Reds @ Padres....Game 1

• Rotinaj

  

  Lol 2 games behind the Pirates. Is this real?
• Midstate01

  

  Rotinaj;1219760 wrote:Lol 2 games behind the Pirates. Is this real?

  
  Pirates have played the 3rd easiest schedule in the nl. July is very easy for them. If they wanna win the division they better run away with it this month. Their August and September is brutal!
• Heretic

  

  Midstate01;1219899 wrote:Pirates have played the 3rd easiest schedule in the nl. July is very easy for them. If they wanna win the division they better run away with it this month. Their August and September is brutal!

  Not completely brutal, I don't think. I was reading some dumb ESPN column (A-Z guide to the Pirates for bandwagoners) where they essentially made a bunch of backhand comments about Jeff Karstens' DERP face and how bad the team's been over the years, but they did include this tidbit.
  

  This year's team had the toughest schedule in the National League through the first six weeks of the season; the Pirates end the season with one of baseball's easiest.
  
  After 19 years of losing, it's easy to think that failure is always around the corner. Because it is. The Pirates play the Cubs and Astros 23 times in the second half.

  I know their schedule's been weak for the past couple weeks, but it started out tough (almost immediately, they were out west for a couple series). Like, August has a lot of tough games, but so many of them are at home, where the Pirates have been the best team in MLB so far this year. Only six road games with winning teams (Cin, St.L) that month and not many in September, either. Obviously, if they have their usual August/Sept., it doesn't matter how good the opponents are, but if they keep playing well and avoid the horrible collapse of last year, I'm not overly concerned about their potential staying power.
• Ironman92

  

  It's baseball for 100+ years everyone beats everyone. You can have the Rangers vs the Twins for 14 games during the season and if the Twins execute well and are healthy while the Rangers are on a down bit and have an injury or two....the Twins might win 9 of the 14 games.....even straight up they might. Everyone has seen how it works....this stuff is way less likely in the NFL and a little less likely in the NBA.
• Ironman92

  

  The Pirates may have had an easier road so far but it sure seems like every time the Reds play a team that team is down one of the best players or more and seem to miss the ace or aces....been very fortunate so far IMO
• Ironman92

  

  Still no lineup. Phillips tweeted that he might talk to Dusty about a change.
  
  Might we see....
  
  Phillips
  Stubbs
  Votto
  Ludwick
  Bruce
  Frazier
  Cozart
  Hanigan?