All four Pittsburgh Pirates affiliates won their games on Wednesday. Mitch Jebb, the team’s second round pick in the 2023 draft, made his debut for Bradenton. Jase Bowen led a big night for scoring in Greensboro. Altoona got strong performance from two potential MLB relievers. Indianapolis saw some walk-off heroics from Josh Palacios.
Player of the Day
JASE BOWEN, 1B, GREENSBORO
Bowen had a big night at the plate for the Grasshoppers, picking up four hits, including his tenth double and 18th home run of the season. Drafted as a second baseman in the 11th round in 2019, Bowen has shown the power to handle a corner position. He played first base last night for Greensboro, and has spent time at all three outfield spots, with center field being his most frequent position. During the month of July, he’s hitting .347/.435/.583 with three homers. Bowen had a very similar progression last year, and ended up getting promoted during the final two months of the year. He could end up in Altoona before long with this hitting.
All smiles for a Jase Bowen homer
Ten More to Follow
JOSH PALACIOS, CF, INDIANAPOLIS
Josh Palacios homered for his second straight game, and fourth time since being sent down to Indianapolis. This one came as a walk off homer, capping off a comeback victory for the Indians. The outfielder is now 9-for-25 with four home runs and five walks. In his time with Pittsburgh earlier this year, he hit for a .229/.264/.343 line in 105 at-bats. Palacios also added a stolen base on Wednesday night.
Josh Palacios launches a walk-off homer 466 ft
CANAAN SMITH-NJIGBA, RF, INDIANAPOLIS
Indianapolis was trailing 5-1 heading into the bottom of the eighth inning. Canaan Smith-Njigba had two men on base and three strikeouts already on the day. His fourth at-bat saw him launch a three run homer, his tenth of the season, pulling Indianapolis to within one run.
Canaan just won't quit.
VINNY CAPRA, SS, INDIANAPOLIS
The Pirates added Vinny Capra at the end of April, after trading Tyler Heineman to the Blue Jays. Capra has since gone on to hit for a .358/.471/.505 line in 95 at-bats with the Pirates’ organization. He picked up three hits on the night, including a game tying double in the eighth inning. That’s his fourth double since the All-Star break, with the shortstop going 11-for-20 and adding a home run during that stretch.
BEAU SULSER, RHP, ALTOONA
Drafted in the tenth round in 2017, Sulser went to the Orioles last year, went to Korea earlier this year, and was recently added back by the Pirates. He made his third start last night, throwing four innings with just one unearned run allowed. In nine starts in the KBO, Sulser had a 5.62 ERA in 49.2 innings, with a 35:14 K/BB ratio. He struck out four batters in his four innings of work last night.
NICK DOMBKOWSKI, LHP, ALTOONA
The Pirates wrapped up their draft signings recently, adding a few undrafted pitchers to the mix. One of the best recent undrafted additions was Dombkowski, who was signed out of Hartford following the 2021 draft. He’s since emerged as one of the more interesting left-handed relievers in the system, capable of going multiple innings. That was the case last night, when Dombkowski pitched 2.2 shutout innings, striking out four. He’s got a 3.09 ERA in 55.1 innings this year with Altoona, with a 40:16 K/BB.
CHAVEZ YOUNG, CF, ALTOONA
One night after homering at the bottom of the Altoona lineup, Young moved to the top of the lineup and set the table well. He went 2-for-3 with a walk and two stolen bases. His impact came in the fifth inning, when he singled to knock in the go-ahead run, allowing Dombkowski to move into position for the win. Young is older for the level, in his age 26 season. He’s batting .221/.323/.279 on the season with Altoona.
SAMMY SIANI, LF, GREENSBORO
Sianni was the 37th overall pick in the 2019 draft, and is in his second season with Greensboro. He went 2-for-4 last night, picking up his fifth multi-hit game in his last ten. There hasn’t been a lot of power during this stretch, with three doubles and a triple. Siani is batting .286/.349/.375 this month. He’s been a high OBP guy all season, but saw his production drop when his power increased in May and June.
