Pirates top Phillies 6 - 4 in late innings. Again. *sigh*

Afternoon games frustrate me tremendously. They can be difficult to cover, because most of us actually do not live in mom's basement, and we actually work and stuff. Also, and this is more important to me, a sour loss sticks with you longer. You go home. You drink a beer. And another. And you wonder how another run was wasted getting thrown out at home. And how Charlie Manuel learnt hisself how to use a bullpen. And how another pretty good starting pitching performance could be pissed away when you know that extra win would be really helpful come this fall.

Welcome to Phillies, v.2013.

Cliff Lee went one inning too long today, giving up three runs and two of those in his final frame. He worked with a lead most of the game, built on an RBI double by Domonic Brown, and RBI single by Ryan Howard, and a sac fly by Brown. He was nicked by a homer (imagine that!) in the sixth inning by future Hall of Famer Gaby Sanchez and in the seventh by a series of unfortunate events, including a walk to Starling Marte and a series of two-out singles to Gaby Sanchez, Andrew McCutchen, and Michael McKenry, the latter of whom likely is married to Amelia Cordelia McHugh. This tied the ballgame and sent it to the Phillies' bullpen and Davy Garrett Jones Locker in the eighth.

Lee's line was 7 innings pitched, 3 runs given up, 10 hits, 1 walk, and 7 strikeouts. He was decent, and even in the seventh it seemed he was oozing, rather than gushing, blood.

His counterpart, James McDonald was less effective: 5 IP, 5 hits, 3 runs, 3 walks, and 4 whiffs. He was followed by Justin Wilson and Tony Watson, both of whom were effective enough, with Watson giving up a late run, but otherwise keeping a lid on the Phillies and letting the Pirates take the series 3 games to 1.

The two run double off Phillippe Aumont by Garrett Jones with the bases loaded in the eighth buried the Phillies. Aumont required only one-third of an inning to load the bases, give up the double, and lose the game. It was a tremendously efficient outing. Chad Durbin and Raul Valdes cleaned up the kitchen after Aumont was cooked. Charlie was ejected at some point, which disappointed me. I had hoped he was fired by the umpire, but apparently, they lack the authority.

I enjoyed the game tremendously, as it allowed me to explore a remarkable collection of photographs at SpaceReptilesAreYourFriend.com with many, including the linked photograph, capturing my feelings about this epic game.

Fangraph of Marinating In A Vile Loss Until Tomorrow Night When The Mets, Rather Than The Pirates, Will Inflict Pain:

Source: FanGraphs