Your daily Pittsburgh Pirates Prospect Watch article for recaps of all of today’s games. Be sure to pick up your copy of the latest Prospect Guide in our store, available as an ebook or a limited edition paperback.
The FCL Pirates Black had their game canceled on Sunday night, their third straight COVID-related cancellation. The two DSL teams had their games suspended due to bad weather in the early going.
INDIANAPOLIS
(7:05pm)
Starting Pitcher: Max Kranick 5 IP, 5 H, 4 ER, 1 BB, 5 K
Notable Performances:
Game Recap:
A walkoff, two-out, two-run home run by Michael Chavis gave Indianapolis (42-42) a 9-8 win over St. Paul and got the Indians back to .500. Max Kranick was a little shaky, giving up four runs in five innings, three of them on longballs. The Indians were down, 4-2, in the bottom of the fifth, but scored five to go up by three. They’d gotten a two-run home run from Ka’ai Tom, just starting his rehab, in the third. Tom came out of the game after going 1-for-2. Cole Tucker capped the fifth-inning rally with a two-run double. The Indy bullpen blew the lead, which doesn’t bode well if the Pirates need relief help. John O’Reilly gave up four hits over an inning and a third, leaving with two runners on. Joe Jacques gave up a hit to let one run score, then loaded the bases with a hit batsman, and walked one and hit another to force in two more runs, tying the game. Shea Spitzbarth got out of that inning, but gave up a run in the eighth to put St. Paul on top, 8-7. Recently arrived Keury Mella struck out three in the top of the ninth. Chavis came up with two out and one on in the bottom half and ripped the first pitch he saw for a dinger to left-center. It was his third bomb in six games with Indy.
ALTOONA
(7:05pm)
Starting Pitcher: Omar Cruz 6 IP, 2 H, 1 ER, 2 BB, 6 K
Notable Performances:
Ji-Hwan Bae 1-5
Diego Castillo 2-5, HR (14)
Jack Suwinski 1-2, 2B, 3 BB
Mason Martin 1-5, 2B
Carter Bins 1-5
Cal Mitchell 1-5, 2B
Matt Fraizer 3-5, 2B, HR (1)
Game Recap:
Altoona (46-37) built up a 9-1 lead, then watched a lot of it wither away before beating Erie, 11-7. Matt Fraizer remained unimpressed by AA pitching, getting a single, triple and home run, his first in AA, and driving in three. Fraizer has started his Curve tenure by going 9-for-20. Conner Kaiser hit his fourth homer of the year, a three-run shot, in the second inning. Diego Castillo also went deep, his 14th of the season. Cal Mitchell, Mason Martin and Jack Suwinski all had doubles, the last of those a popup that landed just behind the mound when the Erie shortstop slipped and fell. Omar Cruz had an excellent start. He gave up two singles, a walk and a sacrifice fly to the first four batters in the first, leading to one run, then went five more innings while allowing just a walk. Alex Manasa, who was promoted despite struggling at Greensboro, was left in to give up ten hits and six runs over two and a third innings. Shea Murray came on to get the last two outs.
GREENSBORO
(7:00pm)
Starting Pitcher: Grant Ford 6 IP, 5 H, 2 ER, 1 BB, 8 K
Notable Performances:
Nick Gonzales 1-4
Jared Triolo 1-4
Blake Sabol 0-4
Aaron Shackelford 0-4
Game Recap:
Greensboro (53-32) scored four runs in the first, then hung on to beat Winston-Salem, 5-4. The Grasshoppers loaded the bases with nobody out, got a sacrifice fly from Lolo Sanchez, then Will Matthiessen hit his sixth home run at this level. That was it until the seventh, when Andres Alvarez singled in Matthiessen, who’d reached on an error. Grant Ford had a good start, giving up two runs and fanning eight over six innings. Ford started the season in relief and struggled, with a 5.52 ERA. As a starter, his ERA is now 3.90, and that was inflated by a bad outing in his last start. Oliver Garcia replaced Ford for the seventh, but left with one out and the bases loaded after getting hit by a line drive. Austin Roberts got two strikeouts to escape the inning, but gave up a two-run home run in the eighth to make the score 5-4. He ended up going an inning and two-thirds and all five of the outs were on strikeouts. Will Kobos got the save by striking out the side in the ninth giving Greensboro pitchers 16 Ks for the day. The Hoppers had only four hits in the game.
