A look at how the current top 30 prospects did today. If a player is in the majors for an extended time (Max Moroff), 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 Mid-Season Update, and links on each name go to their Pirates Prospects player pages.
1. Mitch Keller, RHP, Bradenton – [insert_php]
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2. Austin Meadows, CF, Indianapolis – [insert_php]
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3. Shane Baz, RHP, GCL Pirates – [insert_php]
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4. Cole Tucker, SS, Altoona – [insert_php]
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5. Kevin Newman, SS, Indianapolis – [insert_php]
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6. Ke’Bryan Hayes, 3B, Bradenton -[insert_php]
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7. Will Craig, 3B, Bradenton – [insert_php]
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8. Elias Diaz, C, Indianapolis – [insert_php]
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9. Taylor Hearn, LHP, Bradenton – [insert_php]
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10. Gage Hinsz, RHP, Bradenton – [insert_php]
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11. Calvin Mitchell, OF, GCL Pirates – [insert_php]
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12. Braeden Ogle, LHP, Bristol – [insert_php]
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13. Edgar Santana, RHP, Indianapolis – [insert_php]
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14. Kevin Kramer, 2B, Altoona -[insert_php]
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15. Steven Brault, LHP, Indianapolis – [insert_php]
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16. Clay Holmes, RHP, Indianapolis – [insert_php]
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17. Jordan Luplow, LF, Indianapolis – [insert_php]
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18. Luis Escobar, RHP, West Virginia – [insert_php]
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19. Max Kranick, RHP, GCL Pirates – [insert_php]
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20. Steven Jennings, RHP, GCL Pirates – [insert_php]
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21. Adrian Valerio, SS, West Virginia – [insert_php]
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22. Nick Kingham, RHP, Indianapolis – [insert_php]
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23. Conner Uselton, OF, GCL Pirates – Disabled List
24. Dovydas Neverauskas, RHP, Indianapolis – [insert_php]
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25. Eric Wood, 3B, Indianapolis – [insert_php]
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26. Eduardo Vera, RHP, West Virginia – [insert_php]
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27. Logan Hill, LF, Altoona – [insert_php]
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28. Tyler Eppler, RHP, Indianapolis -[insert_php]
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29. Lolo Sanchez, CF, GCL Pirates – [insert_php]
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30. Dario Agrazal, RHP, Altoona – [insert_php]
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INDIANAPOLIS — He didn’t look like a pitcher poised to have a long outing, throwing two long innings to open the game.
But Tyler Glasnow rebounded from that sluggish beginning to put together another solid start, allowing one run over seven innings in Indianapolis’ 5-2 win over Rochester on Tuesday.
Glasnow needed 22 pitches to work around a walk in the first inning, while needing 17 pitches to work around a walk in the second inning.
That’s not a pace that lends itself to finishing seven innings, but Glasnow did just that by throwing just 59 pitches over his final five innings. He threw 64 of his 98 pitches in the game for a strike.
“I didn’t really feel that well in warmups going into the game,” Glasnow said. “I kind of got back in a rhythm and it started to feel really good after the first couple of innings.”
Fastball command was an issue early for Glasnow, who was rushing his delivery, a problem he has tried to work through in the past. But he made quick adjustments this time around to put together another solid outing.
“He got better as the game went on,” Indianapolis manager Andy Barkett said. “He was struggling with his fastball command early, seemed like he caught his delivery a little bit better and was maybe rushing a little bit early.”
Glasnow ran into a little trouble in the sixth inning allowing a lead-off homer to Matt Hague — a former player in the Pirates organization — on the first pitch. He followed that with a four-pitch walk to the next batter, but he recovered quickly by inducing a 4-6-3 double play on a 95 MPH fastball to empty the bases.
He retired the final five batters he faced, striking out the final two. Glasnow’s last pitch was a 98 MPH fastball that struck out Engelb Vielma looking for his seventh strikeout. Glasnow walked three batters, but only one over the final five innings as he dominated after the first two innings.
“I was rushing early but it was an easy adjustment and I think my best two innings were the last two even though I gave up the homer,” Glasnow said.
Glasnow has allowed two earned runs in 20 innings over his last three starts, completing seven innings in two of those outings.
