One day and five outs

The Pittsburgh Pirates reign at the top of the National League Central ended after one day as the bullpen could not hold a one run lead in the eighth inning in Houston as the Astros rallied to a 6-4 win over the Pirates.Jose Veras was the loser (2-3) after allowing three runs (two earned) in a third of an inning.

Three Pirates smashed solo homers in the loss-Neil Walker (9),Lyle Overbay (7) and Brandon Wood (5).

The series concludes today at 2:05 with Kevin Correia (11-7) against Wandy Rodriguez (6-6).

Pirate Hooks

1) The tying run in the eighth inning scored by Hunter Pence was close,but I thought he was safe.
Clint Hurdle disagreed and argued strongly.I thought Pence beat the tag by Michael McKenry,but the real play was made by Chase D'Arnaud,who was hamped by a slow roller and Pence running on contact to almost nail Pence anyway.

2) Four hits for Neil Walker in the game,including a homer.Walker is working on a ten game hitting streak and his numbers stack up well against the best second basemen in the game.

3) I do not want to jump the gun on what may be a blip on the radar,but Jose Veras allowed three runs on just one hit,but struggled with control and consistently fell behind in the count.
One game is not a pattern,but keep an eye on the workload on Chris Resop and Veras as the season progresses.

4) It was nice to see some power from the offense,it was just too bad that in each situation no one was on base.
The Pirates are going to have to do something for the offense other than relying on the same players every night.
Whether it be by trade,praying for help from Pedro Alvarez or playing the hot hand as things go-something will have to be done,if the team is to stay in the race.

5) Brandon Wood's homer was a bomb.
Video replays are a bit fuzzy,but watching and listening to the game,a discernable clang is heard when the ball lands.
I cannot be certain,but I would guess that ball hit the back glass of the enclosed dome and in an outside park might have kept on going.

Photo Credit: Thomas B. Shea/Getty Images