Bradenton moved within one game of winning their first Florida State League title last night, while Altoona lost their series to Akron, ending their playoffs. Both teams got great pitching with eight shutout innings from Mitch Keller and seven scoreless frames from Brandon Waddell. The difference was that the Marauders continued to hit, while Altoona didn’t hit at all. Bradenton is hitting .324 in the playoffs with nine homers, including three each from Jordan Luplow and Connor Joe. Altoona hit .256 with four homers in their four games, with two each from Anderson Feliz and Stetson Allie. Three of those homers came in the first game.
So now all eyes will be on Bradenton tonight. I know more people will be interested in the Gerrit Cole outing tonight, specifically to see how he rebounds from the time off. Also, eyes won’t literally be on Bradenton except for the people in attendance because the Florida State League doesn’t show a single game all season on MiLB.tv. It’s the only minor league game going now and could be the final game of the year.
The Marauders are trying to finish out the season tonight against Tampa, needing one win today, or if not, then they get another chance tomorrow, so they are in the driver’s seat. They send JT Brubaker to the mound tonight, coming off six shutout innings in his last game, which was the final game of the first round of the playoffs against St Lucie. In his two prior starts (during the regular season), he allowed two runs over 9.2 innings, and he has walked just one batter during these last three games. Brubaker has not faced Tampa this season, so they are catching an unknown pitcher while he’s on a roll.
** Time for the weekly check on players who can lose their prospect status this season. Pirates have 21 games left and Josh Bell has 60 at-bats. Last time I checked, he was on pace to reach the 130 at-bat mark, but his “problem” is that he walks too much, which is only a problem when considering whether or not he will lose prospect status. Even if he starts every game and bats second, he’s probably not averaging 3.3 at-bats per game the rest of way, partially due to the fact he gets removed for defense. Just my opinion, but I think he needs to be at first base and no right field the next 21 games. Don’t worry about the results, and don’t remove him late in games. Time to play for 2017.
As for the other player, Adam Frazier now has 91 at-bats and with him rarely starting, but playing often off the bench, he could get close. There is one big difference between these two and losing prospect status. If they both fall short of 130 at-bats, only Bell is eligible for the Rookie of the Year award next year. One of the qualifiers for the award is days spent in the majors before September 1st. Frazier surpassed that 45 day mark, while Bell didn’t. If Frazier falls short of the 130 at-bats, he will still make our 2017 Prospect Guide because we don’t use the 45 day rule.
I’d personally like to see both of them not make the book when they are that close, though I will say that it would make sense to get Alen Hanson more playing time since he is out of options going into next season. So if he takes time away from Frazier at second base or in the outfield and Frazier falls short of the 130 at-bats, then I have no issue with that. It’s a good experience for Hanson to be up in the majors and get into games, but he has batted six times during his 16 days in the majors.
**I’ll also mention that if Bradenton wins tonight then this will be the last Morning Report until Opening Day in the minors next year. If they lose, then I’ll be back for one more day before sending you to the minor league off-season. Tim Williams will be at McKechnie Field covering the action tonight, and if the unfortunate happens, he will be there Tuesday night. Fall Instructional League coverage will pick up where the minor league season left off almost immediately, and then we have the Arizona Fall League and winter ball coverage to keep you/us busy.
**Here are the playoff schedules for Altoona and Bradenton, which will remain up in the Morning Report until both teams either win, or have been eliminated. Note that the FSL finals says “@ Tampa” for the final three games, but they will be played in Bradenton, with the Yankees batting in the bottom of the inning.
Bradenton
9/6: Marauders 11, St Lucie 6
9/7: Marauders 4, St Lucie 1
Marauders win series 2-0
FSL Finals
9/9: Marauders 8, Tampa 1
9/10: Tampa 5, Marauders 4
9/11: Marauders 9, Tampa 0
9/12: Marauders @ Tampa 6:30 PM
9/13: Marauders @ Tampa 6:30 PM (if necessary)
Altoona
9/7: Akron 12, Altoona 8
9/8: Altoona 3, Akron 1
9/9: Akron 9, Altoona 4
9/11: Akron 1, Altoona 0
Akron wins series 3-1
PLAYOFF PUSH
The Pirates trail the second wild card spot by a six games.
PIRATES GAME GRAPH
Source: FanGraphs
TODAY’S SCHEDULE
Today’s Starter and Notes: The Pirates lost 8-0 to the Reds on Sunday. They now travel to Philadelphia for a four-game series. Gerrit Cole will get the ball tonight for his first start since August 24th. In his last three starts, he threw a total of 16 innings, giving up 13 runs on 31 hits. He faced the Phillies in July and gave up one run over six innings. Philadelphia will counter with Jeremy Hellickson, who has a 3.90 ERA in 166 innings, with 138 strikeouts and a 1.19 WHIP. In his last three starts combined, he has pitched 16 innings, giving up 12 runs on 21 hits and six walks. He did not face the Pirates when the two teams met earlier this season.
