CUMPTON EARNS SECOND START THURSDAY AT REDS

   Right-hander Brandon Cumpton will remain in the Pirates' rotation and make his next start in the finale of a four-game series with the Reds in Cincinnati on Thursday.    That was a relatively easy call for manager Clint Hurdle and general manager Neal Huntington to make after Cumpton's impressive Major League debut on Saturday.   The 24-year-old righty blanked the Dodgers on two hits through four innings, protecting a 1-0 lead, until a few elevated pitches in the fifth and sixth erased his small margin for error. He allowed three runs overall in five-plus innings in the Pirates' eventual 5-3 loss in 11 innings.   Significantly, the call on Cumpton will afford another rehab start for Jeanmar Gomez, who had been the prime alternative for the Reds set. Recovering from right forearm inflammation, Gomez went three innings and threw 64 pitches in his first rehab start with Triple-A Indianapolis.   That will come on Tuesday, when Gomez will shoot for 5 innings and 75 pitches for Indianapolis.   STARTING PITCHING DEPTH PAYING OFF FOR PIRATES: Pirates manager Clint Hurdle began talking confidently about his team's pitching depth back in February, when he could scan the practice fields of Pirate City and see a full complement of starting pitchers with others (Gerrit Cole, Francisco Liriano and Charlie Morton most prominent among them) on the waiting list.   Hurdle sounded like an Army recruiter when he termed his rotation "Eleven Strong." So, guess what? Brandon Cumpton on Saturday became the 11th different starter used by the Bucs in the season's first 68 games.   Last season, the Pirates needed only 10 different starters. Not sure whether that statistic is the better indication of the current depth -- or the fact the 2013 eleven includes only five who were also in the '12 mix (A.J. Burnett, Wandy Rodriguez, Jeff Locke, James McDonald, Morton)?   Next? If needed, it could be Stolmy Pimentel. The 23-year-old Dominican righty, acquired as part of the Boston package for Joel Hanrahan, has just been promoted to Triple-A Indianapolis after 13 solid starts at Altoona (4-3, 3.61).   FIRST NUMBER/LAST WORD: 3.21: Collective ERA of Pirates pitchers when throwing to Russell Martin, second-lowest among Major League catchers, trailing only St. Louis' Yadier Molina (3.16).   WORTH NOTING: Catcher Russell Martin was a late scratch from Sunday's lineup after he complained of lower body soreness following a light on-field workout. Martin had caught eight of the previous nine games.   Pirates manager Clint Hurdle is comfortable with the playing load carried by Martin, who has appeared in 53 of the first 68 games, including some action in right field and at third base.   Brandon Cumpton became the first National League pitcher to start his career with four straight strikeouts since 1962, when the Dodgers' Pete Richert fanned the first six Reds batters he faced in his April 12 debut.   Wandy Rodriguez (elbow inflammation) threw 15 fastballs problem-free in his Saturday bullpen session and will throw another bullpen Monday in Cincinnati.  
Source:http://sportsbygarydibert.blogspot.com/2013/06/cumpton-earns-second-start-thursday-at.html

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