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Duke Welker Promoted to Indianapolis

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According to Cory Giger, Duke Welker has been promoted to Indianapolis. The right-hander threw a perfect inning in relief today, striking out one. On the season with Altoona, Welker had a 2.31 ERA in 23.1 innings, with a 19:7 K/BB ratio. The walks were a very positive sign, as it was only two years ago that Welker was walking a batter an inning, and walking more than he struck out.

Welker has the stuff to be a late inning reliever, and even a closer. He throws his fastball in the 96-98 MPH range, and has touched 100 MPH this year. He has an upper 80s slider with sharp break, which is a plus pitch that he uses for strikeouts and an extreme ground ball ratio. This year in Altoona he posted a 3.55 GO/AO ratio, which is up from his 3.06 GO/AO ratio last year. Part of that is also due to his heavy fastball, which leads to a lot of grounders.

Welker’s promotion follows the promotion of Jeff Inman to Altoona earlier today. Welker was added to the 40-man roster over the off-season, and could have a shot at the majors this year, as his arm probably doesn’t need much time in Triple-A now that he’s drastically cut down on his walks.

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Tim Williams
Tim Williams
Tim is the owner, producer, editor, and lead writer of PiratesProspects.com. He has been running Pirates Prospects since 2009, becoming the first new media reporter and outlet covering the Pirates at the MLB level in 2011 and 2012. His work can also be found in Baseball America, where he has been a contributor since 2014 and the Pirates' correspondent since 2019.

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