MLB: Pittsburgh (69-72) @ Phillies (63-80) 7:05 PM
Probable starter: Gerrit Cole (3.55 ERA, 32:95 BB/SO, 114.0 IP)
AAA: Indianapolis (70-74) (season preview)
AA: Altoona (76-64) (season preview)
High-A: Bradenton (2-1) @ Tampa (1-2) 6:30 PM (season preview)
Probable starter: JT Brubaker (5.32 ERA, 22:43 BB/SO, 67.2 IP)
Low-A: West Virginia (71-68) (season preview)
Short-Season A: Morgantown (38-38) (season preview)
Rookie: Bristol (25-43) (season preview)
GCL: Pirates (22-34) (season preview)
DSL: Pirates (27-42) (season preview)
HIGHLIGHTS
Speaking of Josh Bell (see above), here is one of my favorite highlights of the year. He needed a triple for the cycle and he was thinking triple as soon as the ball left the bat. Watch his first steps and the last 120 feet they show. He’s not the fastest player, but that’s the definition of giving 100%.
RECENT TRANSACTIONS
9/9: Curtis Partch and Kelvin Marte sent outright to Indianapolis.
9/7: Josh Smith assigned to Altoona.
9/6: Pirates recall Tyler Glasnow, Drew Hutchison, Trevor Williams and Pedro Florimon. Kelvin Marte and Curtis Partch designated for assignment.
9/6: Henry Hirsch assigned from Altoona to Bradenton.
9/5: Jung Ho Kang activated from disabled list.
9/3: Jacob Taylor assigned to Morgantown.
9/2: Pirates recall Jameson Taillon, Steven Brault, Jason Rogers and Adam Frazier. Chris Stewart activated from disabled list.
9/1: Jung Ho Kang sent to Indianapolis on rehab.
9/1: Pirates receive Jake Brentz and Pedro Vasquez from Mariners to complete earlier trade for Arquimedes Caminero.
8/31: Pirates trade Kyle Lobstein to Baltimore Orioles for Zach Phillips.
8/31: Logan Ratledge promoted to Bradenton. Alfredo Reyes activated from West Virginia disabled list.
8/31: Pirates release Raymond Rodriguez, Ramy Perez and Ramon Garcia.
8/31: David Whitehead assigned to Morgantown.
8/30: Tito Polo and Stephen Tarpley sent to New York Yankees as part of Ivan Nova trade from August 1st.
8/30: Jason Creasy and Jhondaniel Medina promoted to Indianapolis.
8/30: Justin Maffei and Trace Tam Sing assigned to Indianapolis.
8/30: Henry Hirsch and Junior Lopez promoted to Altoona
8/30: Nick Neumann activated from Bradenton disabled list.
8/30: Alen Hanson promoted to Pirates. Jameson Taillon and Steven Brault assigned to Bristol.
8/30: Pirates purchased contract of Kelvin Marte. Kyle Lobstein designated for assignment.
8/30: Mitch Keller and Sean Keselica promoted to Bradenton. Scooter Hightower and Matt Frawley promoted to West Virginia
8/30: Mike Wallace promoted to Morgantown.
THIS DATE IN PIRATES HISTORY
Four former Pittsburgh Pirates players born on this date, starting with the most recent first. Franquelis Osoria pitched for the 2007-08 clubs. He had very little success with the Pirates, or even before in two years with the Dodgers. In 68 games for Pittsburgh, he had a 5.66 ERA in 89 innings. For the Dodgers, he had a 5.13 ERA in 38 appearances.
Mike Roesler pitched for the 1990 NL East champs. He made five relief appearances for the Pirates in the beginning of the season. That 1990 season was unique, as clubs were allowed to carry 27 players during the first three weeks due to the lockout, which shortened Spring Training. When the rosters were reduced, Roesler was sent down and never played in the majors again.
Trench Davis, 1985-86 center fielder. Pirates signed him as an undrafted free agent in 1980. He hit .133 in 17 games with the Pirates, getting into two mid-season games in 1985 and 15 games the following May.
George Freese, third baseman for the 1955 Pirates. George’s teammate that season, who also played third base, was his brother Gene. George hit .257 in 51 games for the Pirates. His only other big league time was one game for the Tigers in 1953 and nine games for the Cubs in 1961.
On this date in 1883, the Pittsburgh Alleghenys allowed 27 runs in a loss to the Cincinnati Red Stockings (modern day Reds). That run total has only been topped once in franchise history, when the Alleghenys gave up 28 runs to the Boston Beaneaters (now the Braves) on August 28, 1887.
