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Pirates-Marlins Preview

Oct 3, 2010 - 3:30 AM By MATT BECKER STATS Senior Writer

Pittsburgh (57-103) at Florida (78-82), 1:10 p.m. EDT

The Pittsburgh Pirates will conclude their 18th consecutive losing season Sunday. This one - in many ways - has been the most discouraging.

Needing a win to avoid matching the worst road record in major league history, the Pirates will also try keep from finishing with their most losses in nearly 60 years when they face the Florida Marlins.

Pittsburgh (57-104) was assured of extending the longest run of futility in major American pro sports history when it lost its 82nd game Aug. 20.

The Pirates fell for the 22nd time since then with Saturday's 2-0 loss to the Marlins, giving them their most defeats since they also dropped 104 in 1985. They haven't finished a season with more defeats since 1952, when they had 112 in 154 games.

Just over 10 years later, the 1963 New York Mets set a major league record for the worst road record in a 162-game season at 17-64. Pittsburgh would tie that mark with a defeat in its finale.

Hoping to prevent matching that dubious record, the Pirates turn to Brian Burres (4-4, 5.01 ERA), who has been one of the team's top pitchers over the past month.

Burres is 2-1 with a 2.89 ERA in five starts since moving back into the rotation Sept. 6, with Pittsburgh winning four times. In St. Louis on Tuesday, the left-hander allowed two runs and four hits in 5 2-3 innings in a 7-2 victory.

"When he keeps the ball down, he can be tough," manager John Russell told the Pirates' official website.

Pittsburgh has used 11 starting pitchers this year, and Burres could be the only one to finish with a winning record if he earns a victory in his first career appearance against the Marlins.

Florida (80-82), which is 5-2 against the Pirates this year, counters with Anibal Sanchez (12-12, 3.62), who will make his 32nd start of the season.

Sanchez, who made 32 starts combined over his previous three seasons, has career highs in wins, innings (189) and strikeouts (150), but has posted a 6.35 ERA while losing his last three starts.

The right-hander was looking good Tuesday against Atlanta, before coming undone in the seventh inning, when he allowed all three runs and ended up losing 3-2. He had held Atlanta to three hits in the first six innings.

In his only career start against the Pirates in April 2009, Sanchez gave up three runs and seven hits in seven innings of a 3-2 loss.

The Marlins, assured of finishing with their first losing season since 2007, scored Tuesday on Chad Tracy's sacrifice fly and rookie Mike Stanton's RBI single.

Stanton, who drove in a career-best five in Thursday's 11-9 series-opening win, is batting .410 with two home runs and eight RBIs during a 10-game hitting streak.