Quiet, but effective

Middle relief pitchers are like offensive linemen in football, you usually don't hear about them unless they do something wrong.

Most middle relievers are kind of quiet, unassuming guys anyway who go out and do their jobs without a lot of fanfare.

John Grabow fits the classic middle reliever role perfectly. It's a little hard to believe this is Grabow's fifth full season in the majors. Over that time the left-handed Grabow has become one of the top set-up men in the National League, regardless of which side he throws from.

This season, Grabow has taken his excellence to another level. Heading into Thursday's game with St. Louis, Grabow has not allowed a run in 12 appearances this season over 11 2/3 innings.

Grabow used to be more of a situational pitcher used the majority of the time against left-handed batters. This season, Pirates manager John Russell is using Grabow against both equally and Grabow has responded. He has held left-handed batters to a .143 batting average (2-for-14) and righties to a .167 average against (5-for-30).

Though Grabw has a good changeup, he said the difference this season has been an improvement on his fastball, moreso in location than velocity.

"I worked on getting ahead with my fastball and keeping my fastball down," Grabow said before Thursday's game. "Just working off that pitch which makes other pitches more effective. If you're ahead in the count, it's easier to get to those pitches."

Who knows how much longer Grabow's scoreless innings streak will last? However long it does, he's just enjoying it while it happens.

"I'm just trying to ride it," Grabow said. "These things don't always last that long and I'm just trying to enjoy it."