The quantity of opposing top prospects this week is light, but the Pittsburgh Pirates affiliates will be heading into competitive battles against division rivals.
At this point, we’re beginning to see teams for a second time, and rosters may have changed a bit with prospect movement. In addition, some lists are being updated, as Baseball America just released an updated list for May (sub. required).
Starting with the Indianapolis Indians, they are currently the only Pirates affiliate that is sub-.500, but they are riding a five-game winning streak into the week. They take on Minnesota Twins affiliate, the St. Paul Saints. The last time they faced off, Top 100 prospect Edouard Julien played one game, and then was promoted for his MLB debut. He was returned after a mixed eight-game stint. The roster as a whole has four of the Twins Top 15 prospects. The Saints sit one game behind the division leading Memphis Red Birds.
With the Altoona Curve, we see some one of the most affected rosters with injuries and movement. The prized prospect on the Akron Rubberducks is RHP Daniel Espino, but he has since received shoulder surgery, and will be out till at least 2025 now. Gavin Williams has moved up to the Columbus Clippers, where he actually made his Triple-A debut against the Indianapolis Indians. Truth be told though, Angel Martinez as the Cleveland Guardians number nine prospect isn’t too shabby. Considering the Guardians have generally seven Top 100 prospects, depending on the publication. Most of those prospects have either debuted in the majors, or are in Triple-A (here is where I make a facetious comment about how the Pirates believe Triple-A equals Double-A).
In High-A, the Greensboro Grasshoppers have slid behind Hudson Valley by two games for the division lead. They’ll take on the Jersey Shore Blueclaws who are only two games behind them. The Philadelphia Phillies affiliate has a Top 5 prospect in Hao-Yu Lee, but only two other Top 30 prospects on the roster, and one of them is on the 60-Day injured list.
The Bradenton Marauders get to take on Detroit Tigers affiliate, Lakeland Flying Tigers. The Marauders find themselves now five games back of the division lead, as Phillies affiliate Clearwater Threshers are tearing through the league, currently on a 13-game winning streak. Lakeland sits at the bottom of the Florida State League West, so hopefully the Marauders themselves can get on a bit of a hot streak. The Flying Tigers top prospect is 2022 second rounder out of University of Oklahoma, shortstop Peyton Graham.
Triple-A: Indianapolis Indians
Opponent: ST. PAUL (TWINS)
Opponent Stats
Team OPS: .777 OPS
Rank: 11/20
Team ERA: 4.61
ERA Rank: 7/20
Top Prospects
Player | Position | Pipeline Ranking
- EDOUARD JULIEN | 2B | 4
- Pipeline Top 100: 92
- Baseball America Top 100: 92
- MATT WALLNER | OF | 7
- SIMEON WOODS RICHARDSON | RHP | 8
- AUSTIN MARTIN (7-Day IL) | SS/OF/2B | 12
- JORDAN BALAZOVIC | RHP | 21
- BRENT HEADRICK | LHP | 25
DOUBLE-A: ALTOONA CURVE
Opponent: AKRON (GUARDIANS)
Opponent Stats
Team OPS: .632 OPS
Rank: 11/12
Team ERA: 3.69
ERA Rank: 5/12
Top Prospects
Player | Position | Pipeline Ranking
- DANIEL ESPINO (60-Day IL) | RHP | 1
- Pipeline Top 100: #14
- Baseball America Top 100: #86
- ANGEL MARTINEZ | SS/2B | 9
- PETEY HALPIN (7-Day IL) | OF | 15
- JOEY CANTILLO | LHP | 17
- TANNER BURNS | RHP | 20
- JOSE TENA | SS/2B | 22
- DOUG NIKHAZY | LHP | 29
HIGH-A: GREENSBORO GRASSHOPPERS
Opponent: JERSEY SHORE (PHILLIES)
Opponent Stats
Team OPS: .735 OPS
Rank: 7/12
Team ERA: 4.75
ERA Rank: 7/12
Top Prospects
Player | Position | Pipeline Ranking
- HAO-YU LEE | 2B | 5
- CHRISTIAN MCGOWAN (60-Day IL) | RHP | 16
- TOMMY MCCOLLUM | RHP | 28
SINGLE-A: BRADENTON MARAUDERS
Opponent: LAKELAND (TIGERS)
Opponent Stats
Team OPS: .725 OPS
Rank: 4/10
Team ERA: 5.48
ERA Rank: 9/10
Top Prospects
Player | Position | Pipeline Ranking
- PEYTON GRAHAM | SS | 6
- CRISTIAN SANTANA (7-Day IL) | SS/2B | 9
- MANUEL SEQUERA | INF | 16
- TROY MELTON | RHP | 17
- LUKE GOLD | 2B/3B | 18
Song of the Day
Pirates Prospects Daily
By John Dreker
**Mitch Keller Ends the Pirates’ Losing Streak With a Complete Game Shutout
**Chris Owings was added to the roster officially. Mark Mathias headed back to Indianapolis. There’s also some Luis Ortiz news there, which is exactly what everyone has assumed since he left his start early on Friday. More on him later today.
