The Beginning Of The End?

You had to wonder how long the Pirates could continue to play at the level they were going heading into the All-Star break.

This last week's stretch against St. Louis, Atlanta, and Philly really showed how bad the offense was, even though the pitching looked very respectable for the most part.  The bottom line though is contending for a division title and this current four game losing streak, combined with a seven game winning streak for Milwaukee, is putting a lot of distance in between the two clubs.

Derrek Lee tweeted before the game that he would go 4 for 4, and hit two HR's off Carlos Zambrano.  He was half right on his batting stats, but he did indeed hit two bombs to give the Pirates some offense.  Unfortunately the rest of the team was not on board with the plan to pummel Zambrano.

I'm just as hopeful as the next Pirate fan that they can get things turned around, but you can't be losing to the Cubs if you want to contend for the division.  Milwaukee just smoked these guys, and it is clear the Pirates need a spark.  Lee and Ludwick generated some offense tonight, which is why they were brought in, but the pitching was not enough.

Let's just hope the Buccos get back on track tomorrow, because they need to piece together a nice winning streak soon.