BRADENTON
(6:05pm)
Starting Pitcher: Nick Garcia 5.1 IP, 3 H, 5 ER, 1 BB, 5 K
Notable Performances:
Maikol Escotto 1-4, 2B, BB
Abrahan Gutierrez 2-4, 2B, BB
Hudson Head 0-3, BB, HBP
Endy Rodriguez 1-5
Dariel Lopez 1-3, BB
Jase Bowen 3-4
Alexander Mojica 1-3, BB
Game Recap:
Bradenton (51-32) had a crazy game, coming back from down 5-0 to beat Fort Myers, 8-5. The Marauders couldn’t do anything with Sean Mooney, who retired nine straight, six on strikes. Fortunately, he’s coming off Tommy John and came out after three. Bradenton didn’t get a hit until there were two outs in the fifth, when Jase Bowen hit a comebacker that literally knocked the pitcher’s glove off. Nick Garcia had a fine start for five innings, allowing only one baserunner. That was on a home run by Aaron Sabato in the fourth. In the sixth, though, Garcia retired only one batter and allowed four runs, the last two on another home run by Sabato. Garcia left having allowed only five baserunners on three hits, a walk and a hit batsman, but every one of them scored. Meanwhile the Marauders, after being no-hit for four and two-thirds innings, broke out, scoring four each in the sixth and seventh, and finishing with 11 hits. Bowen continued his recent turnaround, going 3-for-4, which gives him 12 hits in his last 20 ABs. He drove in three. Recent acquisition Abrahan Gutierrez had a single and a double, and scored twice. Every hitter in the lineup had a hit or a walk. Wandi Montout followed Garcia on the mound and retired all five hitters he faced. Nick Dombkowski got through the last two innings despite one error in each. He had to leave the bases loaded in the ninth.
FCL PIRATES BLACK
Boxscore
Starting Pitcher:
Notable Performances:
Game Recap:
Canceled.
FCL PIRATES GOLD
(Noon)
Starting Pitcher: Andy Maldonado 3 IP, 3 H, 1 ER, 5 BB, 5 K
Notable Performances:
Luke Brown 0-2, BB
Tsung-Che Cheng 3-5
Rodolfo Nolasco 1-5, 2B
Sergio Campana 2-5
Listher Sosa 5 IP, 2 H, 1 ER, 0 BB, 5 K
Game Recap:
The Gold team (16-9) took a 4-2 lead into the top of the ninth against the Orioles Orange, but lost, 7-6. The Orioles are interesting; they started the season 1-18, then essentially replaced their existing team with college draftees and since have gone 6-2. Pirates starter Andy Maldonado managed to get through three innings with only one run allowed despite walking five. Listher Sosa followed with five strong innings, giving up just one run and fanning five. Adrian Mendez, a lefty who was the Pirates’ top pitching signee in the 2018-19 international signing period, gave up five runs in the ninth. Three were unearned due to his own error. After loading the bases with nobody out, the Pirates were able to come back with only two in the bottom of the inning. Ninth round draft pick Luke Brown made his pro debut, playing center and going 0-for-2 with a walk before being replaced. Tsung-Che Cheng had three hits and two RBIs. Catcher Dylan Shockley, recently moved down from Greensboro, had a two-run home run, his first at this level. Sergio Campana had two hits and Rodolfo Nolasco had a double.
DSL PIRATES BLACK
(10:30am)
Starting Pitcher: Yoldin De La Paz 2 IP, 1 H, 1 R, 0 ER, 1 BB, 1 K
Notable Performances:
Game Recap:
The Black team had its game with the Red Sox suspended after two and a half innings with the Pirates trailing, 1-0. The game will be completed September 30. Yoldin De La Paz, who’s pitched very well so far, allowed an unearned run over two innings. Shortstop Javier Rivas was 2-for-2, which hopefully will get salvaged eventually because he came into the game 5-for-59.
DSL PIRATES GOLD
(10:30am)
Starting Pitcher: Luigi Hernandez 0.2 IP, 5 H, 6 ER, 1 BB, 1 K
Notable Performances:
Game Recap:
The Gold team had its game with the Giants Orange suspended in the top of the first. It’s just as well, because the Giants were leading 6-0 and the inning wasn’t over. Starter Luigi Hernandez got only two outs, and left with three runs in and the bases loaded. Keneth Quintanilla followed and walked in two runs, then was replaced by Luis Faringthon, who walked in another run before the rains put a stop to the carnage. The game will be resumed on September 28, although it’s doubtful anybody on the Pirates would mind if that never happens.
