A look at how the current top 30 prospects did today. Note that this list doesn’t include players currently in the majors. If a player is in the majors, he will be removed, everyone below him will be shifted up a spot, and a new player will be added to the bottom of the list. If a player is out for the season, he will be removed and everyone below him will move up a spot. Removing these guys doesn’t mean they have lost prospect status. It is just an attempt to get 30 active prospects on the list. Rankings are from the 2016 prospect guide, and links on each name go to their Pirates Prospects player pages.
We’re working on a solution for the PHP stat codes not working in the app.
1. Tyler Glasnow, RHP, Indianapolis -[insert_php]
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2. Austin Meadows, CF, Indianapolis – [insert_php]
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3. Josh Bell, 1B, Indianapolis – [insert_php]
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4. Jameson Taillon, RHP, Pirates – In the Majors
5. Alen Hanson, 2B, Indianapolis – [insert_php]
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6. Harold Ramirez, OF, Altoona -[insert_php]
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7. Reese McGuire, C, Altoona -[insert_php]
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8. Elias Diaz, C, Pirates – Disabled List.
9. Nick Kingham, RHP, Indianapolis – Disabled List
10. Ke’Bryan Hayes, 3B, West Virginia -[insert_php]
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11. Kevin Newman, SS, Altoona – [insert_php]
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12. Yeudy Garcia, RHP, Bradenton -[insert_php]
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13. Steven Brault, LHP, Indianapolis – [insert_php]
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14. Stephen Tarpley, LHP, Bradenton – [insert_php]
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15.Cole Tucker, SS, Bradenton – [insert_php]
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16. Chad Kuhl, RHP, Pirates – In the Majors
17. Max Moroff, 2B, Indianapolis -[insert_php]
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18. Mitch Keller, RHP, West Virginia -[insert_php]
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19. Clay Holmes, RHP, Altoona – [insert_php]
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20. Willy Garcia, OF, Indianapolis -[insert_php]
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21. Brandon Waddell, LHP, Altoona – [insert_php]
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22. Tyler Eppler, RHP, Altoona -[insert_php]
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23. Barrett Barnes, OF, Altoona -[insert_php]
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24. Trevor Williams, RHP, Indianapolis – [insert_php]
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25. Gage Hinsz, RHP, West Virginia – [insert_php]
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26. Adrian Valerio, SS – Bristol – [insert_php]
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27. Adam Frazier, INF/OF, Pirates – In the Majors
28. Kevin Kramer, 2B, Bradenton -[insert_php]
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29. Jordan Luplow, OF/3B, Bradenton – [insert_php]
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30. JT Brubaker, RHP, Bradenton -[insert_php]
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INDIANAPOLIS — Trevor Williams has been working on more than building his arm strength back up since returning from a right shoulder strain.
And he’s now starting to see things come together for him. Williams had arguably his best outing of the season against Gwinnett on Tuesday. Williams allowed two runs on four hits over six innings, but retired 14 of the last 15 batters he faced.
“I think he finally got into a rhythm,” Indianapolis manager Dean Treanor said. “He was really out of sync early. I thought he was overthrowing early. Whenever you walk the first hitter, it doesn’t bode well for you. Once he got out of those first two innings I thought he was very, very good.”
Williams threw 58 of his 82 pitches for a strike. The Indians used a pinch-hitter when Williams’ spot in the lineup came up again, or he likely would have pitched another inning, Treanor said.
The right-hander tied a season-high in innings pitched with six and a season-low in hits allowed with four. Williams is starting to see the rewards from the work he’s done coming back.
“We were working on a lot of things coming back,” Williams said. “The health was one thing, but it was tweaking my delivery, throwing more pitches than others in certain situations, and it’s all coming together. … I’m trying to become the best pitcher I can and know my identity as a pitcher, and I think we’re really getting close to that and tonight was the biggest step in that direction.”
Williams said his delivery change was “nothing huge,” but focuses more on his mentality.
