Pirates Prospects has learned that relief pitching prospect Edgar Santana will be promoted to Pittsburgh, joining the Pirates for Saturday’s game against the Miami Marlins. A.J. Schugel will also be promoted to the Pirates, with corresponding moves to be announced prior to the game. Santana will need to be added to the 40-man roster. Pirates Bullpen was first to report the moves and we were able to confirm them through a source.
Santana is the top relief pitching prospect in the system. He offers a mid-90s fastball, along with a mid-80s slider, with both pitches being used for strikeouts. He has also been working on a changeup, though it’s clearly well behind his two plus offerings. He also gets a lot of ground balls and usually works efficiently through innings by throwing strikes and getting soft contact for quick outs. Santana has struggled a bit lately, as the Pirates stretched him out during one relief appearance and he ended up allowing three runs. Since then, he’s allowed runs in three of his last five appearances. Prior to this recent stretch, he had allowed just one run in his first 17 appearances. More on these moves tomorrow once they become official.