**Greensboro is up to five catchers in the last four days due to some more moving around, as Wyatt Hendrie gets promoted.
**Top Performers: Aaron Shackelford and Caleb Smith Lead the Way The best in the minor league system over the past week
**Wyatt Langford is starting to show why some people liked him better than Dylan Crews. Things are getting a bit interesting. Our weekly look at how the draft is shaping up.
Raised in Cranberry Twp, PA, Jeff attended Kent State University and worked in Cleveland and Pittsburgh, before moving to New Orleans in September of 2012. His background is as an Engineering Designer, but he has always had a near unhealthy passion for Pittsburgh sports. Hockey and Baseball are his 1A and 1B, combined with his mathematical background, it's led to Jeff's desire in diving into analytics. Jeff is known as Bucs'N'Pucks in the comments, and began writing for Pirates Prospects in 2022 after contributing so many useful bits of information in the comment section.
Dejong DFAd
Palacios corresponding move
Thought Ortiz would have been the corresponding move. Another shoe to drop yet today for Ortiz
Good catch!
Would absolutely love a big week from the affiliates after a ho hum start in terms of individual performers standing out
Indy luckily got Nicky G back, but they now lose Ortiz on top of Burrows out for season. Hoping this is the week Swags returns, and then I wonder if Triolo will be given another week in Bradenton, move up to Greensboro or Altoona, or head up to Indy. Which, I guess they are also getting Mark Mathias.
Will the be getting DeJong or will he elect FA? I see he was DFAd and Palocios is heading to the Burgh. Have not seen yet so will be sent down or DFAd for Ortiz yet.
There’s still an open spot on the 40 from Maggi.
Maggi already off the 40m that is why they DFAd DeJong for Palacios. Need someone off the 26 man for Ortiz.
Oh yeah. Andujar would be my guess
Hard to tell. Always need arms, so they may want him to stay. But, at the same time, they do have a lot of upper level arms. Still could like to keep another vet on the upper minors, but De Jong will also need to want to stay. For once we’re not the REALLLLY bad team that can let a guy linger just because.
A Cranberry Twp memory came up for me yesterday., Did you ever play in the Neighborhood softball tourney over Community Days? I got to play against Wehner after he retired. He was hitting balls all over the Community Park fields. Many dingerz over a few days lol!
I did not. The extent of my softball career in the area was a year or two I played with St. Ferdinands in a church Coed league, and then my dad who played in a men’s league in North Park and surrounding fields.
I went to CCUPC right down the road. Was always disappointed there was never any interest in forming a team for the church league. Played in a semi fast pitch church league in the Saxonburg area for several years. That was fun.
Man I miss those days. Couple decades ago, I played in the Chicora Beer League. We played teams from Kittanning, Butler, and the surrounding areas. We had a lot of fun, made a nice little run in the state playoffs in Meadville. It was a modified league and some of those pitchers could bring it.
We wee a church league by name but we were always figuring out where the keg was going to be after the game by the 3rd inning. We had a couple guys in our league that could bring it as well. 2 were on our team. I caught for a season. Young and nuts. You only got a mask for protection. Would come home with seam marks all over my chest. lol! On problem was that every field drained to behind the back stop. That meant there was an edge to the plate. One of my guys had a knack for throwing into the dirt and several time a game it would hit that from lip of the plate. Of course instinct would have you drop the glove. Ball would hit the lip and straight in the mask. It is called a softball only because it is not as hard as a baseball. Still fricken makes you see little birdies even in a semifast pitch game LOL!
Is shoulder surgery still the kiss of death for Pitchers like it used to be?
I believe a bum shoulder is what killed Johan Santana’s career a few years back.
Yes. Rotator Cuff and/or labrum surgery is pretty much toast. I’ve had two thanks to my pitching, I now throw a ball slightly better than Jeff Bagwell. good enough to play first base on a slow pitch team and thats about it. You just never get the range of motion back, look at what it did to Bellinger the last 3+ years and he wasn’t even a pitcher
Great question, I certainly don’t see them talked about in any less dire terms.
For all the injuries the Pirates have faced, they’ve never really had an Espino-level prospect taken from them. Knock on every piece of wood around you right now.
The old scouts said, “Elbow bad, shoulder worse, but head worst of all.”