“I’m so aggressive and sometimes I’m too aggressive,” Williams said. “And that forces me to muscle some pitches. It forces my body in front instead of staying behind and sitting on it. For me, it was a mental hump to think I don’t have to be aggressive to make good pitches, I just have to have good arm speed, and sit back on some pitches.”
Making that change wasn’t going to happen in one bullpen session or one start, Williams said.
“It’s kind of coming along, and toward the end of the game in the last few innings it was a lot more fluid,” Williams said. “My delivery was a lot more fluid and everything was more whippy. That’s where it needs to be to have longevity in the game.”
Williams allowed the first two Gwinnett batters of the game to reach base, walking Ozzie Albies on four pitches to open the game. Mel Rojas Jr., a former Pirates prospect, followed with an infield single that bounced over Williams’ head.
After that, Williams allowed just three baserunners during his six innings of work. He retired the side in three consecutive innings — the third, fourth, and fifth. Also, at one point he retired 11 batters in a row, and 14 of the last 15 that he faced.
“It wasn’t so much that he was efficient, but it was how he did it,” Treanor said. “He was throwing strikes late. In his last outing he labored, so we’re obviously moving in the right direction. It was a solid outing for him.”
Gwinnett took a 1-0 lead on Anthony Recker’s sacrifice fly to right field in the first inning. The Braves scored another run in the second inning. Williams retired the lead-off hitter in that inning, but allowed a single to Ronnier Mustelier. He scored on Blake Lalli’s double, a grounder that went over the first base bag.
Williams retired the side in the third on two groundouts and a strikeout; while getting a strikeout, flyout, and groundout to retire the side in the fourth and fifth innings.
“Getting the fastball over and the ability to use my slider as a put-away the last few innings [led to my success],” Williams said. “It probably felt the best coming out of the hand. It felt like I was really ramping out on it and getting the swings and misses that I needed.”
Alen Hanson took the first pitch of the third inning over the right field fence for his fifth home run of the season. Gift Ngoepe followed that with a double, but was caught in a rundown when he turned too much towards third.
Hanson also reached on two walks, including a lead-off one in the ninth inning with the Indians trailing by one run. But he was taken off the bases when Gift Ngoepe hit into a fielder’s choice.
Gwinnett committed two errors in the ninth inning, giving the Indians extra opportunities to win the game. Austin Meadows was used as a pinch-hitter with runners at first and second with two in the ninth inning. But he grounded out to end the game.
Kyle Lobstein struck out the side in the eighth inning in relief, before working around a single and walk in the ninth inning.
Max Moroff walked to lead off the fifth inning, extending his streak of reaching base safely to 25 games. He also had a single later in the game, adding to an impressive month. In June, Moroff is hitting .289 with an on-base percentage of .443. – Brian Peloza
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Altoona won 8-7 over Binghamton on a walk-off double by Jose Osuna in the bottom of the ninth, scoring Harold Ramirez with the winning run. The Curve went into the ninth inning down a run and they were playing for a tie. Edwin Espinal singled, then moved to second on an error. Kevin Newman bunted him to third, which was followed by a walk to Erich Weiss. Harold Ramirez grounded into a potential game ending double play, but the ball was thrown away, allowing Espinal to score and Ramirez moved to second base. With two outs, Osuna ended the game with his 18th double.
Cody Dickson made the start and he allowed five runs over five innings. He was followed by Edgar Santana, who had some unusual trouble, allowing two runs in his only inning. Jared Lakind and Brett McKinney combined for three perfect innings, with Lakind picking up the win.
The offense had 11 hits with an unlikely source leading the way. Justin Maffei started for the first time since April and went 3-for-3 with an RBI. Espinal came on as a pinch-hitter and singled in the sixth, before hitting his ninth inning single in his second at-bat. He is batting .326 on the season and .397 in June. Ramirez had a triple, a walk, scored twice and drove in three runs. The triple was his fourth of the season. Barrett Barnes hit his tenth double and now has a modest five-game hitting streak. Newman went 1-for-4 and has a seven-game hit streak.
