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D-Backs turn to Collmenter in finale with Pirates

Jun 9, 2011 - 3:07 PM (Sports Network) - Josh Collmenter has been one of the best pitchers in baseball since being inserted into Arizona's rotation. Today he tries to help the Arizona Diamondbacks salvage the finale of their three-game series with the Pittsburgh Pirates at PNC Park.

It won't be easy for Collmenter tonight, as he faces a Pirates team that is starting to put it together and at 30-30 is at .500 this late in a season for the first time since it held the same mark back on June 11, 2005.

"We're .500 and that's about the significance of it to us," said Pirates manager Clint Hurdle. "It will have more significance later in season when we're .500. I'm glad people are excited about it, but we don't want to be satisfied with being .500 in June."

Pittsburgh won for the fourth time in five tries on Wednesday, as Andrew McCutchen's leadoff homer in the bottom of the 12th inning lifted the Pirates to a 3-2 win.

McCutchen, who ended the game 3-for-5 with two RBI and two runs scored, took a Zach Kroenke (0-1) offering over the wall in left field, just inside the foul pole to end the contest.

"It was a slider, full count. We were hoping he was cheating on the heater and apparently he wasn't," Kroenke said.

Daniel McCutchen (2-1) picked up the win with two scoreless relief innings for the Pirates, who haven't been a game above the break-even mark this late since they still called Three Rivers Stadium home. Pittsburgh's last winning record after May came when it was 59-58 on Aug. 15, 1999.

The Pirates, of course, haven't finished a season above .500 since 1992.

Stephen Drew finished 2-for-3 and drove in both runs for the Diamondbacks, who have lost three in a row.

"Pittsburgh's played well, it's hot out and we're going to get in late in Miami and we have a wraparound day down there. It's a tough trip," Arizona manager Kirk Gibson said. "That's why I've got different people playing and we're going try and keep everybody involved and we've got to grind through it. This is not an easy road trip."

Collmenter, meanwhile, was terrific on Friday against Washington, as he held the Nationals to just three hits over seven scoreless innings to run his record to 4-1 on the year, while lowering his earned run average to 1.25.

"If I make a couple of pitches that are close and get behind, I know that if I make a good downhill fastball using those angles and that plane it's hard for them to square it up," Collmenter said. "I have confidence in my changeup to throw it in a hitter's count, so being behind I don't sweat it too much."

Collmenter, who has never faced the Pirates, has allowed two runs or less in all five of his starts this season and has given up none three times.

Getting the call for the Pirates tonight will be right-hander Jeff Karstens, who is 3-4 with a 3.30 ERA. Karstens deserved better than the no-decision he got his last time out on Friday against Philadelphia, as he allowed just a run and four hits in a season-high seven innings.

Karstens is 1-0 with a 2.93 ERA lifetime against the Diamondbacks in five appearances, one of which being a start.

The Pirates took four of six matchups between the teams a year ago, including a three-game sweep in the Steel City from Sept. 17-19.