last place hapless Nationals, trotting out some kid who has never thrown a single MLB pitch to face a fourth place team in playoff contention.

Draft

The MLB draft begins at seven. Bucs take quality-now high school RHP Jameson Taillon High school SS Manny Machado seems to be the likely pick. Prepare for Upside.

Game 57: Cubs at Pirates

Eveland and Silva at 12:35. Silva has been dominant of late, so JR might want to rest everyone today as we practice how to will new guy Eveland to victory.

Game 56: Giants at Pirates

Ohlendorf and Lincecum at 1:35. The long-haired kid has struggled with his command of late, and is ill-prepared for the crushing blow of Rowdy's iron will, which is capable of the most amazing things.

Game 55: Giants at Pirates

Wellemeyer and Maholm at seven.

Last night we had the Pirates up 4-0 and then what happened. Was our will enfeebled by strong drink?

Game 54: Giants at Pirates

Duke and Sanchez at seven in a battle of two third-place teams. The Bucs are undefeated since we learned how to literally will victory.

Off day

No game today. We will will ourselves through the playoffs obviously, but perhaps it would be more entertaining if we didn't will every game. For instance, the wild-card route might be more dramatic.

Also, we need to start thinking and talking about will-adjusted metrics. Some players' value will be artificially inflated by winning all the time.

Game 54: Cubs at Pirates

Duke and Zambrano at seven. We will literally will the Bucs to win.

Game 53: Cubs at Pirates

Karstens and Lilly at seven. Now that we can literally will the club to win, the path to the playoffs is clear.

Game 52: Cubs at Pirates

Ohlendorf and the hapless Randy Wells at 1:35.

The last time the Cubs and Bucs played, Ronnie James Dio died. We tremble to think how our losses could be greater.

Game 51: Pirates at Braves

Maholm and Kawakami at 1:35. With so much of the season left and so many Prospects on the way, it's too early to panic about being 8 games out of the wild-card.

Game 50: Pirates at Braves

Burres and Medlen at seven. Most of the Bucs are pacing themselves admirably, waiting to break out until more Prospects arrive.

Game 49: Pirates at Braves

Duke and Lowe at 7:30. A win would be meaningful.

Game 48: Pirates at Reds

Morton and Cueto at seven. If JR wants, the Bucs could probably rest another game, or until another Prospect arrives.

Game 47: Pirates at Reds

Ohlendorf and Arroyo at seven, as the waves of Prospects begin to wash ashore.

Rinku and Dinesh go to DC

Indian reality TV contest victors/Pirates pitchers Rinku and Dinesh are entertained by Obama, Nancy Pelosi, and Ronaldinho. You can't blame these bandwagon Bucco fans for wanting to get in on the wild-card magic.

Game 46: Pirates at Reds

Maholm and Leake at seven in another game with major playoff implications. Advantage third place Bucs: Leake has done well so far, but the kid skipped the minors, so can't possibly know how to play the game the right way.

Game 45: Pirates at Reds

Burres takes on the Harangutan at seven. The once proud Reds are trying to end their hapless nine year streak of losing baseball. Although seemingly in the 2010 playoff mix with the Bucs, the Reds are unlikely to be playing meaningful baseball come October.

Game 44: Braves at Pirates

Duke and Medlen at 1:35. There are no scholarships in the NLCS - the Bucs need to win.

Game 43: Braves at Pirates

Morton and Lowe at seven. One can only imagine how hard it must be for Frodo McLouth to see his old team just a half game back of the Cubs, and right in the thick of the wild-card race. Especially given McLouth's hapless .208/.329/.350 effort, and the gaudy aggression, location, and xFIP of the guy he was traded for.

Game 42: Braves at Pirates

Ohlendorf and Hudson at seven. The Braves are a hapless 8-14 on the road, and since 1958 have only won one World Series. Until there's a MLB salary cap, the Bucs will always have to play lesser franchises. Hopefully this substandard 2010 Braves team is clean of infectious bad habits like taking off for third while the ball is still in the infield.

Game 41: Brewers at Pirates

Maholm and Narveson at seven, untucking at nine. The hapless Brewers have lost nine straight. Until Bud Selig figures out a way to enforce MLB team owners to actually try to win and not just stuff their pockets, gross mismatches will occur, and Benny Hill scenes like LaRoche's Matrix move will be routine.