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Bradenton lost 11-5 on Tuesday night in a game that included IF/OF Trace Tam Sing pitching a scoreless ninth inning. JT Brubaker started the game and allowed five runs over 4.1 innings, giving up six hits and three walks. He hasn’t pitched well since moving to Bradenton, but that shouldn’t be a big surprise. The timing of his promotion seemed a bit rushed because he was having a lot of trouble with his mechanics and leaving the ball up with West Virginia. That led to some poor outings there and a lot of home runs from someone who doesn’t give up many homers.
Brubaker really had just two outings where it looked like he was back on track with the Power before they moved him up a level. His walk rate this season has more than doubled over last year and he’s already allowed 12 homers, after just three in 73.1 innings last season.
The bullpen of Junior Lopez and Nick Neumann didn’t pitch any better than Brubaker and Tam Sing was the only pitcher to keep Jupiter off the board.
On offense, the Marauders had just six hits, but they made the most of them. They went 4-for-9 with runners in scoring position. Elvis Escobar and Kevin Kramer each had two hits, while Connor Joe drove in two runs. He didn’t have a memorable night otherwise, with three strikeouts, a caught stealing and an error. Cole Tucker followed up his four-hit night on Monday with an 0-for-5 and two strikeouts.
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West Virginia won 3-2, doing all of their scoring in the first two innings, then holding on for the victory. Logan Sendelbach started and won despite some issues with his control. In five innings, he allowed two runs on five hits and three walks, striking out four batters. He gave up a homer, had a 4:5 GO/AO ratio, and needed 87 pitches to get through his outing. He’s been getting more strikeouts recently, picking up exactly seven in four of his previous five starts. Daniel Zamora followed Sendelbach with three shutout innings and Cesilio Pimentel pitched the ninth for the save.
On offense, Logan Ratledge had a night he won’t soon forget. He went 4-for-4 with his first home run of the season. He also stole two bases, giving him 12 steals on the season. Ke’Bryan Hayes went 1-for-3 with a walk and an RBI. Logan Hill had two hits, a walk and a stolen base. Danny Arribas had two walks and a hit.
Casey Hughston hit a solo homer, his fourth of the season. His average has been climbing slowly since his return from Extended Spring Training, but the strikeouts are still a big issues. He struck out three times in this game and three times on Monday night as well. He has played 44 games this season and struck out two or more times in 21 of those games. In fact, he has struck out in 16 straight games, including all ten since he returned to West Virginia. Despite spending exactly one month away from the team, he has 16 more strikeouts than the second highest total of the team. What I’m saying is that he strikes out a lot.
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Morgantown began the year on a six-game winning streak and now they are on a six-game losing streak to drop them to .500 early in the season. They lost 3-1 on Monday despite some strong pitching from James Marvel. They also lost to Batavia for a second day in a row, despite the Muckdogs coming into the series with a 1-9 record. Marvel went six innings, allowing one unearned run on two hits, two walks and two hit batters. He had three strikeouts and a 10:3 GO/AO ratio, throwing 49 of his 75 pitches for strikes. He threw six shutout innings in his first start, then ran into trouble in his second game, getting knocked out early. So this game was a nice bounce back from a tough outing against a really good Staten Island team.
Dylan Prohoroff, the eighth round pick this year, followed Marvel for the last two innings. He gave up two runs on four hits, but both runs were unearned. He threw three shutout innings total over his first two appearances before tonight.
The offense put together just four hits in this game. Sandy Santos had a triple and scored the lone run on a Hunter Owen sacrifice fly. Chris Harvey had two hits, including a double. Kevin Mahala singled for the other hit. First round draft pick Will Craig went 0-for-3 to drop his average to .133, though he did draw his sixth walk of the season. He has a .357 OBP. You can read about his early offensive struggles here.
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Bristol overcame a 6-0 deficit to win 8-7 on Tuesday night, moving to 5-1 on the season. After going down 6-0 in the second inning, Bristol bats couldn’t mount a comeback until the seventh inning when they tied the score. That tie was short-lived as they gave up a run in the top of the eighth, only to take the lead for good in the bottom of the inning. The game was sloppy on both sides, with only five of the 15 runs being earned runs. The defense was particularly rough on Bristol starter Nestor Oronel, with all six runs off him being unearned thanks to a pair of errors.
