A look at how the current top 30 prospects did today. If a player is in the majors for an extended time (Trevor Williams, Alen Hanson, Jose Osuna), or loses his prospect eligibility, he will be removed from this list. 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 more active prospects on the list. Rankings are from the 2017 Prospect Guide, and links on each name go to their Pirates Prospects player pages.
1. Austin Meadows, CF, Indianapolis -[insert_php]
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2. Mitch Keller, RHP, Bradenton – [insert_php]
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3. Kevin Newman, SS, Altoona – [insert_php]
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4. Cole Tucker, SS, Bradenton – [insert_php]
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5. Ke’Bryan Hayes, 3B, Bradenton -[insert_php]
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6. Will Craig, 3B, Bradenton – [insert_php]
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7. Taylor Hearn, LHP, Bradenton – [insert_php]
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8. Gage Hinsz, RHP, Bradenton – [insert_php]
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9. Nick Kingham, RHP, Indianapolis – [insert_php]
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10. Steven Brault, LHP, Indianapolis – [insert_php]
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11. Clay Holmes, RHP, Indianapolis – [insert_php]
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12. Braeden Ogle, LHP, Extended Spring Training – [insert_php]
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13. Max Kranick, RHP, Extended Spring Training – [insert_php]
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14. Elias Diaz, C, Pirates – [insert_php]
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15. Edgar Santana, RHP, Indianapolis – [insert_php]
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16. Luis Escobar, RHP, West Virginia – [insert_php]
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17. Dovydas Neverauskas, RHP, Indianapolis – [insert_php]
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18. Yeudy Garcia, RHP, Altoona -[insert_php]
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19. Kevin Kramer, 2B, Altoona -[insert_php]
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20. Tyler Eppler, RHP, Indianapolis -[insert_php]
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21. Stephen Alemais, SS, West Virginia – [insert_php]
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22. Brandon Waddell, LHP, Altoona – [insert_php]
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23. Travis MacGregor, RHP, Extended Spring Training – [insert_php]
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24. Barrett Barnes, LF, Indianapolis -[insert_php]
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25. Max Moroff, 2B, Indianapolis -[insert_php]
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26. Eric Wood, 3B, Indianapolis – [insert_php]
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27. J.T. Brubaker, RHP, Altoona – [insert_php]
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28. Chris Bostick, INF/OF, Indianapolis – [insert_php]
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29. Connor Joe, 3B, Altoona – [insert_php]
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30. Pat Light, RHP, Indianapolis – [insert_php]
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INDIANAPOLIS — Tyler Eppler had thrown just one inning over the last 10 days, which might have led to him regaining his elite control.
Eppler did not walk anyone in six innings against Lehigh Valley on Tuesday in an 8-5 win. He allowed three earned runs on seven hits. In his previous two starts, Eppler allowed six walks.
He threw 60 of his 82 pitches for a strike against the Iron Pigs (35-16), one of the top hitting teams in the International League.
In an effort to reduce workload and gain experience as a reliever, Eppler was skipped over his last time up in the rotation. He instead pitched one inning of relief. On Tuesday, Clay Holmes had his start skipped over, and he pitched one inning of relief.
As a reliever, Eppler retired the side in order on nine pitches, eight of those thrown for a strike. That aggressive attitude carried over into his start against Lehigh Valley.
“He was pounding the zone and that’s a really aggressive club over there that swings the bats,” Indianapolis manager Andy Barkett said. “He hung in there pretty good and I was proud of the way he threw the ball. He didn’t relent and came right at a team that may set some records in this league offensively.”
Eppler’s outing started simple enough, striking out Lehigh Valley lead-off hitter Cameron Perkins on three pitches. But the rest of the inning was a little rough as the Iron Pigs scored a run on three singles, two of those coming with two outs. Eppler needed 23 pitches to get out of the first inning.
But Eppler bounced back with three consecutive efficient innings, allowing just one single. He retired the side in the second inning on 11 pitches, and worked around a lead-off single by Perkins in the third inning. Eppler retired the side in the fourth inning on six pitches.
“I was just going right at those hitters,” Eppler said. “I think that was a good thing for me. I was able to throw strikes with all pitches — fastball, curveball, changeup and the slutter.”
Perkins, a graduate of nearby Southport High School and Purdue University, hit a solo home run to left field in the fifth inning. He went 3-for-5 and always seems to play at a higher level during his yearly homecoming trip to Victory Field.
Indianapolis made a pair of impressive defensive plays in the fifth inning. Jason Rogers had an impressive diving stop towards the line, flipping to Eppler for the out. Eppler followed that with a nice grab of a bouncing grounder above his head.
Edgar Santana allowed a run on two hits in the seventh inning, striking out two batters. That follows his previous outing when Santana allowed three earned runs on six hits in 2.1 innings.
