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Prospect Watch: Back in Business

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Everybody is back in action now.  Javier Rivas had a six-hit game in the FCL.

YESTERDAY’S RESULTS

Prospect Watch: Strong Starting Pitching All Around, As Rain Suspends Two Games

TRIPLE-A: INDIANAPOLIS INDIANS

Game Time: 7:05pm

Box Score: LINK

Starting Pitcher: Zach Matson

  • Final Line: 1 IP, 1 H, 1 R, 0 ER, 1 BB, 1 K

Notable Performances:

  • Tucupita Marcano 1-5, 2B
  • Ji-Hwan Bae 3-5, 2B
  • Rodolfo Castro 2-5
  • Jack Suwinski 2-4, 2 HR (2), BB
  • Carter Bins 2-3, 2 2B, BB, HBP
  • Hoy Park 1-4, 2B, BB

Game Recap:

Indianapolis (41-47) lost to St. Paul in ten innings, 9-8.  Starter Zach Matson pitched one inning, giving up an unearned run.  Travis MacGregor had a rough two innings, giving up six runs, five earned.  Noe Toribio worked three scoreless innings, fanning six.  Newcomer Yohan Ramirez made his first appearance in the system with a perfect inning.  The Indians came back from a 7-2 deficit to take an 8-7 lead, but John O’Reilly gave up the tying run in the eighth.  Austin Brice threw a scoreless ninth, then gave up the unearned run in the tenth.  Indy failed to get their free runner home in the bottom of the tenth.  Indy pitchers did strike out 13, including Miguel Sano four times.  Jack Suwinski had a very welcome big day, clouting two home runs and driving in three.  Ji-Hwan Bae had a double and two singles.  That brought him back to .300, which is 115 points higher than the indispensible Josh VanMeter is hitting.  Carter Bins had two doubles and Rodolfo Castro had two singles.  Travis Swaggerty, Bligh Madris and Mason Martin combined to go 0-for-14.  Indy did itself in by going 3-for-17 with runners in scoring position.

DOUBLE-A: ALTOONA CURVE

Game Time: 7:00pm

Box Score: LINK

Starting Pitcher: Luis Ortiz

Final Line: 5 IP, 7 H, 5 R, 3 ER, 2 BB, 5 K

Notable Performances:

  • Andres Alvarez 1-4, HR (14), BB, SB
  • Blake Sabol 1-4
  • Aaron Shackelford 2-3, 2B, HR (16), BB
  • Fabricio Macias 1-4, 2B
  • Liover Peguero 1-3, BB

Game Recap:

Altoona (45-43) lost to Harrisburg, 7-5.  Luis Ortiz had a rough start, giving up a pair of gopher balls and five runs, three of them earned.  Aaron Shackelford continued to hit, with a double, his 16th home run and three RBIs.  He’s now batting 265/333/542.  Andres also went deep, his 14th.  Fabricio Macias hit a double and drove in three.

HIGH-A: GREENSBORO GRASSHOPPERS

Game Time: 6:30pm

Box Score: LINK

Starting Pitcher: Adrian Florencio

  • Final Line: 2.2 IP, 8 H, 5 ER, 2 BB, 2 K

Notable Performances:

  • Dariel Lopez 3-5, 2 HR (14)
  • Jacob Gonzalez 3-5, 2 2B
  • Abrahan Gutierrez 0-1, 3 BB, HBP
  • Hudson Head 3-5, HR (6)
  • Jackson Glenn 2-4, 2B

Game Recap:

Greensboro (37-49) won a standard First National Bank Field pitchers’ duel, 12-10, over Hickory.  There was much rejoicing on offense, as Dariel Lopez, Hudson Head and Jacob Gonzalez each went 3-for-5.  Lopez hit a pair of bombs, giving him 14 on the year, and scored three times.  Head hit his sixth home run and drove in three.  Gonzalez had two doubles.  Jackson Glenn had a single and double, and drove in three.  Abrahan Gutierrez had no hits but reached four times on three walks and a hit batsman, and scored three times.  Starter Adrian Florencio gave up five runs over two and two-thirds innings.  Most of the rest of the runs came off Jack Carey, who allowed four without retiring a batter.  Brayan Roman worked two and a third scoreless innings and Cristian Charle worked two.  Charle has had three scoreless outings since being promoted.  Oliver Mateo got the save with a scoreless ninth despite allowing two walks and a hit.

LOW-A: BRADENTON MARAUDERS

Game Time: 6:30pm

Box Score: LINK

Starting Pitcher: Valentin Linarez

  • Final Line: 2 IP, 2 H, 1 ER, 1 BB, 3 K

Notable Performances:

  • Tsung-Che Cheng 1-3, SF
  • Jase Bowen 1-3, BB
  • Rodolfo Nolasco 1-4, 3 K
  • Bubba Chandler 1-3, 2B, SB
  • Maikol Escotto 1-3, 2B, BB
  • Wyatt Hendrie 1-3, 2B

Game Recap:

Bradenton (43-44) lost to Clearwater, 7-6.  The game ended with two outs in the bottom of the seventh due to rain and also had a rain delay earlier.  Valentin Linarez gave up a run in two innings, then left due to the delay.  Sergio Umana worked two innings after the delay and gave up five runs.  Four were unearned, as the Marauders committed four errors.  The hitters struck out 13 times in seven innings and had six hits; nobody had more than one.  Bubba Chandler had a double, a walk and a steal, and struck out twice.  Wyatt Hendrie had a two-run double and Maikol Escotto also doubled.

