(Was busy yesterday and didn’t get a chance to finish this–better late than never, I say.)
The game against the Pirates was Mike Mussina’s third start in Spring Training, where he has looked anywhere from awful to okay. Today, he looked great.
Mussina 5.0 0 0 0 0 2 0
His breaking balls were really sharp once again, and overall he looked very good. Mussina was pitching inside a lot, and although his fastball was hitting a few MPH lower than usual with him that’s not really a huge concern. I know it’s the Pirates, but he was locating his pitches very well.
Rivera 1.0 2 0 0 0 0
Mariano let two baserunners on, but balanced that with three groundballs outs including one doubleplay on a nice decision by Shelley Duncan.
Karstens 1.1 7 5 5 2 0 0
Karstens is an okay pitcher who sometimes has good outings. Today was not a good day for him, and he let 10 baserunners on in 1.3 innings. I think he may have pitched himself off of the team, although if they really want a longman he still might make it because of “good stuff” (which is the worst reason in the universe to keep someone on your team).
Traber 0.1 2 0 0 0 0 0
Couldn’t get out of the jam. It happens sometimes, nothing really notable to mention.
Bruney 0.1 0 0 0 0 0 0
Came in to get one batter out. Mission: Accomplished.
Veras 1.0 0 0 0 0 1 0
A rare three-up, three down inning for Veras. Nothing exciting to report here.