“I think the big leagues is excited with how he’s throwing the ball,” Barkett said. “If he continues to do so he’ll have a chance to get back up there and prove it up there.”
There’s not much to critique from Glasnow’s three most recent outings, Barkett said, noting the walks will happen with a power pitcher like Glasnow.
“He just needs to be consistent with all of his pitches,” Barkett said.
Joey Terdoslavich had an RBI double in the first inning to score Kevin Newman, who walked and stole second.
Indianapolis scored three runs in the second inning, one on a passed ball and two runs on a fielder’s choice combined with a throwing error. Jordan Luplow had an RBI infield single on a half-swing that barely dribbled down the third base line with the bases loaded.
Johnny Barbato allowed a run in the ninth inning, though it came off two soft singles sandwiched around a defensive indifference, when Rochester stole second without Indianapolis attempting to throw the runner out.
Gift Ngoepe made a fantastic catch at second base to end the game, diving to catch a line drive off Vielma’s bat that had an exit velocity of 113 MPH.
Erich Weiss started the second game of his pro career at first base, both of them coming in the past three days. He didn’t have to make any non-routine plays.
Dannt Ortiz was 2-for-4 with two runs scored. – Brian Peloza
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Altoona won 2-1 behind Alex McRae, who did it all in this game. One day after Austin Coley threw seven shutout innings against Reading and broke up a no-hitter, McRae proved that he could be a two-way player as well. He pitched eight innings for the win and scored both of Altoona’s runs. McRae gave up one run on four hits (all singles) and no walks. He had eight strikeouts, a 10:3 GO/AO ratio and threw 67 of his 99 pitches for strikes. Yeudy Garcia retired the side in order in the ninth for the save.
No one really had a big day on offense for Altoona. They had nine players pick up one single each (the entire game had no extra-base hits) and no one reached via walk. Jerrick Suiter drove in McRae with the first run after McRae reached on a fielder’s choice while failing to bunt a runner over to second base. In the seventh inning, McRae singled, moved to third base on a throwing error, then scored on a wild pitch. Cole Tucker went 1-for-5, leaving him 3-for-20 in five games with Altoona.
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Bradenton won 4-2 over St Lucie on Tuesday night behind strong pitching from Mitch Keller. Just five days after he took a line drive off his shin that caused him to leave the game early, Keller pitched seven innings, while allowing two runs on five hits and a hit batter. He didn’t walk anyone and picked up six strikeouts. Keller had a 9:2 GO/AO ratio, threw 65 of his 90 pitches for strikes, and was sitting 96-99 MPH early in the game (I listened to the first four innings, so no idea if that velocity held up). Daniel Zamora retired the side in order in the eighth and Seth McGarry tossed shutout ball in the ninth for the save.
The top eight hitters for the Marauders all had at least one hit, and four of them drew walks. Logan Ratledge had the best night with a single, double, walk and run scored. Jordan George and Kevin Krause each had a double, RBI and walk. George has a 21-game on base streak. Stephen Alemais had two hits to give him a .467 average with Bradenton. Ke’Bryan Hayes had the night off.
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West Virginia won 7-3 over Lexington on Tuesday night. Eduardo Vera started and went five innings, allowing two runs on four hits and a walk. He had five strikeouts and threw 59 of his 85 pitches for strikes. Vera now has a 3.16 ERA through 87.2 innings, with a 73:10 SO/BB ratio. He lowered his WHIP slightly to 1.13 on the season. Pasquale Mazzoccoli retired all six batters he faced, while Julio Eusebio pitched a scoreless ninth. Both relievers have a 0.00 ERA with the Power in limited time.
The offense came from the unlikely lead-off hitter and the bottom of the order. Clark Eagan has been on a roll lately after a horrible six-week run. He had three hits in this game, including a three-run homer. It was his seventh home run of the season. Garrett Brown has also been hot recently, collecting two more hits to raise his Power average to .344 through 25 games. He was named the SAL Player of the Week on Monday. Carlos Munoz had two hits, including his 21st double, and he drove in two runs.