ELI WILSON, C, GREENSBORO
With Greensboro down by two runs in the bottom of the fourth inning, Wilson launched a two run homer, tying things up. The son of former big league catcher Dan Wilson, Eli is now batting .230/.353/.416 with four homers in 113 at-bats for Greensboro in his third season at the level. He was drafted in the 16th round of the 2019 draft.
See ya ball
MITCH JEBB, SS, BRADENTON
Making his pro debut, Mitch Jebb led off for Bradenton with a double on an 0-1 pitch, picking up his first professional hit. The Pirates drafted Jebb in the second round this year out of Michigan State. He’s a high contact guy with a lot of grit to his game. After stretching a single to a double, he scored from second base on a wild pitch. That’s a great first impression.
Mitch Jebb is electric.
He just turned a single into a double in his first professional at-bat, then scored from second on a wild pitch
LUIS PERALTA, LHP, BRADENTON
Peralta made the start for Bradenton, striking out seven batters over four innings, with two runs allowed. The lefty has struggled with control this year, and was hit around a lot during the month of June. In yesterday’s start, he struggled early, giving up a two out walk, triple, and a single for his two runs allowed. He followed with four strikeouts in a row. After working around a walk in the third inning, he struck out the side in the fourth. Peralta gets a lot of movement on his sinker, with his curveball being a nice strikeout pitch.
Yesterday’s Minor League Results
INDIANAPOLIS (46-51) VS Louisville
Score: Indianapolis 6, Louisville 5
Indianapolis Starter: Kyle Nicolas, RHP (10.17)
–Line: 4.2 IP, 5 H, 5 R, 5 ER, 4 BB, 4 K, 1 HR
Player of the Game: Josh Palacios, CF-RF (2-for-3, HR, 2 BB)
Attendance: 6,627Notable Performers
- Canaan Smith-Njigba, RF-LF (1-for-4, HR, 3 RBI, 3 K)
- Vinny Capra, SS (3-for-4, 2B)
- Domingo Leyba, 3B (2-for-5)
ALTOONA (43-45) AT Harrisburg
Score: Altoona 3, Harrisburg 1
Altoona Starter: Beau Sulser, RHP (6.00)
–Line: 4.0 IP, 4 H, 1 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 4 K
Player of the Game: Chavez Young, CF (2-for-3, BB, 2 SB)
Attendance: 5,078Notable Performers
- Nick Dombkowski, LHP (2.2 IP, 3 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 1 BB, 4 K, 0 HR)
- Cam Junker, RHP (1.1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 3 K)
- Jacob Gonzalez, 1B (2-for-4, 2B)
- Mike Jarvis, 3B (3-for-4)
GREENSBORO (46-43) VS Winston-Salem
Score: Greensboro 7, Winston-Salem 6
Greensboro Starter: Thomas Harrington, RHP (4.82)
–Line: 5.1 IP, 8 H, 5 R, 3 ER, 1 BB, 4 K, 1 HR
Player of the Game: Jase Bowen, 1B (4-for-5, 2B, HR, SB)
Attendance: 3,085Notable Performers
- Sammy Siani, LF (2-for-4, BB)
- Eli Wilson, C (1-for-3, BB, HR, 2 RBI)
- Brendan Dixon, 3B (1-for-3, BB, 2B)
BRADENTON (53-38) AT St. Lucie
Score: Bradenton 9, St. Lucie 7
Bradenton Starter: Luis Peralta, LHP (6.25)
–Line: 4.0 IP, 2 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 2 BB, 7 K, 0 HR
Player of the Game: Nick Cimillo, 1B (2-for-3, BB, 2 RBI)
Attendance: 1,419Notable Performers
- Mitch Jebb, SS (1-for-3, 2B)
- Rodolfo Nolasco, LF (1-for-4, 2B)
- Enmanuel Terrero, CF (1-for-2, 3 BB, 2 SB)
