I told a friend of mine recently that I would try to be more optimistic on here. He said that alot of what I wrote was negative and that he would enjoy it more if I was more upbeat. I am upbeat about a lot of things, but what I saw today from Craig Hansen is not one of them.
In case you missed it, Hanson came in to a 1 run game in the 8th inning this afternoon against Cincinnatti. Instead of doing what he was supposed to do; get three outs and move on to the next frame, Hanson failed...spectacularly.
Hanson walked the first batter he faced, which has become the standard for him. He only has 3 appearances as a Pirate where he didn't walk a batter. Now, a runner on first and no outs is not something to get up in arms about, and I was sure that Hanson would take care of business with the next 3 hitters.
The second batter, Corey Patterson, reached on a bunt single to the pitcher. Now, I must admit, I was not able to watch this game, but unless it was a perfect bunt, there needs to be an out in that situation. This presented Hanson with 2 on and nobody out, which is a bit more perilous than having a runner on second with one out.
The third batter of the inning sacrificed to the catcher, moving both runners up 90 feet. This is nothing really to do with Hanson, but instead of having a runner on 3rd and 2 outs, its runners on 2nd and 3rd with only one out. Not good when you are heading into the heart of the Reds order.
Batter number 4 is Jeff Keppinger who saw a wild pitch go by him allowing the runner from third to score before he himself walked to put runners on the corners with 1 out. This is where Hanson was pulled from the game. 2 on, 1 out, and Brandon Philips at the plate, and one run in already, tying the game at 6.
As the inning progressed, the walks killed the Pirates. TJ Beam entered and plunked the first batter he faced to load the bases, then Joey Votto singled in 2 more runs credited to Hanson. His overall line, 1/3 of an inning, 3 runs on 1 hit and 2 walks.
I don't care how hard this guy throws or how good he is supposed to be. He is a bum right now. He has lost the Pirates 3 games, blown 2 saves, and has allowed runs in almost every appearance. No wonder the Red Sox were so happy to get rid of him. He did nothing to help them out either.
If it were in my power, I would trade him back to Boston. Not for much though, maybe some postseason tickets if they make it and some new bats. But alas, I don't think Boston would think they were getting enough out of the del to make it worth their while.
