Bucs clobber Cards

Ronny Paulino circles the bases after hitting his first career grand slam in the first inning of the Pirates' victory over the Cardinals Wednesday.

By Rob Biertempfel
PITTSBURGH TRIBUNE-REVIEW
Thursday, August 2, 2007

With one swing of his bat Wednesday, Ronny Paulino chased away some of the dark clouds that had gathered around the Pirates.

One day after being jeered for his defensive blunders, Paulino swatted a first-inning grand slam to propel the Pirates to a 15-1 rout of the St. Louis Cardinals at PNC Park.

"After (Tuesday), I saw there are a lot of people who still believe in me," Paulino said. "It made me a little more motivated today to show that I can get my confidence back and play hard."

Paulino's grand slam, the first of his career, was a reminder of his enormous potential. It was a payoff for the faith manager Jim Tracy showed by putting Paulino back in the lineup.

"Ronny bounced back from a very tough night and showed his mettle," Tracy said. "We believe in the guy."

Paulino's home run sparked the Pirates' biggest scoring binge of the season -- they banged out 20 hits for the first time since Aug. 30, 2006 -- and gave them just their third win since the All-Star break.

It also helped ease the mental burden on pitcher Tony Armas, who finally notched his first victory as a Pirate.

Armas (1-3), who was signed as a free agent over the winter, was awful in his first seven starts. The right-hander was removed from the rotation May 18 and banished to a mop-up relief role.

In 6 1/3 innings, Armas gave up a run on four hits, walked one and struck out five. He lowered his ERA by a half-point to 6.31.

"I'm just happy I got into a groove," Armas said. "I'm more confident in my mechanics. I feel like I can throw my pitches where I want to. I just want to keep it going."



Pirates pitcher Tony Armas returned to the starting rotation with a solid start, pitching into the seventh inning and giving up one run against the Cardinals Wednesday.


However, Armas' stay in the rotation will be short-lived. He will return to the bullpen today, when Matt Morris, acquired Tuesday in a trade with San Francisco, joins the team.

Cardinals right-hander Braden Looper was brilliant in two previous starts this season against the Pirates. He won both, allowing just one run in 13 innings.

Yesterday, however, Looper (8-9) struggled from the start. He got two easy outs in the first inning, then allowed five consecutive batters to reach base.

"He was a little bit off," Pirates shortstop Jack Wilson said. "We got ahead in the count and got on him."

Jason Bay's single scored Freddy Sanchez for the game's first run. Ryan Doumit walked to load the bases.

Paulino then yanked a 2-1 pitch to left field, and the ball slipped over the wall. Not a titanic shot, but it was enough.

"I hit it pretty good, but it was a line drive," Paulino said. "I wasn't sure if it would make it."

It was the Pirates' first grand slam this season. Only three teams in the majors -- Kansas City, Atlanta and the New York Mets -- have not hit a slam in 2007.



Ronny Paulino (center) is congratulated after hitting his first career grand slam in the first inning of the Pirates' victory over the St. Louis Cardinals Wednesday.

With one out in the third, Adam LaRoche smacked a solo shot to right-center. The Pirates are 15-5 when they hit two or more homers in a game.

Bay, who's slowly rebuilding his batting average after a monthlong slide, followed with a single to left. With runners at the corners and one out, Wilson blooped an RBI single to left.

Wilson went deep in the fifth against reliever John Thompson.

Might it have been Wilson's last homer as a Pirate? Although the non-waiver trading deadline has passed, Wilson could still be dealt by the end of the month.

The Pirates scored seven runs in the eighth off Mike Maroth.

Sanchez finished with four hits for the seventh time in his career.

Bay crushed his first double since June 26.

Rob Biertempfel can be reached at rbiertempfel@tribweb.com or (412) 320-7811.
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