A look at how the current top 30 prospects did today. If a player is in the majors for an extended time (Colin Moran, Edgar Santana, Dovydas Neverauskas), 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 our 2018 Prospect Guide, and links on each name go to their Pirates Prospects player pages.
1. Mitch Keller, RHP, Altoona – 6 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 2 BB, 8 SO
2. Austin Meadows, CF, Indianapolis – DNP
3. Cole Tucker, SS, Altoona – 2-for-4
4. Shane Baz, RHP, Extended Spring Training – DNP
5. Ke’Bryan Hayes, 3B, Altoona – 0-for-3, BB
6. Kevin Newman, SS, Indianapolis – 1-for-4, 2B
7. Taylor Hearn, LHP, Altoona – DNP
8. Lolo Sanchez, CF, West Virginia – 2-for-7, 2 2B, 2 BB
9. Bryan Reynolds, OF, Altoona – 1-for-2, 2B
10. Jordan Luplow, LF, Indianapolis – 1-for-4, 2 RBI
11. Luis Escobar, RHP, Bradenton – 5 IP, 3 H, 1 ER, 0 BB, 3 SO
12. Clay Holmes, RHP, Pirates – DNP
13. Braeden Ogle, LHP, West Virginia – DNP
14. Nick Kingham, RHP, Indianapolis – DNP
15. Kevin Kramer, 2B, Indianapolis – 2-for-4
16. Max Moroff, INF, Indianapolis – 1-for-4, BB
17. Kyle Crick, RHP, Indianapolis – 2 IP, 4 H, 1 ER, 0 BB, 3 SO
18. Adrian Valerio, SS, Bradenton – 1-for-3, BB
19. Calvin Mitchell, OF, West Virginia – 2-for-7, 3B, HR, 2 BB
20. Oneil Cruz, SS, West Virginia – 0-for-3, BB
21. Nick Burdi, RHP, Pirates (disabled list) – DNP
22. Dario Agrazal, RHP, Altoona – DNP
23. JT Brubaker, RHP, Altoona – DNP
24. Will Craig, 1B, Altoona – 1-for-3, HR, 2 RBI, BB
25. Stephen Alemais, 2B/SS, Altoona – 1-for-2, BB
26. Jason Martin, OF, Altoona – DNP
27. Brandon Waddell, LHP, Altoona – DNP
28. Eduardo Vera, RHP, Bradenton – DNP
29. Mason Martin, 1B, West Virginia – 2-for-5, 2B, HR, 2 BB
30. Conner Uselton, OF, Extended Spring Training – DNP
Indianapolis won 5-3 in a game that included 27 hits. Starter Alex McRae gave up just one run, but ran up his pitch count early with six hits, two walks and five strikeouts, leading to him departing with two outs in the fourth inning. Tanner Anderson followed him and bounced back from a rough first game by going 2.1 innings, giving up one unearned run. Kyle Crick surrendered one run on four hits in his two innings, which was enough to pick up the win. Johnny Hellweg got the save with a perfect ninth.
With Austin Meadows, Jose Osuna and Jacob Stallings on the bench, Indianapolis managed to get at least one hit from everyone in their lineup. Ryan Lavarnway made his debut and collected three hits, including a double. The Indians also got doubles from Jerrick Suiter in his Triple-A debut, as well as Todd Cunningham, Kevin Newman and Eric Wood. Christopher Bostick and Kevin Kramer each had two hits, while Jordan Luplow drove in two runs.
Here is the boxscore from the MiLB site.
You can view the season preview here.
Altoona got a strong debut from Mitch Keller and Will Craig homered for the second day in a row, as the Curve won 4-0 over Akron. Keller pitched six shutout innings, giving up two hits and two walks, while striking out eight batters. He needed just 77 pitches, with 49 going for strikes. Keller also posted a 6:3 GO/AO ratio. Tate Scioneaux pitched two frames and Geoff Hartlieb finished out the shutout by retiring the side in order in the ninth.
Will Craig picked up his second home run of the young season, hitting a two-run shot in the fifth inning that capped off the scoring for the Curve. Pablo Reyes doubled and drove in the other two runs. Cole Tucker picked up two singles and scored a run. Bryan Reynolds doubled and scored a run, but left for a defensive replacement in the fifth inning. No word yet on why he left early. Ke’Bryan Hayes is off to a slow start, going 1-for-16 with a walk in the four-game series.
Here is the boxscore from the MiLB site.
You can view the season preview here.
Bradenton won 7-6 in ten innings on a walk-off hit-by-pitch. Luis Escobar made his season debut and pitched five solid innings, allowing one run on three hits without issuing a walk. He had just one start last year with West Virginia that didn’t include at least one walk. Escobar was efficient with his pitches, needing 61 to get through his outing. He only had three strikeouts, a number he topped in 23 of his 25 starts last season.
After Escobar left, Angel German came on and was pumping in 95 MPH fastballs with little control. In two innings, he faced nine batters. Three of them walked and the other six struck out. Jess Amedee got roughed up to send the game to extra innings, while Scooter Hightower picked up the win.
The winning run was scored after a bases loaded hit-by-pitch of Tyler Gaffney with two outs. He also had a single and a double, driving in two runs. He has been hit three times in three games. Alfredo Reyes and Albert Baur each had two hits. Arden Pabst drove in a pair of runs. Jared Oliva and Adrian Valerio each scored a pair of runs. Casey Hughston has started out 0-for-11, yet he has just one strikeout.
Here is the boxscore from the MiLB site.
You can view the season preview here.
West Virginia won game one of a doubleheader by an 8-7 score in extra innings. They got three homers in the game, including a pair of two-run shots from Mason Martin and Calvin Mitchell, as well as a solo homer from Chris Sharpe. It was the first homer of the season from all three of them. The winning run scored on a sacrifice fly by Deon Stafford, after Lolo Sanchez was intentionally walked. Sanchez also added two doubles in the game.
Gavin Wallace started and got through five innings, despite allowing five runs (three earned) on six hits and two walks. Joel Cesar followed and allowed two runs on four hits and two walks in two innings. Dylan Prohoroff got the win with a scoreless inning.
Oneil Cruz has started off 1-for-10 with six strikeouts (two in each game) and he committed his fourth error at shortstop in 17 total chances.
Here’s the boxscore from the MiLB site.
In game two, Evan Piechota made the spot start to keep two regular starters from pitching on the same day. He had a strong game, allowing one run over five innings while striking out seven batters. Jacob Taylor had trouble throwing strikes, but he was able to finish off the final two innings of the 10-3 victory.
Dylan Busby, Rodolfo Castro and Kyle Watson each picked up two hits and combined to drive in six runs. Watson and Rafelin Lorenzo each hit their first homer. Busby scored three runs. Calvin Mitchell hit his first triple of the season, while Mason Martin hit his first double.
You can view the season preview here.
