Duke wins one for Pirates pitchers
PITTSBURGH -- Zach Duke showed Saturday night why he might be the king of the Pittsburgh Pirates' starting rotation for a long, long time.
With his overtaxed bullpen in desperate need of an easy night after]a string of ineffective starts, Duke delivered. The former rookie phenom limited the visiting Chicago Cubs to just one run in seven innings in Pittsburgh's 2-1 win before a crowd of 34,264 at PNC Park.
Duke, whose poor start in the home opener and rough Spring Training led some to criticize the Pittsburgh coaching staff's handling of the young left-hander, threw 27 pitches in the first inning and then breezed through the next five, retiring 13 of 14 Chicago hitters at one point. Before Matt Murton's RBI single with two outs in the seventh inning cut the Pirates' lead to 2-1, no Cubs runner had advanced past second base.
"I went back to my game plan," said Duke, who insisted that it was pitch selection and location rather than pitching mechanics that caused his earlier struggles. "I hadn't been pitching good. I hadn't been myself out there. It was nice to get back to being me on the mound."
Pirates manager Jim Tracy showed faith in Duke by allowing the young left-hander to stay in the game and face pinch-hitter Todd Walker with two runners on and two outs in the seventh inning. Duke got out of the jam and preserved the lead by inducing Walker to hit a grounder to first baseman Craig Wilson.
"That's his game to determine at that point," Tracy said of his decision to leave Duke in the game to face Walker. "You take him out of the game like that there, you bring in the bullpen and a mistake is made, a ball gets hit in the gap, and he's the pitcher of record in the losing decision, and he got to watch it on the other side of the dugout. I don't handle pitching that way."
"I appreciate that Jim Tracy gave me that opportunity," said Duke. "It gives me a lot of confidence."
In all, Duke (1-1) limited Chicago to one run on six hits and a walk to become the first Pirates starter to pitch into the seventh inning this season. Duke also improved his record to 3-0 with a 0.78 ERA in three career starts against the Cubs.
Pirates starting pitchers had gone 1-6 with a 7.65 ERA in the first 12 games of the season, averaging exactly five innings per start.
"Hopefully it's a springboard for us," said Duke. "Hopefully it proves that we can do what we're capable of. Hopefully these hard times are behind us."
After jokingly saying to reporters that he didn't want to hear any questions about Duke's pitching mechanics, Tracy showered his starting pitcher with praise.
"You take him out of the game like that there, you bring in the bullpen and a mistake is made, a ball gets hit in the gap, and he's the pitcher of record in the losing decision, and he got to watch it on the other side of the dugout. I don't handle pitching that way."
-- Jim Tracy, on leaving Zach Duke in the game in the seventh
"He is a 22-year-old kid who is as high a caliber as there would be in baseball at this age," said Tracy. "[Bad starts] happen to the best of them.
"He knows every time he goes out there what he wants to do," Tracy continued. "The poise that he possesses for his age, he's well beyond his years.
"This is a very special guy we have on our hands here. Very special."
Duke was greeted by a warm ovation and a "Duuuke" chant as he walked off the field after the top of the seventh inning. Five days earlier, he had been booed by the home faithful after getting pounded for seven runs in the home opener against the Los Angeles Dodgers.
"They were deserved boos [Monday]," said Duke. "It was nice to be on the other end."
Given a rare opportunity to set up his bullpen, Tracy sent out John Grabow to begin the eighth inning. After Grabow retired the only batter he faced, Roberto Hernandez got out of a two-on, one-out jam later in the inning to preserve Pittsburgh's slim lead.
Closer Mike Gonzalez needed just four pitches in the ninth inning to earn his second save in as many opportunities.
"I'm just trying to attack the strike zone and not let anyone get on, especially when you have a one-run lead," said Gonzalez. "I'm not trying to get strikeouts. I'm just trying to go right after them and see them hit the ball somewhere with the defense I've got."
Wilson, who will take over as the Pirates' regular first baseman in place of the injured Sean Casey, used his speed rather than his power to score both Pirates runs.
Wilson drew a leadoff walk in the second inning against Cubs starter Jerome Williams, swiped second base and scored after two outs on Chicago shortstop Ronny Cedeno's throwing error. Wilson began the sixth inning with a triple off the top of the 21-foot-high fence in right field and scored a batter later on Joe Randa's sacrifice fly to put the Pirates ahead, 2-0.
"I guess it was the extra Pepsi that I had before the game that gave me the energy," Wilson said, joking. "Once I get going, I guess I have decent speed. But I wouldn't say it's anything great."
Williams (0-1) was the tough-luck loser despite holding a Pirates offense, which came into the game ranked first in the National League in home runs, to just two runs (one earned) on four hits and four walks in six innings.
The win snapped Pittsburgh's streak of eight consecutive losses against the Cubs at PNC Park
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