The Pittsburgh Pirates will be calling up shortstop Alika Williams, after Tucupita Marcano went down with a right knee injury last night. The Pirates acquired Williams in early June for Robert Stephenson.
Since the addition, Williams has been hitting very well. Known more for his defense up the middle, the 24-year-old has a .305/.484/.531 line in 148 plate appearances with Indianapolis. He was batting .237/.314/.417 in 175 plate appearances in Double-A with the Rays. Those numbers were more in line with his results elsewhere in the minors.
It’s possible the Pirates identified something that needed to be fixed at the plate for Williams, and then fixed it. The career-best results at the highest level of the minors is a good sign following the trade. With Marcano looking like he will miss a lot of time, this should give Williams a chance to show if his new hitting is here to stay.
MINOR MOVES
The Pirates released three minor league players recently, with the most notable being Drew Maggi. The infielder made his debut earlier this year, a month before his 34th birthday, after 13 seasons in pro ball.
The Pirates also released Ernny Ordonez and Logan Hofmann from High-A Greensboro. Ordonez was a 33rd round pick in the 2019 draft, and was in his second season in High-A. Hofmann was a fifth rounder in the five-round 2020 draft, and was also in his second season in High-A. Hofmann is 23, and Ordonez is 24.
PIRATES RECAP
Last night’s game was a good one to watch if you want hope for the future. The two homers from Carlos Santana are more beneficial to the upcoming trade deadline, but the young players stepped up around the veteran first baseman.
Jack Suwinski continued hitting, adding his 21st home run of the season, along with his 13th double. Liover Peguero added two hits, including his first MLB homer. Quinn Priester made his second start, giving up four runs in 5.1 innings. Most of the damage off Priester came from two homers by Ha-Seong Kim.
Endy Rodriguez got the start behind the plate, going 1-for-3 with two walks. His most notable play came on defense.
PIRATES DVR
One of the things that makes Endy Rodriguez the top catching prospect in this system, for me, is how effortless his defense looks. Rodriguez is still getting comfortable in the majors, and when he fully gets to that point, you’re going to see him make a lot of second-nature plays like his first caught-stealing last night.
Big league baserunners, meet Endy Rodriguez's right arm.
Play of the Day presented by @STIHLUSA pic.twitter.com/vMId7IVZr4
— Pittsburgh Pirates (@Pirates) July 25, 2023
Rodriguez catches the pitch as he’s getting ready to throw down to second to nail the runner. The act of catching the pitch, jumping, and firing a perfect strike down to second is something that Rodriguez does in one fluid motion. There’s no thought required, just a perfect reaction. Between Priester’s first start and the second start, Rodriguez is starting to look more comfortable behind the plate.
And, in the dugout.
You can just tell Endy Rodriguez loves playing baseball pic.twitter.com/kMbV3RaaFc
— Platinum Ke’Bryan (@PlatinumKey13) July 25, 2023
PROSPECT WATCH
The last Prospect Watch on the site was on July 15th. I’ll have an update later today, looking at some of the top performers in the system lately.
SONG OF THE DAY
