The Dominican League playoffs began on Saturday night and three Pittsburgh Pirates players saw action. Mel Rojas Jr. went 0-for-5 with three strikeouts and an outfield assist. His team didn’t make the playoffs, but Rojas was one of a handful of players that were drafted by the teams that did make it into the round robin tournament.
Willy Garcia struck out as a pinch-hitter in his only at-bat. He finished the regular season with a .269/.314/.462 slash line in 38 games, which was very similar to the .271/.311/.478 line he put up for Altoona this year.
Gustavo Nunez had a big first playoff game in his team’s 6-0 win. He had a double, two walks and he drove in two runs. He also helped turn three double plays at shortstop.
In Venezuela, Gorkys Hernandez went 1-for-4 with a walk, run scored and stolen base. It was his first game since November 21st, when he injured the middle finger on his right hand. On the season, he has a .242/.329/.281 slash line in 37 games.
Julio Vivas had his first poor outing of the winter, and even going back to the regular season in the GCL, this was his first bad outing of the year. He recorded two outs in relief, but not before giving up a run on two hits, two walks and a wild pitch. He got a little help from a reliever, who stranded all three runners he inherited from Vivas. On the winter, he has a 1.93 ERA and a .188 BAA in 14 innings over 15 appearances.
In Mexico, Felipe Gonzalez pitched for the first time since December 5th. He picked up the last two outs for his team in a 9-4 loss. He allowed a hit, a walk and had one strikeout. In 25 innings over 22 appearances, he has a 2.88 ERA, a .233 BAA and 21 strikeouts, while posting a 1.26 GO/AO ratio.
Sebastian Valle went 1-for-4 with his sixth double and he drove in his 18th run.
In Panama, 17-year-old Brian Sousa pitched two innings, allowing a run on a walk, with no hits and one strikeout. In four appearances this winter, he has allowed four runs on five hits and three walks in eight innings.
Edgar Munoz went 1-for-5 with a single and a strikeout.
Ashley Ponce went 0-for-3 with a walk and a strikeout.
In Australia on Sunday, Sam Kennelly started at third base again and went 2-for-4 with an RBI. He is hitting .357 in his first six games.