RK: FCL PIRATES

Game Time: Noon

Box Score: LINK

Starting Pitcher: Cristopher Cruz

  • Final Line: 2.2 IP, 4 H, 4 R, 3 ER, 1 BB, 2 K

Notable Performances:

  • Javier Rivas 6-6, HR (3), 4 RBI
  • Esmerlyn Valdez 2-4, 2 BB
  • Shalin Polanco 2-6, HR (3)
  • Jesus Castillo 2-4, 2 BB
  • Jeral Toledo 0-3, 3 BB, SB
  • Luigi Hernandez 2 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 5 K

Game Recap:

Javier Rivas had a monster day as the FCL Pirates (19-13) walloped the hapless Orioles, 17-5.  Rivas had six hits, including his third home run, and drove in four.  The big day vaulted his batting line from 242/320/374 to 289/358/443.  His 21 RBIs easily lead the team and tie him for fifth in the league.  Esmerlyn Valdez, Shalin Polanco and Jesus Castillo each had two hits.  Of the team’s two hits, the only two that weren’t singles were Rivas’ longball and another by Polanco, also his third on the year.  Valdez and Castillo also each drew two walks, so they each reached four times.  Valdez scored three times.  The Orioles helped out by walking nine, hitting six — Solomon Maguire, Ronny Sanchez and Deion Walker got hit twice each — and committing five errors.  Sanchez got a little revenge by stealing home.  Cristopher Cruz had a rough start, giving up four runs, three earned, over two and two-thirds innings.  Four relievers allowed just one run combined the rest of the way.  Luigi Hernandez had a strong outing, fanning five over two innings.  Ryan Harbin gave up the only other run, but got the win.  He went two innings in his second outing since returning from the injured list.  Harbin has been in the system for four years, but has thrown only 27 innings, all at the rookie level.

RK: DSL PIRATES BLACK

Game Time: 11:00am

Box Score: LINK

Starting Pitcher: Jarlen De La Paz

  • Final Line: 1 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 0 K

Notable Performances:

  • Kelvin Diaz 1-3, 2B, 2 BB, 2 SB
  • Daje Morales 1-2, 2 BB, HBP, 2 SB
  • Ewry Espinal 0-2, 3 BB, SB
  • Miguel Sosa 1-4, BB
  • Hader Blanco 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 2 K

Game Recap:

The Black team (17-18) lost to Seattle, 10-6.  Nine pitchers combined to allow 14 hits and ten runs over eight innings; oddly, they fanned 15.  The only two who didn’t allow a run were starter Jarlen De La Paz and Hader Blanco, who each threw a scoreless inning.  Well, Diego Chiquillo didn’t allow any runs of his own but he let three inherited runners score.  The Pirates got their six runs with only three hits, but they did draw 13 walks.  Kelvin Diaz had a double, and Miguel Sosa and Daje Morales each had singles.  The walks could have helped a lot more, but the team went 1-for-13 with runners in scoring position.  They stole six bases, but had three runners thrown out stealing.

RK: DSL PIRATES GOLD

Game Time: 11:00am

Box Score: LINK

Starting Pitcher: Gilberto Alcala

  • Final Line: 3.2 IP, 1 H, 0 H, 2 BB, 5 K

Notable Performances:

  • Yordany De Los Santos 1-2, BB, HBP
  • Carlos Tirado 2-4, 2B
  • Axiel Plaz 1-1, 2B, 2 BB, HBP
  • Johnson Pena 2-3, BB
  • Luis Faringthon 2 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 2 K

Game Recap:

The Gold team (24-11) won a battle of two of the DSL’s top three teams, beating Boston Blue, 4-1.  The pitching was excellent.  Starter Gilberto worked three and two-thirds scoreless innings, fanning five and allowing only one hit.  Fares Sanchez added two and a third with no runs.  Darlin Diaz gave up an unearned run that temporarily tied the game, then Luis Faringthon finished with two shutout innings.  Yordany De Los Santos and Jhonson Pena each reached base three times, Pena on  two singles and a walk, De Los Santos on a single, walk and hit batsman.  Carlos Tirado had a single, double and two RBIs, and Axiel Plaz doubled, walked twice and got hit by a pitch.

Wilbur Miller
Wilbur Miller
Having followed the Pirates fanatically since 1965, Wilbur Miller is one of the fast-dwindling number of fans who’ve actually seen good Pirate teams. He’s even seen Hall-of-Fame Pirates who didn’t get traded mid-career, if you can imagine such a thing. His first in-person game was a 5-4, 11-inning win at Forbes Field over Milwaukee (no, not that one). He’s been writing about the Pirates at various locations online for over 20 years. It has its frustrations, but it’s certainly more cathartic than writing legal stuff. Wilbur is retired and now lives in Bradenton with his wife and three temperamental cats.

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