LEADING OFF: The Curve got off to a rotten start Tuesday against Akron LHP Eric Berger (0-1), who struck out the first five hitters, only to blister him a little later with six runs on five hits in the fourth inning.
SAFE AT FIRST: "We battled a lot better the second time through," manager P.J. Forbes said. "[Jarek] Cunningham's at-bat set up the whole inning - fouling off some tough pitches, working the walk, and then Tony [Sanchez] followed it with an outstanding at-bat" for a single.
STEALING SECOND: Two of the RBI hits came from left-handed hitters against the lefty Berger, with RF Andrew Lambo delivering a run-scoring single and 1B Matt Curry a two-run single on an 0-2 pitch to make it 3-0. "We have a heavy lefty lineup in some aspects, and we've seen a ton of left-handed pitching," Forbes said.
ROUNDING THIRD: 3B Elevys Gonzalez came through with the game's biggest hit, a three-run homer to left for a 6-0 lead. Gonzalez led the Pirates' minor league system with 83 RBIs last season.
HEADING HOME: Tonight's promotion: It's the first "What if Wednesday" night of the season. Tonight is "Non HD" night, which will look at what the world would be like if there was no high definition. The Curve will give away six standard definition TVs as prizes throughout the night.
- Cory Giger