The eight runs from Bristol scored in a way you will probably never see in person unless you were there tonight. The only two RBIs from Bristol hitters in the game came on a Huascar Fuentes ground out, and a bases loaded walk to Jhoan Herrera. The other six runs scored on four wild pitches and an error that allowed two runs to score. That’s eight runs without a single hit driving a runner home.
Bristol had nine hits in the game, they just didn’t need them when it came time to score runs. Seventh round pick Brent Gibbs had the first three hits of his career after going 0-for-5 in his first two games. Jhoan Herrera had two hits and scored a run to go along with his bases loaded walk. Raul Siri had a single, a walk and a run scored.
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BRADENTON, Fla. – The GCL Pirates battled back and won today’s game in extra innings. They trailed 2-0 early, after Ronny Agustin gave up two unearned runs in the first inning. Agustin started off the game with two singles, then saw an error allow the bases to be loaded. He got two outs, which would have ended the inning without the error, but which instead allowed the runs to score.
The Pirates were down 3-1 in the seventh inning when they got a run thanks to Victor Ngoepe’s speed. The shortstop bunted for a hit, and reached second on a wild and ill-advised rushed throw to first base. He then moved to third on a bunt single, and scored on a ground out to second.
Down 3-2 heading into the bottom of the ninth, Mikell Granberry connected for a big hit, crushing a triple that one-hopped the wall in left-center field, and using some surprising speed on the play to get to third with no outs. Ngoepe had another infield single, and stolen second base on a strikeout. After an intentional walk and another strikeout, Felix Vinicio drew a bases loaded walk to tie the game and send it to extras.
The Pirates started off strong in the 10th, with a single by Johan De Jesus and a bunt ground ball single by Henrry Rosario. With runners at first and second, Granberry came up and laid down a perfect bunt, resting just on the foul line in the dirt to load the bases. With one out, Nelson Jorge ripped a liner up the middle that caught the pitcher’s glove, but still made it to center field to win the game.
The highlight on the pitching side was getting a chance to see Julian Villamar, who was our number 10 prospect at the level. He has the ability to hit upper 90s, but today was sitting mostly around 89-90 MPH and had poor command. He has backed off throwing full speed to try for better command of his pitches, so that partially accounts for the lower velocity. It also might have been because he was being used in a longer outing, going three innings with a run on two hits. He didn’t allow a walk and struck out two, but the control was bad on a few pitches, bouncing a few breaking balls in the dirt well ahead of the plate. Outside of the errors in the first, Agustin had a good day, going five innings and striking out five with one walk. – Tim Williams
Check out the season preview here with information on the top ten prospects, as well as a few other players of interest on the team.
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The DSL Pirates went down 3-0 early against the Rangers1 before tying it up in the third inning. Then after four scoreless innings, the Rangers1 got to the Pirates bullpen for an 8-3 win. Just one of the three runs off starter Roger Santana was earned during his five innings. He has a 1.59 ERA in 22.2 innings this season, after posting a 5.66 ERA as a long reliever last year. Kleiner Machado allowed just one run in two innings, and it scored after he left the game. He still took the loss in this contest and his ERA went up to 1.50 in the process. Jose Delgado gave up four runs in 1.2 innings after Machado left.
On offense, top prospect Kevin Sanchez continued his strong hitting recently by collecting three hits. He hit his third double and scored a run. He is batting .348 through 13 games. Larry Alcime had a double, a run scored and stole his first career base. Eddy Vizcaino had two hits, a walk, a run scored and an outfield assist.
Third-string catcher Yair Babilonia collected his first career triple and it scored two runs. On defense though, he had a rough game. The Rangers1 stole eight bases in nine attempts against him. The 18-year-old from Colombia was 4-for-16 in throwing out runners coming into the day.
The Pirates still have yet to hit a home run through 21 games.
