Pirates Prospects Daily: Rough Opening Weekend Throughout The System

We are one weekend into the season, and let’s just say things could have definitely gone better, both in the majors and at the Triple-A level.

The Major League team lost two of three games against the Cincinnati Reds, while the Triple-A team not only was swept, but allowed 28 total runs in just three games played.

Baseball is a long season, where there are going to be a lot of ups and downs. There are going to be weekends like this, which could immediately turn into things going the other way around.

The hope is, by time it is all said and done, you have more of those good days than bad days, and that people are improving throughout the season.

So, while it would be easy to get worked up, especially with how the last couple of seasons have gone, let things play out first.

Mike Burrows Solid, Not Spectacular

Sometimes, a win is just a win, right? It certainly won’t show up on the highlight reel, but Burrows got the job done for five innings and put himself in position to get the win. The bullpen couldn’t hold the lead, and his potential win was thrown out the window.

It’s early in the season, and pitchers are still getting stretched out and comfortable, but it certainly wasn’t the same Burrows we’ve come to expect. He forced his way into quite a few full counts, and stuff wasn’t quite up to his usual level.

His fastball is usually sits in the mid-90s and while he was up there at times, he was also all the way down to 91-92 at times as well. Not being able to get hitters to chase the curve and miss on the fastball led to Burrows just getting one strikeout across the five innings.

One start, one outing, but a decrease in velocity is always something to monitor going forward.

Mark Mathias Big Weekend

Acquired in the middle of Spring Training, Mathias was seemingly brought in potentially light a fire on the stagnant middle infielder picture. While he didn’t make the original Opening Day roster, that still seems to be the case.

Mathias played all three games over the weekend, played three different positions. He picked up seven hits, nearly double the next in line for Indianapolis.

Mark Mathias stays hot for Indianapolis. This hit his 5th in two games #LetsGoBucs pic.twitter.com/Bu1I9ZlQQw

— Anthony Murphy (@__Murphy88) April 1, 2023

He has some offensive upside, as he posted a .940 OPS and 149 wRC+ in 58 games in Triple-A last year. Playing in another 28 games in the majors, he put up similar impressive numbers (138 wRC+, .847 OPS).

You don’t want to leave any stone unturned with the players currently on the major league roster, but it will be interesting what kind of opportunity Mathias gets with the Pirates.