Pittsburgh Pirates weekly report

The Pirates started the week on a down note with a 1-0 loss to the Milwaukee Brewers. Ian Snell (1-3) pitched well after some first-inning trouble, but gave up a home run to Brewers starter Yovani Gallardo in the seventh. That was the only scoring in the game as the Brewers swept the Pirates.

On the first day of May, the Pirates lost 4-0 to the Cincinnati Reds. Zack Duke was pitching a good game until the sixth, and then the bullpen and the batters let him down. Duke pitched seven innings, giving up one run, six hits, walking two and striking out five.

On May 2, Ross Ohlendorf (3-2) won his third straight game in an 8-6 win over the Reds. A four-run first inning gave him a nice cushion, though Alex Gonzalez's three-run homer in the fourth brought the Reds close. Ohlendorf pitched six innings, giving up three earned runs on six hits, walking two and striking out two.

On Sunday, the Reds shut out the Pirates 5-0. Starter Jeff Karstens (1-1) had control problems that caused a big inning for the Reds in the third when he gave up three straight walks and then a bases-clearing single. Karstens pitched five innings, giving up six hits and four earned runs, walking four and striking out one.

The Pirates started a two-game series with the Brewers Monday with a 7-4 loss. Starter Paul Maholm left with a lead, but the bullpen couldn't hold it, even after the Pirates took the lead in the bottom of the eighth. A four-run Brewers rally sealed the game, and Matt Capps (0-2) took the loss and recorded a blown save.

On Tuesday, Ian Snell fell to 1-4 as the Pirates fell again to the Brewers 8-5. Pittsburgh the lead early, but Snell eventually ran into trouble, issuing two walks that led to Milwaukee's decisive sixth-inning three-run rally. Snell pitched five innings, giving up four hits and five earned runs, walking five and striking out two.