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Thanks to the insightful post by thecheeseisblue on plate discipline, I was inspired to review recent Pirates ' history and bases on balls.

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Entering Saturday, Pittsburgh had scored an MLB-low 127 runs, and its .217 batting average was the worst in the National League.

Pirates owner Bob Nutting, left, talks with "Pirates" team member Quintin Weismantle, 6, of Eighty-Four, after opening ceremonies for the new Miracle League Field at Boyce Mayview Park in Upper St.

Rafael Dolis hit Hague with a fastball with the bases loaded and two outs in the bottom of the ninth inning, scoring Jose Tabata from third and giving the Pirates a 3-2 win tonight against the Cubs at PNC Park.

As you already know, Major League Baseball has been collecting votes for this years All-Star game.

The Cubs have lost nine straight games, in which they have been outscored 55-27. During that streak they have been shut out once and scored just one run in two other games; they have scored a total of six runs over their last four games.

Adam Jones has been one of the most valuable players in baseball this season, helping the Orioles to a surprising 28-17 start that has them in first place in the American League East with the second-best record in all of baseball.

You tried to excuse early-season slumps. You cited nagging injuries, protection issues in lineups and that mutant-looking solar eclipse.

Don't for a moment think Ryan Dempster isn't having a solid season. It might actually be one of his best, if not one of the best in all of baseball.

Community Voices blogs offer a cross-section of opinions and interests. The bloggers are not employees of the Post-Gazette, and their views are their own.

Next week, Six The Hard Way will feature the Men of May, the top 6 performers of the month, but for now, lets focus on the hottest and nottest over the past 7-14 days.

The plate discipline of the 2012 Pirates is nothing short of horrifying. However, this is not a new thing.

They hide it pretty well. The Pittsburgh Pirates are masking their ineptitude at the plate with excellent pitching and somehow playing nearly .500 baseball with the worst hitting in the majors and while being one of the worst hitting teams of all time.

There's always a first time for everything.A I have attended baseball games at a lot of Major League ballparks, some of them dearly departed, many of them new, but I experienced a first the other night at PNC Park, home of the Pittsburgh Pirates.

Tuesday night, Pirates center fielder Andrew McCutchen dropped a ball that he catches 99 out of 100 times.

Jon Niese pitched into the eighth inning, David Wright hit an RBI double and the Mets defeated the Pirates, 3-1, on Wednesday in the finale of a three-game series.

Any serious baseball fan must understand that their love affair with the game and a specific team, is a long term relationship and while a season is made up of streaks, both winning and losing, invariably the individual statistics as well as the team's won-loss record, will prove true over the course of 162 games.

Jon Niese started for the Mets and he was great into the eighth inning, allowing one run on four hits in 7 2/3 inningsto earn his third victory of the season.