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Morgantown won big over Batavia, as Brandon Waddell had a strong showing in his third rehab start. Waddell looks like he is ready to go back to Altoona after this game. The real reason he is in Morgantown is so that he’s facing better competition than the GCL, but also he is advanced enough over these hitters that he is able to get his pitches in to build up his innings. He threw five shutout innings, giving up one hit, with two walks and seven strikeouts. Waddell also posted a 5:2 GO/AO ratio and got himself up to 74 pitches.
The offense for the Black Bears scored five runs before Waddell left, then put another nine runs on the board over the next two innings. Everyone had at least one hit, as well as a run scored and/or an RBI. Jared Oliva scored four runs in the lead-off spot and hit his second triple. Bligh Madris only went 1-for-5 with a single, but still drove in two runs and scored twice. Deon Stafford had two hits and drove in four runs. Tristan Gray had two singles and two RBIs. Julio de la Cruz had three hits, including his first home run of the season. Jonathan Schwind made his season debut and had a single and a double.
Reliever Matt Seelinger threw a scoreless ninth in the 14-4 win, extending him to 12 shutout innings to begin his pro career. He has allowed three hits, three walks and struck out 17 batters.
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Bristol hasn’t been getting great pitching recently, but they did on this night and still lost, dropping a 2-0 decision to Bluefield. With the loss, they drop to 8-25 on the season, giving them the worst record in all of the minors. Braeden Ogle started the game and left after one inning in which he retired the side in order, two by strikeouts. We don’t know the reason for his departure yet, but will try to get an update. (UPDATE: Ogle is now part of the “limit your starter to one inning to give them rest” program. No issues at all.)
Alex Manasa followed Ogle and had a tough two innings. The 11th round pick from this season gave up two runs on four hits and two walks, which is all that Bluefield would need. Evan Piechota followed and threw four shutout innings before Drew Fischer held them scoreless over the final two frames.
The Pirates had four hits, two walks and 14 strikeouts. Melvin Jimenez was the only batter not to strikeout, going 1-for-2 with a walk. Huascar Fuentes had a double and Kyle Watson had a triple.
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The GCL Pirates lost 11-3 with Steven Jennings making his fourth pro start and Mason Martin continuing his ridiculous power show. Jennings went three innings and allowed two runs on two hits and two walks. He didn’t strike out anyone, but he did have a nice 5:1 GO/AO ratio. In his first 10.1 innings, he has a 4.35 ERA, serving up 13 hits, with four walks and seven strikeouts.
Martin hit his seventh home run of the season. For reference purposes, that’s a total that would have led the entire GCL in both 2010 and 2013. He has played 11 games and there are 36 games left in the season, so he is either going to stop seeing pitches to hit or break some league records. Victor Ngoepe and Jeremias Portorreal each had two hits, with Portorreal collecting his fourth triple. Mikell Granberry extended his modest hit streak to five games with a double.
The Pirates went through seven relievers after Jennings left. Both Junior Lopez and Jose Delgado struggled badly, giving up a combined total of eight runs on one out. Claudio Scotti pitched a scoreless inning in his season debut. He went back to Italy right before the season started for his high school graduation, then had to build back up after his return three weeks ago.
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The DSL Pirates lost 7-2 today after leading 2-0 through seven innings of play. Last week, I made a big deal out of Leandro Pina pitching six innings in the GCL. It was the first time a Pirate pitcher had gone longer than five innings in the GCL since 2009. Well, the Pirates have apparently loosened the reins everywhere, because Noe Toribio threw six shutout innings today (which I confirmed wasn’t an MiLB error). I can’t remember a DSL pitcher for the Pirates going longer than five, but it has definitely been a very long time. Educated guess would be 2008 is when it last happened. Toribio pitched a strong game, giving up one hit, with three walks, four strikeouts and a 9:3 GO/AO ratio.
Unfortunately for the Pirates, Toribio couldn’t go longer, because Julio Rosario allowed seven runs in 1.1 innings for the loss.
Sherten Apostel had an RBI double in the first inning, while also drawing his 15th walk in the last eight games. The other run scored after Samuel Inoa walked, went to second on a sacrifice, then scored on a throwing error. Larry Alcime had a double and a walk. Ronaldo Paulino had two hits. Jean Eusebio had a single and scored on the Apostel double.
