"Pirates manager John Russell tabbed left-hander Zach Duke as the Opening Day starter. "Realistically, you could've picked any one of three (pitchers)," Russell said. "Ross (Ohlendorf) had a great finish. Zach made the All-Star team. Paul (Maholm) is your consistent, steady starter. It's not an accolade for any one guy. This balances our rotation."

? The rotation will be Duke, Ohlendorf, Maholm, Charlie Morton and Daniel McCutchen. The lefties (Duke and Maholm) are separated, with rookie McCutchen in the No. 5 spot.

? In his worst outing of the spring, right-hander Ohlendorf yielded seven runs (four earned) Tuesday in an 11-1 loss against the Houston Astros. Ohlendorf threw 77 pitches in 32/3 innings and gave up nine hits, walked three and struck out one. "I was in bad counts a lot," Ohlendorf said. "I wasn't commanding the fastball like I needed to.""