PITTSBURGH – Pirates manager Lloyd McClendon emphatically denied on Thursday that problems have developed between him and general manager Cam Bonifay, which The Sporting News reported. And the manager gave an impassioned defense of Bonifay, a convenient target for the Pirates' 13-27 start.

"Everybody wants a cause. So all of sudden it's Cam Bonifay's fault that we're not winning? That's the most ridiculous statement in the world," McClendon told the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. "Cam Bonifay doesn't throw one baseball, attempt to hit one, make one hook slide, try to throw anybody out at the plate. His job is to acquire players, and he's done a darn good job of doing it."

McClendon and Bonifay met for almost three hours on Thursday to discuss how the Pirates can get better.

"Everybody talked about our pitching coming out of spring training, how we were in dire straits and that we had no chance," McClendon said. "Well, the pitching he's given us has done a pretty good job. We just haven't hit. But all of a sudden, nobody wants to speak about the type of pitching that he's acquired to keep us in ballgames. "If you really look at it, our pitching hasn't been as bad as people thought it was going to be, has it? But nobody wants to give him credit for that. It's not Cam's fault that we're not winning. We have to go out and we have to perform, and we haven't done it."

Pittsburgh has been hit hard with injuries to its pitching staff. Kris Benson, expected to be the team's ace, will miss the rest of the season after deciding on elbow surgery. Jason Schmidt, also expected to be a staple in the rotation, has been plagued by injuries as well.

Veteran Derek Bell was placed on the 15-day disabled list as well Friday, adding to the team's problems.

After hitting just .136 in 31 games for the Pirates, Bell was placed on the DL with a strained left knee. The move was retroactive to May 15 since Bell had missed Pittsburgh's previous three games.

The Pirates signed the 32-year-old outfielder as a free agent in the offseason, but he has been a bust, managing just 15 hits in 110 at-bats with one home run and four RBI.

Although Bonifay and McClendon talk every day, Thursday's session was out of the ordinary because of its length.

"If there was finger-pointing or clashing, we certainly wouldn't have been together for two and a half hours trying to figure out how to make this club better," McClendon said. "It's no different for this club than on any other ballclub. When you start to lose, everybody's going to second-guess. Every Tom, Dick and Harry that ever knew anything about baseball has all the answers, and they're always right. Show me a second-guesser who's wrong and I'll show you an idiot. "The important thing for this organization, from the top on down to our equipment manager, is that we stick together. Because when you start finger-pointing, then parts start breaking off. Kevin (McClatchy), Cam, myself, my staff, those players, are tight and strong and we're going to come out of this."

Information from the Associated Press and SportsTicker was used in this report.