NL CENTRAL D'Amico leads streaking Pirates to sweep of Astros, 8-3

Pittsburgh has won four straight and seven of 10.
PITTSBURGH (AP) -- If they keep playing this way until the All-Star game, maybe the Pittsburgh Pirates will convince some skeptics they plan to hang around the NL Central race all season.
Skeptics such as general manager Dave Littlefield, perhaps?
The Pirates finished off a three-game sweep of the Houston Astros by winning 8-3 Sunday behind Aramis Ramirez's homer and four RBIs and Jeff D'Amico's four-hitter.
Since the Reds beat them with late-inning comebacks Tuesday and Wednesday, the Pirates have matched a season high by winning four in a row. They also have won seven of 10.
But while manager Lloyd McClendon keeps telling his players they're right back in the NL Central race -- they're 61/2 games out, five back in the loss column -- Littlefield isn't being swayed yet.
Not convinced
While it's the manager's job to motivate his players, he said, the general manager must be less emotional when evaluating where his team is and where it's going.
"I want to win, but I've got to be objective and not get too high with [four] straight wins," he said.
While the Pirates are on the fringe of the division race, they're hardly in the middle of it, not with four teams ahead of them in the six-team division. Even with their modest push, they're eight games under .500.
"Being [eight] games under .500 doesn't give me a warm and fuzzy feeling about being in the race," Littlefield said. "In certain areas we're performing better than last year ... but another general manager in another city with a team [eight] games under .500 wouldn't consider his team in the race."
If the players really want to convince everyone they're in the race, Littlefield said, there's an easy way to do it: Keep winning, and not just a few games here or there.
"Show us," he said. "Talking about it doesn't matter. Your won-loss record is how we get evaluated."
Different directions
Perhaps that's why Astros manager Jimy Williams was rather testy after seeing his team lose for the ninth time in 12 games. He praised the Pirates for being productive offensively but, pressed further to analyze their successful weekend, said, "Every dog has his day."
D'Amico followed up Jeff Suppan's complete-game victory over Colorado on June 29 by needing just 90 pitches to pitch the fourth complete game of his career. Despite his 3.87 ERA, D'Amico (6-8) had lost four of five decisions since May 21.
Abraham Nunez got the Pirates started with a two-run double against Wade Miller (5-9) in the second inning, and Brian Giles and Craig Wilson hit solo homers in the third. Miller had won four of his last five starts against Pittsburgh, but was lifted after giving up 11 hits and seven runs in 52/3 innings.