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Pirates hope to end slide vs. Padres

Aug 6, 2011 - 3:42 PM (Sports Network) - The Pittsburgh Pirates haven't been the same team since their controversial 19-inning loss to the Braves on July 26.

Since the horrendous call at home plate that allowed Julio Lugo to score the winning run in the wee hours of the morning, the Pirates have fallen out of first place in the NL Central and now find themselves in danger of a 19th straight losing season and another year without a playoff spot. To make matters worse, Pittsburgh has been losing to teams with far-worse records, in all winning just once in its last 11 contests.

Included in that was a four-game sweep by the Cubs at PNC Park this week. On Friday, the Pirates surrendered double-digit runs for the third time in the last eight games, falling 15-5 to the Padres in the opener of this three-game series.

It's up to Paul Maholm to stop the slide and get the Pirates back on track tonight against the Padres, even though they enter the day facing an eight- game deficit for first in the division. The lefty is 0-2 over his last four starts with the Bucs losing each of those games. Maholm is also 0-3 with a 3.71 ERA in four all-time starts against the Padres.

Countering for the Padres will be Cory Luebke, who has gone 2-4 with a 3.19 ERA, a .221 opponents batting average and 39 strikeouts against seven walks in seven starts since joining the Padres rotation on June 26. The southpaw has also struggled of late, losing three consecutive starts, but hasn't received much run support. San Diego has been outscored 13-5 in his last three games.

Last night, Chase Headley hit a grand slam and drove in five runs as San Diego went deep four times in a 15-5 win, handing the Pirates their season-high eighth straight defeat. They have given up 14 home runs in their past four games.

Jesus Guzman, Kyle Blanks and Aaron Cunningham all hit home runs while Will Venable went 3-for-5 with two RBI and two runs scored for the Padres, who have won two straight. Aaron Harang (10-3) benefited from the run support. He got the win despite giving up 13 hits and four runs over five innings.

"Everybody contributed tonight, even the bench players," said San Diego manager Bud Black. "The guys had a good game and it was a good win to start out the series."

It was a season-high in runs for the Padres as they topped their 14-run mark set on July 20 against Florida.

Ryan Ludwick was 4-for-4 with an RBI against his former team while Ryan Doumit added a solo home run for Pittsburgh. Jeff Karstens (8-6) had his shortest outing of the season as he was tagged for nine runs on nine hits over just 3 1/3 innings.

"We're hanging breaking balls and elevating fastballs too much," said Pittsburgh manager Clint Hurdle. "And it's not just one pitcher, it's hurting everyone."

Pittsburgh won two of three games at San Diego from May 2-4, but the Pirates have lost seven in a row at PNC Park to the Padres.