Game 40: Brewers at Pirates

Burres and Wolf at seven. The hapless small-market Brewers are 15-24, have lost 8 in a row, and apparently are content at cashing the Yankees' and the Pirates' checks while not even trying to field a competitive team. Prepare to untuck.

Game 39: Pirates at Phillies

Duke and Halladay at seven. There's no reason JR and Neal need to tip their hand to a likely playoff opponent this early in the season. So it might make sense to save the best lineup and defensive shifts for October, and rest up one more day.

Game 38: Pirates at Phillies

Morton and Kendrick at seven. Finally, the third-place Bucs get to play another contending team.

Game 37: Pirates at Cubs

Ohlendorf and Lilly at 2:20. The Bucs are the hottest team in the division and have sole possession of third place, while the hapless Cubs are only a game and a half from the cellar. As hard as it must be for Gorzo, Grabow, Nady, and Aram to witness such a dramatic reversal of fortunes, at least they can enjoy the playoff excitement vicariously late at night, when they put on their old Pirates gear.

Game 36: Pirates at Cubs

Maholm and Dempster at one. Bucs are in third place and looking down on the hapless Cubs. If you see a thirsty Iowan in a Spin Williams jersey at the game, consider buying him a beer.

Game 35: Pirates at Cubs

Burres and Gorzelanny at 2:20. The Bucs are only a half game back of the Cubs and their resting period has paid off big-time, as their odds to win the division are now over four times higher than the wild-card.

Off day

No meaningful Pirates baseball today, as the Bucs continue to conserve energy for the wild-card race, without having to go through the motions of pretending to play baseball. The hot start of this magical 2010 Bucs team has bought one, maybe two, more weeks where this resting period could continue before everyone gets back to clinching the wild-card berth.

Game 34: Reds at Pirates

Duke and Bailey at 12:35. While three consecutive May losses might seem completely meaningless now, don't underestimate JR's strategy of conserving energy for the big October wild-card push.

Game 33: Reds at Pirates

Morton and Cueto at seven. Despite dropping a game or two, the wild-card odds of this magical 2010 Bucs team have barely changed.

Game 32: Reds at Pirates

Arroyo and Ohlendorf at seven. Ohlendorf must win if he wants to be considered for a rotation spot in the playoffs.

Game 31: Cardinals at Pirates

Maholm and Wainwright at 1:35. The Bucs now have better odds to win the division than to win the wild-card.

Game 30: Cardinals at Pirates

Karstens vs. some kid named Jaime Garcia at seven. Seems La Russa is passed out at the wheel, trusting a rookie in such a crucial game against a tough divisional opponent.

Game 29: Cardinals at Pirates

Duke and Carpenter at seven. The Bucs are in third place and need another win to keep their pennant dreams alive.

Game 28: Cubs at Pirates

Brian Burres and Randy Wells at seven. The clutchy Bucs are a major-league-best 10-1 in one and two run games and are just a half game back of the Cubs in the wild-card race.

Game 27: Cubs at Pirates

Morton and Lilly at seven. The Penguins are trying to steal the Bucs' playoff mojo.

Game 26: Cubs at Pirates

Maholm and Dempster at seven in what could be a preview of the NLCS Game 1. Finally, the Bucs get to play another contending team.

Off day

The Bucs rest today. Meaningful wild-card baseball resumes tomorrow, finally against a more worthy non-last-place team, the Cubs.

We've lost a lot of traffic here ever since the pay HW+ site launched, but we appreciate those who continue to value the completely free content here at HW-.

Game 25: Pirates at Dodgers

Karstens and Kuroda at four. If the hapless last-place Dodgers are going to be dissolved by Bud Selig, Coonington should save up for a Manny Christmas.

Game 24: Pirates at Dodgers

Duke and Monasterios at ten. No word yet on whether Bud Selig will investigate or possibly dissolve these last-place Dodgers for their flagrant failure to play competitive baseball this year.

Game 23: Pirates at Dodgers

Morton and Billingsley at ten. The Bucs are in third place, the hapless Dodgers in last. Morton needs to step it up if he wants to make the wild-card rotation.

Game 22: Pirates at Dodgers

Burres and Kershaw at ten. The hapless 8-13 Dodgers will try not to get absolutely boat-raced by the red-hot Bucs, who are just three games back in the wild-card race.

Game 21: Pirates at Brewers

Maholm and Narveson at 1:10 PM as the hapless 9-11 Brewers struggle to have a better record than the magical 2010 Bucs.

