[BigBadBuc]

I just heard on the radio that Oliver Perez has only pitched one inning for Mexico in the WBC and that is probably going to delay his progress unless they get eliminated very soon. That doesn't make me happy that Perez is down there sittin' on the bench. The WBC stinks for that reason.

BBB

[wvuauthor]

I had not heard that. Any news on if he is in shape or not? I know we talked a couple of weeks back about this, but is he still looking solid in this respect?

[BigBadBuc]

He's in shape. He's behind the other pitchers in building up his stamina. No injuries. Nothing Perez has done wrong. Just a lack of work. It ticks me off.

BBB

[wvuauthor]

I see where you are coming from. If he's gonna take the time to help his country out he should at least get to put some work in.

[BigBadBuc]

Oliver had a nice outing last night for Mexico against the USA. He pitched three innings, no runs and one hit. I'll take it. His fast ball isn't there yet but Ollie needs some innings.

BBB

[Lefty Noob]

That's probably the only time for as long as he's in Pittsburgh that I'll be rooting against Perez, too.

[wvuauthor]

An article in the PGH Post-Gazette yesterday said that Perez may be the Pirates fifth starter. A big drop from last year when he came into the season looking to be the ace of the staff. Looks like he has a lot of work to do, as well as a lot of growing up to do if he wants to be a number one pitcher.

[BigBadBuc]

Young players rarely come to the big leagues with the maturity needed to keep them there. Oliver needs to grow in that aspect. I actually think that the number five spot might be just right for him at this point in time. Let's hope that he keeps improving and maturing.

BBB