Pittsburgh Sports N'at

[Art2Gecko]

Pirates beat Braves, 5-0, for longest streak in four years
Monday, May 12, 2008
By Dejan Kovacevic, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

Matt Freed/Post-Gazette
Adam LaRoche is congratulated by teammate Ryan Doumit after hitting a two-run home run against the Braves in the eighth inning today in the first game of a doubleheader. The Pirates won, 5-0.Freddy Sanchez's three-run double, Adam LaRoche's two-run home run and Zach Duke's six scoreless innings carried the Pirates to their sixth consecutive victory, 5-0, against the Atlanta Braves this afternoon at PNC Park.

It is their first streak longer than five since a 10-0 run June 26-July 5, 2004.

Just as remarkably, Atlanta put 15 runners on base without scoring and failed to capitalize on six Pirates walks and four errors.

Duke had plenty of baserunners in his third consecutive strong start, with five hits, five walks and three errors behind him, but most of that trouble occurred at the bottom of the Atlanta order, and he had little trouble escaping.

"It all starts with the starting pitching," manager John Russell said. "We're making pitches when we need to and going deep into games. It's a solid win for us. We'll take it any way we can get it."

"I made quality pitches that had some good life on them," Duke said. "My sinker's really on right now. The ground-ball total speaks for itself."

He got eight ground-ball outs and there strikeouts.

Sanchez's big hit represented the game's first runs in the fifth.

Jason Michaels' walk off Jair Jurrjens opened the inning. Adam LaRoche followed with a skied single that dropped into shallow left. After each was bunted up a base, Brian Bixler was hit by a pitch between the shoulder blades, felled momentarily but fine. Duke struck out for the second out, but Sanchez sliced Jurrjens' 0-1 fastball into the right-field corner to clear the bases.

Ryan Doumit led off the Pirates' eighth with a double off Manny Acosta and, one out later, LaRoche lined a 1-1 curveball into the seats beyond right-center for his fourth home run, the third in the past eight days.

Damaso Marte pitched two scoreless innings of relief, and Sean Burnett worked the ninth.

John Van Benschoten and Tim Hudson will pitch Game 2.