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Pirates Vs. Indians: Bucs Look To Get Back On Track, And Ubaldo Jimenez Tries To Stay There

A.J. Burnett will try to play the role of stopper as he takes the mound Saturday for the Pirates, losers of their last four games, against the Cleveland Indians (4:05 p.m.).

The Indians defeated the Pirates 2-0 Friday night as Justin Masterson outdueled James McDonald.

Burnett's mound opponent on Saturday will be Ubaldo Jimenez, whose career has taken a tumble since he was a National League pitcher with the Colorado Rockies. He doesn't throw nearly as hard as he did then, and his strikeout rate has fallen precipitously. This year he has an atrocious K:BB ratio of one, having struck out 44 batters and walked 43. In his last two starts, however, he's struck out 11 and walked one, allowing a total of two earned runs in the process. A start against the Pirates' weak offense might represent a chance for him to keep that his run of good pitching going.

For more on the Pirates, check out Bucs Dugout. For more on the Indians, there's Let's Go Tribe.

Photographs by dizfunk used in background montage under Creative Commons. Thank you.