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Prospect Watch: Altoona Gets No-Hit; Harrington, Chandler and Nicolas All Get Starts

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Four night games were on the schedule Friday. Altoona, Greensboro and Bradenton were all sending out top pitching prospects. Indianapolis didn’t get that chance, as rain washed away their game. As you can tell by the title, the game for Altoona didn’t go so well.

YESTERDAY’S RESULTS

Prospect Watch: Termarr Johnson Goes Deep, Liover Peguero Stays Hot and Anthony Solometo Has a Good Start

TRIPLE-A: INDIANAPOLIS INDIANS

Pirates 2023 Minor League Previews: Indianapolis Indians

INDIANAPOLIS VS IOWA

Final Score: POSTPONED

Game Recap:

Indianapolis had their game postponed tonight due to rain. They will make the game up tomorrow night as part of a doubleheader.

Vince Velasquez is scheduled to make his first rehab start on Saturday. His mound opponent is scheduled to be veteran pitcher Kyle Hendricks, who is also on rehab.

This could be one and done for Velasquez as far as rehab starts go. He hasn’t missed that much time, and wasn’t down long. That’s a decision that will be made after the start.

Colin Selby was placed on the Injured List prior to the game.

DOUBLE-A: ALTOONA CURVE

Pirates 2023 Minor League Previews: Altoona Curve

ALTOONA @ BOWIE

Final Score: Bowie 4, Altoona 0
Altoona Starter
: Kyle Nicolas (2-4, 5.12)
Pitching Line
: 4 IP, 5 H, 4 R, 3 ER, 1 BB, 6 SO
Box Score

Top Performers:

  • Liover Peguero 0-for-3, BB
  • Lolo Sanchez 0-for-3, BB
  • Henry Davis 0-for-2, 2 BB
  • Matt Gorski 0-for-3
  • Matt Fraizer 0-for-3
  • Drew Maggi 0-for-3

Game Recap:

Kyle Nicolas made his eighth start of the season on Friday night. He came into the game with a 5.12 ERA, and things didn’t get any better. He went four innings, allowing four runs (three earned) on five hits, one walk and six strikeouts. He threw 53 of 83 pitches for strikeouts. Nicolas now has a 5.30 ERA and 42 strikeouts in 35.2 innings.

Travis MacGregor threw a scoreless fifth inning. Juan Minaya took the sixth and seventh, while Cameron Junker handled the eighth, as Altoona lost 4-0.

The recap for the offense is easy. Liover Peguero walked. Lolo Sanchez walked. Henry Davis walked twice. That’s it. They struck out 12 times, while going 0-for-3 with runners in scoring position. All three of those RISP AB’s came in the fourth inning after Altoona started the inning with back-to-back walks by Sanchez and Davis.

HIGH-A: GREENSBORO GRASSHOPPERS

Pirates 2023 Minor League Previews: Greensboro Grasshoppers

GREENSBORO @ ASHEVILLE

Final Score: Asheville 9, Greensboro 7
Greensboro Starter
: Bubba Chandler (2-1, 6.67)
Pitching Line
: 2.1 IP, 3 H, 4 ER, 5 BB, 1 SO
Box Score

Top Performers:

  • Tsung-Che Cheng 1-for-5, HR, 4 RBI
  • Hudson Head 1-for-4
  • Sammy Siani 0-for-3, BB

Game Recap:

Bubba Chandler has been hurt by some control issues this year, resulting in him posting a 6.67 ERA through 27 innings, with 21 walks and 31 strikeouts. That came into play early tonight, as he threw 32 pitches in the first, even though he didn’t allow any runs. He had a quick second inning, but everything fell apart in the third. He walked the bases loaded, then gave up a grand slam. After recording an out, he walked the next batter to end his night with four runs over 2.1 innings.

Dante Mendoza recorded the final two outs of the third, while stranding an inherited runner. He finished his night with 2.2 scoreless. Grant Ford took over in the sixth and allowed two runs. Mitchell Miller allowed three runs over two innings, while striking out five batters.

Greensboro started their scoring on a sacrifice fly in the sixth by Tres Gonzalez that made it 4-1, though they were down 6-1 by the end of the inning. Wyatt Hendrie came back with an RBI single in the top of the seventh, then Tsung-Che Cheng tied the game with a grand slam. It was his sixth home run of the season.

An error brought home a run in the top of the ninth. Will Matthiessen came up with two outs, two on and Greensboro down by two. He flew out to left field to end the game.

LOW-A: BRADENTON MARAUDERS

Pirates 2023 Minor League Previews: Bradenton Marauders

BRADENTON @ CLEARWATER

Final Score: Clearwater 5, Bradenton 3
Bradenton Starter
: Thomas Harrington (4-0, 3.25)
Pitching Line
: 5.1 IP, 4 H, 2 ER, 3 BB, 9 SO
Box Score

Top Performers:

  • Jesus Castillo 2-for-5, RBI
  • Enmanuel Terrero 2-for-4, BB
  • Rodolfo Nolasco 2-for-5
  • Shalin Polanco 1-for-5, RBI
  • Javier Rivas 1-for-4, RBI

Game Recap:

Thomas Harrington made his seventh start of the season on Friday. He came into the day with four shutout performances and two games in which he allowed ten earned runs over 8.2 innings. This start ended up being a combo of the two outcomes. He went 5.1 innings, allowing two runs on four hits, three walks and nine strikeouts.

Harrington allowed the first two batters he faced to reach base, as well as the last two, which both ended up scoring. In between he allowed just three runners, while recording 16 outs. His ERA shows how average tonight was for him, as he came into the game with a 3.25 ERA, and ended with a 3.27 ERA.

Miguel Fulgencio followed Harrington to finish the sixth. He allowed two inherited runners to score, plus two runs of his own, though one was unearned. The earned run was the first of his pro career (five relief appearances).

Tyler Chatwood threw a shutout inning in his second rehab appearance. Carlos Lomeli took the eighth and allowed a run in the 5-3 loss.

Jesus Castillo singled home the first run of the game. A ground out by Shalin Polanco made it 4-2 in the seventh. Javier Rivas brought them within one with an RBI single.

Bradenton had ten hits and all of them were singles. Castillo, Enmanuel Terrero and Rodolfo Nolasco each had two hits. Deivis Nadal stole his tenth base. 

Termarr Johnson pinch-hit late in the game and got hit by a pitch.

DSL/FCL

The schedules for the Dominican Summer League and Florida Complex League have been released.

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John Dreker
John Dreker
John started working at Pirates Prospects in 2009, but his connection to the Pittsburgh Pirates started exactly 100 years earlier when Dots Miller debuted for the 1909 World Series champions. John was born in Kearny, NJ, two blocks from the house where Dots Miller grew up. From that hometown hero connection came a love of Pirates history, as well as the sport of baseball. When he didn't make it as a lefty pitcher with an 80+ MPH fastball and a slider that needed work, John turned to covering the game, eventually focusing in on the prospects side, where his interest was pushed by the big league team being below .500 for so long. John has covered the minors in some form since the 2002 season, and leads the draft and international coverage on Pirates Prospects. He writes daily on Pittsburgh Baseball History, when he's not covering the entire system daily throughout the entire year on Pirates Prospects.

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