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I told you it was just one game ...

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Q: Dejan, which was more brutal, John Russell sending Jason Michaels up cold to face Joba Chamberlain in the sixth, or the 98, 88, 98 sequence Joba threw Michaels?

Don Hodge of Lake Havasu City, Ariz.

KOVACEVIC: The entire event seemed brutal for the home side, obviously, certainly as compared to the previous night.

But my vote for most brutal pinch-hit assignment went to sending Luis Rivas up there in the fifth. It was the Pirates' last gasp, and Zach Duke was taken out with a low pitch count with the clear intent of trying to do something right then and there to cut into a 4-0 deficit. If Michaels is the best bat, and certainly the most capable of getting three runs with one swing, why send up Rivas?

It all proved inconsequential, but just thought I would throw it out there.

Not really much else to discuss from that one.

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Q: Why on earth does Russell keep using Luis Rivas, who at most is the fourth-best hitter on his bench, to pinch hit in key spots like the one in the fifth inning tonight?

That was probably the Pirates' only remaining chance to get back into the game. Wouldn't you want the lefty Doug Mientkiewicz, or if not him Chris Gomez or Jason Michaels, both of whom are much better hitters than Rivas?

Wilbur Miller of Silver Spring, Md.

KOVACEVIC: Wilbur, we are starting to think alike, and that should frighten you.

I swear, I wrote the answer above just before your Q hit the inbox.

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Q: Hi, Dejan. If we agree that there is no such thing as an easy out in the major leagues, we can at least agree that there is an expected out in the National League when the pitcher bats. Too often, we see Pirates pitchers walking opposing pitchers. I understand that the staff suffers from a general lack of control but, come on, they're not even attacking the opposition's worst hitter.

Is this anything but a lack of concentration?

Bob Maddamma of Rochester, N.Y.

KOVACEVIC: Sure it is. It is a lack of general command and general confidence, mostly fed by how things go against other batters. Hence, the lack of poise when that easy out steps to the plate.

Look at Zach Duke. He hardly ever walks anyone, and there he was giving up a full-count free pass to Joba Chamberlain last night for what should have been the third out.

And make no mistake: This is on the pitcher. I had another reader write to ask me if pitching coach Jeff Andrews stresses to his staff that they try to avoid walking pitchers.

Seriously.

It really is OK to blame the pitchers once in a while.

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Q: I still haven't given up on the Buccos contending at least for the wild card, and I think the win over the Yankees supports that idea. Is it possible to send Ian Snell to Indy and deal for some starting pitching that would help us this year?

Pearl Milchovich of Stockdale

KOVACEVIC: Well, setting aside the debatable notion that Snell might not help the team this year, Pearl, the part of your equation that is left wanting, obviously, is who would replace him. If it is someone internal, who do you like? If, as you suggest, a trade is the answer, what do you give up? And what effect does that have on the franchise...s future?

I predicted back in the spring that this debate could reach a peak at some point in the summer, were the Pirates to be even marginally competitive. We might be nearing that point.

Let there be no doubt, though, that the overwhelming sentiment that makes it to this inbox -- which, by no means, should be taken as representative of the fan base as a whole -- is very much in favor of going for the wild card or even just a winning record, consequences be damned.

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Q: Hey, Dejan, how about that crowd? It may be just a novelty with the Yankees in town, but I believe that we could have those kind of crowds every night if the ownership group would make the kind of financial commitment needed to put a winning team on the diamond.

I think it speaks volumes to the fact that there still are a ton of Pirates fans in this city. That there still are people who care about baseball but have not come out on a consistent basis because the team, to put it eloquently, has stunk.

The same rabid fans who follow the Pens and Steelers also follow the Pirates, and they would make PNC Park a very hard place to play for opposing teams.

Do you think that maybe Frank Coonelly and Neal Huntington took notice of this?

Arden Nicoletta of Carnegie

KOVACEVIC: I can assume they did, Arden, and that goes back to something else included in that piece I linked above for Pearl: There is an intoxication that comes with winning, with seeing big crowds, with feeling -- as opposed to assuming -- the city's hunger for a winner. It even manifests itself in smaller scopes such as having the best-hitting outfield in Major League Baseball.

Imagine what it will take, mentally, to break that up. The team or even just the outfield.

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Q: Dejan, is it me, or does Maz look great? Since he retired, he's had a tendency to be a bit heavy. A few years ago, I remember seeing pictures of him in spring training and he looked pretty big. But in the pictures from this week, he looks lighter and really healthy.

Not bad for a guy who's, what, 72 this year?

Bruce Hanahan of Marlborough, Mass.

KOVACEVIC: He will be 72 in September, and is in much better shape, thanks largely to an improved diet. He showed up that way for spring training, and he handled all of his various tasks down there with greater apparent ease.

Good for him.

We all should aspire, actually, to be in Bill Virdon shape, regardless of our age. I have told the tale here before about how he still shags effortlessly, but that says nothing of his other skills which still can be seen when he suits up each time the Pirates visit St. Louis in his home state.

He remains a man among boys.

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Until tomorrow ...