ST. LOUIS -- There were some mighty big numbers in the fabulous Pirates-Cardinals series. Like 1,048 pitches over 35 innings played across 11 hours and 26 minutes.
One of the most impressive numbers, however, was a small one: 0.90. That was the combined weekend ERA of the three starting pitchers who took the ball for the Bucs.
"Fantastic," manager Clint Hurdle exclaimed after Vance Worley's turn in the early going of Sunday's 3-2, 14-inning loss in Busch Stadium. "Vance went out there and just took the baton and ran with it."
The handoff came from Francisco Liriano, who had allowed one run in eight innings on Saturday, when he had taken the handoff from A.