Santana made one big mistake against Lehigh Valley, allowing an RBI double to J.P. Crawford, the top-ranked prospect in the Phillies’ organization.
“Maybe pitch selection,” Barkett said of Santana’s last two appearances. “That’s really all. I think the stuff’s fine. The execution the last couple of outings hasn’t been great, but he has been throwing the ball really well. He made one mistake and they took advantage of it.”
Holmes pitched in relief in the eighth inning, working around a walk. He struck out one batter and didn’t allow a hit. He reached 98 MPH on his second pitch of the inning.
Jason Rogers ripped a double down the third base line and scored on Danny Ortiz’s RBI double over the head of Lehigh Valley rightfielder Dylan Cozens in the first inning.
Eppler didn’t quite put out the look of a #PitcherWhoCanRake, but he did help his own cause in the fourth inning with an RBI single that dribbled down the third base line. On the play, the throw got away from first baseman Rhys Hoskins, which allowed a second run to score.
While not the most impressive hit, the play still goes down as the first hit and RBI in Eppler’s professional career.
“I knew it was going to be a little dribbler and I knew with the third baseman back it might be a tough play,” Eppler said. “I kind of got out of the box slow and I heard (Andy) Barkett yelling go hard, go hard. I tried to give it everything I had to get down.”
Indianapolis received some gifts from Lehigh Valley in the sixth inning, which helped lead to three runs. Jacob Stallings reached on an errant throw by the third baseman, while Barrett Barnes reached on a sacrifice bunt, but the throw from Hoskins to Thompson was high and off the pitcher’s glove.
Erich Weiss had a pinch-hit RBI sacrifice fly and Christopher Bostick provided the big damage, with a two-run home run to deep center field. Bostick entered the game hitting .150 in his last 10 games, but went 2-for-5.
Ortiz had an RBI triple in the seventh inning of Lehigh Valley switch pitcher Pat Venditte, who entered the game with a 0.36 earned run average in 25.1 innings this season.
A.J. Schugel pitched the ninth inning, entering with an 8-4 lead. He allowed a lead-off solo home run to Pedro Florimon, who played with Indianapolis last season. Schugel then allowed the game-tying run to come to the plate twice, but he struck out Jorge Alfaro looking and Cozens lined out to Phil Gosselin at third base. – Brian Peloza
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ALTOONA, Pa. – Almost two months into the season, Brandon Waddell is finally completely back. In his sixth start since returning from a disabled list stint that took away most of April, Waddell reached the six inning mark for the first time and did so in impressive fashion. He didn’t allow a runner past second base, struck out six batters, and didn’t walk any in his six scoreless frames.
Since failing to get out of the first inning in his second start after coming off of the D.L., Waddell has only allowed three runs in 20 innings pitched. In three starts prior to tonight, batters are hitting .184 against him with only one extra-base hit (a home run).
Waddell got six groundouts compared to two fly outs. The hits against him weren’t necessarily cheap, but he did a great job containing those who got on base, and Akron never really threatened against him. He had a good mix of all of his pitches, and he used fastball, changeup, and slider all as strikeout pitches.
The only real issue for Waddell tonight – like many of his outings so far – has been efficiency. It took him 96 pitches to get through six innings. You’ll easily take a guy getting through six at this level, but efficiency has been a problem for Waddell in his career. Tonight, he threw as many first pitch balls as strikes, and he recorded outs in three pitches to only three batters. He averaged around five pitches for each out. Even when he did get ahead, he often times evened up the count or fell behind after a few more pitches.
Waddell’s stuff plays extremely well at this level, like it did in Bradenton last season before his promotion. With five pitches and more often used two-seamer, Waddell simply needs to find ways to record outs quicker. Tonight was a step in the right direction by getting through six, but his goal is to be able to go further into games.
“Something that I want to nail down is to be more efficient,” Waddell said before tonight’s start. “Not getting into 2-2 or 3-2 counts all the time. Get a guy 0-2 or 1-2, get a strikeout or put the ball in play. It’s just something to keep my pitch count low. It opens your eyes when you are on a pitch limit. You notice it when all of a sudden you are out of pitches in a certain inning. It’s something that opens your eyes. It really makes you aware of it.”
Offensively, for the third time in two days, Jordan Luplow went deep for the Curve. He hit his 11th home run of the season in the second inning after hitting two solo shots yesterday in Erie. Those 11 homers surpass his total of ten he hit all of last year in Bradenton. Again, it was another pull shot to left field just like all but one so far this year. He has displayed quite the pull power in these first two months of the season. He is hitting .298 with an OPS over 1.000 in May.
Not only did Luplow go deep, he also had a jumping grab at the wall with the bases loaded in the seventh inning. The play ended up being a sacrifice fly, but the ball had a chance to get over the fence, and Luplow took it away.