Game 20: Pirates at Brewers

Karstens and Wolf at eight. The hapless 9-10 Brewers keep trying to score 20 runs per game, but nearly always fail. Losers.

Game 19: Pirates at Brewers

Duke and Gallardo at 8:10. Despite all the pistol-whippings and humiliation, the Bucs are just one game back of the Brewers in the wild-card race.

Game 18: Pirates at Astros

Charlie Morton will try to defend himself against Brett Myers at two. On the year, opponents are batting .434 off Morton. Bucs need a win to stay competitive in the wild-card race.

Game 17: Pirates at Astros

Chris Jakubauskas will probably pitch against Wandy Rodriguez tonight at 7 our time.

Wild-card race is getting pretty thick with a lot of teams bunched up around two games out.

Good time to activate Secret Weapon Jakubauskas.

Game 16: Pirates at Astros

Maholm vs. Oswalt at eight. Despite this recent 36-1 run sweep, the Bucs are still just 1.5 games out from the wild card.

NFL Draft

Steelers take Maurkice Pouncey with the 18th pick. How long until the Combine includes off-field challenges, like being surrounded by a bar full of thirsty underage kids? This Pouncey kid looks solid and ready to protect Dennis Dixon.

Game 15: Brewers at Pirates

McCutchen and Wolf at 12:35. The Bucs are just one game back in the wild card race. To still be playing meaningful baseball this late in April is both refreshing and remarkable.

Game 14: Brewers at Pirates

Duke and Gallardo at seven. Bucs are only 1.5 games back with less than 150 games to play. If Neal wants to acquire enough Veteranosity to make a run for the pennant, some kind of Moskos-for-Kenny-Rogers-or-David-Wells type trade might be worth the front office's consideration.

Game 13: Brewers at Pirates

Morton and Bush at seven. The delirium of this mid-April wild card race makes it hard to know who to trade.

Game 12: Reds at Pirates

Arroyo and Maholm at 1:35pm. Bucs are a game out of first and a half-game back for the wild card.

Forecast high around 50 with a chance of sun toward the end of the game.

Game 11: Reds at Pirates

Burres and Cueto at seven. Bucs must win to stay in the thick of the wild card race.

Game 10: Reds at Pirates

Cy Young candidate Zach Duke vs. Leake at seven. Bucs need a win to stay in contention.

Game 9: Pirates at Giants

Morton and Sanchez at 3:45. The Bucs are 4-4 and just 1.5 games out of first.

Game 8: Pirates at Giants

Maholm and Cain underway. Bucs up 2-0 in the third after the Iwamura jack.

Game 7: Pirates at Giants

Ohlendorf and Zito after your bedtime. Rain likely, rainout possible.

Game 6: Pirates at D'backs

McCutchen and Jackson at 4pm EST.

Wild-card berth could be on the line here.

Game 5: Pirates at D-backs

Duke and Haren starting soon. After only a two day exposure to ALD (Adam LaRoche Disease), the Bucs are starting to appear symptomatic.

Game 4: Pirates at D-backs

Morton and the first-place Bucs vs. Rodrigo Lopez at 9:40.

Game 3: Dodgers at Pirates

Maholm and the undefeated Bucs vs. Billingsley at 12:35. Given the events that have transpired, it doesn't seem too early to start entertaining the notion of Jonezilla, 2010 NL MVP.

Game 2: Dodgers at Pirates

Ohlendorf and Kershaw at seven. Bucs need a win to stay undefeated.

First Place

Nice view up here.

Game 1: Dodgers at Pirates

Duke vs. Vicente Padilla in the season opener at 1:35.

HW 2010 Readers' Poll

It's time. Please humor us in the comments with your predictions for:

1. How many wins?
2. Who gets traded first?
3. 2010 Whipping Boy?
4. How could the Bucs win 82 games?

Feel free to share any other predictions as well. I'll start.

1. A variety of other sources have predicted shades of suck ranging from 62 to 75 wins. Walking the earth, not tied down to any beer fort, I'm optimistic for a significant improvement over last year's effort: 67 wins.

2. Vazquez. Then Doumit, Dotel, Crosby and Church.

3. Tougher call than most years. LaRoche? Clement?

4. Milledge, Cutch, Jones, LaRoche, then Alvarez all go berserk. Ohlendorf gets the team hooked on some kind of secret PED made for farm animals? MLB surprisingly announces that the season will be extended to a 262 game format?

End of spring training

Pretty exciting stuff maybe.