John Heller, Post-Gazette photos Third baseman Jose Castillo misses the tag on the Marlins' Hanley Ramirez last night at PNC Park. The Marlins won, 9-3.

By Dejan Kovacevic
Pittsburgh Post-Gazette The performances of the Pirates' rotation are forming a dramatic divide between the good, the bad and the ugly.

The good ones, obviously, have come from Ian Snell and Tom Gorzelanny, among the finest pitchers in Major League Baseball so far.

	Starter Paul Maholm gave up only one run through five innings before allowing four Marlins to score in the sixth. Maholm dropped to 2-5 on the season. Click photo for larger image. More Coverage: Pirates Notebook: Doumit credits 'confidence' for tear Pirates Q&A with Dejan Kovacevic Bob Smizik: Complete games become obsolete Today Game: Pirates (LHP Zach Duke 1-4, 5.61) vs. Florida Marlins (LHP Scott Olsen 3-3, 4.87), 7:05 p.m., PNC Park. TV, radio: FSN Pittsburgh, WPGB-FM (104.7). Key matchup: Duke vs. ... lefties? No kidding: Left-handed hitters have a .394 average off him, higher even than the .333 mark of right-handed hitters. Of note: The Pirates will want to chase Olsen and get to a weary Florida bullpen. No relievers in Major League Baseball have logged more innings than the Marlins' 143 1/3.

The bad and the ugly?

That would be most of the rest, to this point.

Paul Maholm followed sharp showings from Snell and Gorzelanny by giving up five runs in six innings -- including home runs by Hanley Ramirez, Dan Uggla and Jeremy Hermida -- in a 9-3 throwdown by the Florida Marlins last night before 12,769 at PNC Park.

That lowered Maholm's record to 2-5, raised his ERA to 5.67 and moved his opponents' batting average to an unsightly .298.

It added, too, to the gap between the Pirates' top two starters and everyone else:

Snell and Gorzelanny are a combined 8-4 with a 2.37 ERA.

Maholm and Zach Duke, the other two in what the franchise hopes will be a formidable foursome for years to come, are a combined 3-9 with a 5.64 ERA.

And Tony Armas, owner of the ugliest numbers in the National League, is 0-3 with an 8.76 ERA.

"We've all got to get it going, and that starts with me," Maholm said. "Ian and Tom had great outings, and I couldn't keep that going. It's frustrating right now. It was going along good, and another big inning happened."

True on each count.

Maholm eased through his first five innings, allowing only Ramirez's home run in the fourth, and the score was 1-1. But a four-run sixth, including the home runs by Uggla and Ramirez that raised Maholm's season total to 10 -- most in the National League -- decided the outcome with an exclamation point.

The pitch to Ramirez was a changeup powered to the opposite field, a credit to the hitter.

Not so of the other two.

Uggla followed Alfredo Amezaga's leadoff walk in the sixth by ramming a flat, first-pitch sinker into the bullpen to put Florida ahead, 3-1.

After another run, Hermida crushed a 3-1 fastball that stayed up and over the plate high into the seating section above the Clemente Wall. That made it 5-1.

Manager Jim Tracy described each as a "bad pitch," and Maholm saw it the same way.

"I missed on two pitches, and they did what good hitters should do with those pitches," Maholm said. "I don't know why the home runs are, all of a sudden, getting hit. But on those two, I missed my spots and, apparently, hit the sweet spot of the bat."

He gave up three home runs in his previous start, too, a 6-4 win Thursday in Chicago, but he also pitched into the eighth inning and earned the victory.

No such chance this time.

"The unfortunate part about this game is that it got away from Paul quickly," Tracy said. "He was cruising along, pitching very well."

Maholm's pattern this season has been ... well, there has been no pattern at all. Who can explain following a complete-game shutout April 24 -- the Pirates' finest start by anyone all season -- by getting chased in four innings next time out?

"You've just got to keep working with him," Tracy said. "I think he's getting closer. I really believe that. His delivery is smooth, his pitch counts have been efficient ... it was a 1-1 ball game, and a couple pitches cost him."

"I'll figure it out," Maholm said.

Shortstop Jack Wilson drives in the first Pirates run in the third inning on an error by Marlins shortstop Hanley Ramirez. Click photo for larger image.

The Pirates opened the scoring in the third with a gift run off Florida starter Sergio Mitre. With Chris Duffy on second, Jack Wilson's grounder zipped through Ramirez's legs at shortstop for an error, and Duffy came around easily. But Ramirez atoned for the gaffe immediately with his home run in the Marlins' next at-bat.

Relievers Marty McLeary and Jonah Bayliss gave up two runs each, rendering moot the two the Pirates scored in the seventh.

The lone bright spot: Adam LaRoche singled and doubled, each to left field, in going 2 for 4 after having Monday off. All concerned have said all through his .179 opening quarter that a key to his recovery will be hitting the other way.

"A positive sign," Tracy said. "He stayed behind the ball better. You hope that continues."

What Tracy and the Pirates cannot hope continues is the rotation remaining two deep.

Duke, loser of his past four decisions, goes tonight against the Marlins.

"We have two guys right now who are at that level where we know they can be," Tracy said. "And we've got some other guys who can get there, too. Zach Duke is one of them. He's been there. We know what kind of pitcher he can be."