Kevin Newman recorded a seventh inning hit after beginning the game 0-for-3. He later grounded out to shortstop, leaving him 1-for-5 on the day. Connor Joe had a tough game, going 0-for-5 with three strikeouts. Kevin Kramer had the night off.
Joe had a tough night at the plate; however, he made an incredible diving catch while playing right field in the first inning. He came in and to his right on a line drive then went completely vertical in making the catch. After the game, his manager praised his defensive ability, as Ryan said that Joe’s catch really set a tone for the rest of the game defensively.
Altoona won this game 5-4 in the tenth inning, as Wyatt Mathisen singled home Edwin Espinal, who had hit his second double of the game. Espinal is hitting .307 with 15 doubles this season. All four Akron runs were scored off of Tate Scioneaux during his three innings of work. Buddy Borden lowered his ERA to 0.73 with a scoreless tenth, picking up the win. – Sean McCool
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Bradenton won 8-4 on Tuesday night, as Gage Hinsz turned a disastrous second inning into a strong finish for the win. Hinsz has pitched poorly since returning from shoulder soreness that caused him to skip a start. Prior to that injury, he had two terrific outings, but nothing has gone right since. The finish to this game could be a turnaround for him, assuming there are no lingering shoulder issues still that he isn’t reporting.
Hinsz allowed an infield single to the lead-off batter of the game, then retired the next three hitters. In the second inning, he allowed four runs on four hits and a walk. A couple of the hits were grounders that found a hole, but he still worked himself into trouble with the walk, a wild pitch and the well-struck triple. He also threw 31 pitches in the inning, which would have ended his night if he didn’t retire the final batter he faced.
After that inning ended, Hinsz worked through four scoreless innings, retiring 12 of the next 13 batters. The only runner was a sixth inning lead-off single, but he ended up leaving that runner at first base with three quick outs. He was having a little bit of trouble throwing strikes through two innings, but he ended up throwing over 70% of his pitches for strikes in the final four frames. This was the first time he has gone at least five innings in exactly four weeks, which was his last start before the shoulder soreness.
Casey Sadler threw two scoreless innings as he continues he return from Tommy John surgery. In ten innings so far, he has allowed one run on three hits and two walks, with 13 strikeouts. Seth McGarry threw a scoreless ninth, striking out the side. He has a 1.27 ERA and 22 strikeouts in 21.1 innings.
On offense, Logan Hill slugged his 14th home run of the season. He had three hits on the night, one walk, scored twice and drove in four runs. Kevin Krause also homered, a two-run shot in the fourth inning. It was his fifth of the season. Christian Kelley drove in two runs with a single, and he drew two walks.
Ke’Bryan Hayes went 1-for-5 with two runs scored and stole his 17th base in 19 attempts. Will Craig had two singles, two runs scored and a walk. Cole Tucker continued his strange month, going 0-for-4 with two strikeouts. He has 33 strikeouts this month, which matches his entire total from 2016. He also has seven doubles, plus more homers (4) and triples (4) than he has hit during any other season in his career.
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West Virginia won 4-2 as Luis Escobar allowed just one unearned run over six innings and Adrian Valerio continued to impress on both sides of the ball.
Escobar put up a great line despite not having the best fastball control. He was really relying on one pitch all night and it made the other pitches more effective. Escobar was displaying a plus curveball in this game, throwing it for strikes early and late in the count. He wasn’t throwing many fastballs or changeups in the strike zone, but he was getting chases out of the zone as the game went along and batters couldn’t hit his curve. Usually it is his curveball that gets the chases out of the zone and he rarely throws it for strikes, but this game was the exact opposite. Escobar allowed just six base runners, striking out five batters and recording a 9:1 GO/AO ratio, with a lot of soft contact on those grounders.
Adrian Valerio extended his hit streak to eight games by picking up three hits. He also hit a ball well to the left-center gap that was tracked down for an out. Valerio battled in his last at-bat before singling on a line drive into right field, which gave the Power their fourth run.
With six of his games broadcast on MiLB recently, I’ve been able to get a good look at Valerio on offense and defense. He’s been hitting line drives all over the field, with some hard outs in with all of the hits. He doesn’t chase often and doesn’t overswing, which has been an issue with him in the past. He’s also smooth on defense, making easy and tough plays. He was charged with an error on Tuesday night, but it should have gone to Trae Arbet, who made a poor throw from 15 feet away. The ball went off Valerio’s glove as he was going towards second base to turn a double play. Valerio had to reach across his body for the off-line throw as he was on the move.
That’s why minor league error totals are tough to judge. Some of the errors are due to the people around you and he’s a rose between two thorns with Arbet and Hunter Owen in the infield.
