ALTOONA, PA – I was in Altoona earlier this year, which happened to be the first games that Henry Davis played in right field this year. Looking back on my notes, I had this to say about the 2021 first overall pick:
“Quick reactions, both sides of game, routes in RF a bit rough.”
Davis went on the 10-day injured list on Tuesday. He’s continued looking rough in the field, and hopefully can use the downtime positively toward improving.
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I was in Altoona this time last year, doing my season-ending coverage at the level. My articles from that week of coverage are still looking accurate today. They either showed where the player was heading, and how to get there — or there’s still an unresolved issue.
Endy Rodriguez was looking like the best prospect in the Pirates system. He was looking like the catcher of the future at that point, with an ability to provide a spark on both sides of the game.
Liover Peguero is doing a better job controlling his talent, and that led to a call to the majors, where he continues progressing.
Nick Gonzales is still struggling to make contact at the highest level, one year later. I’m interested in seeing how he finishes this year, after some experience in the majors, and now continued work in Triple-A.
Blake Sabol is no longer in the organization, continuing his prospect development story as a Rule 5 pick with San Francisco.
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I’m in Altoona this week. My goal, as always, is to generate “evergreen player coverage”. That comes from focusing on the individual player, rather than trying to factor in variables from the system which could impact the player.
Last year, I took a new approach after 14 seasons. I went into the series confident in my abilities to scout who the best players were on the field. I also went in with the approach that I could write some of the best stories of my reporting career.
That’s a bit of a split focus. Scouting versus reporting. I can do both, and I can blend them together. My approach this year is going to be slightly changed toward the reporting side. The goal here is to give you a little bit more insight into the human being behind the numbers and prospect rankings.
After all, I haven’t been scouting players all of these years based on the home runs players hit or the strikeouts they toss. As usual, my goal is to give you more insight into what I’m seeing, who these players are, and who they could become.
I’m in Altoona this week, but the site will have a lot of Greensboro player features from last week, starting with a feature on Bubba Chandler later today.
QUICK PIRATES RECAP
PIRATES (55-68) VS Cardinals
Score: Pirates 6, Cardinals 3
Pittsburgh Starter: Johan Oviedo, RHP (4.46)
–Line: 5.0 IP, 4 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 1 BB, 5 K, 1 HR
Player of the Game: Andrew McCutchen, DH (1-for-4, HR [12], 2 RBI)
Attendance: 11,823
Notable Performers
- Colin Holderman, RHP (1.1 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 2 K)
- David Bednar, RHP (1 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 1 K)
- Bryan Reynolds, LF (1-for-3, BB, 2B, 2 RBI)
- Connor Joe, RF (2-for-4, 2B, RBI)
One Sentence Recap: Andrew McCutchen hit his 299th home run in the deciding five run fifth inning.
DAILY VIDEO RUNDOWN
Number 299.
CUTCHHHHHHHH pic.twitter.com/E1SGz4ooiH
— Pittsburgh Pirates (@Pirates) August 23, 2023
Cutch.
— Pittsburgh Pirates (@Pirates) August 23, 2023
DAILY ROSTER MOVES
- Cal Mitchell started his Indianapolis rehab assignment in Bradenton.
- Hudson Head started his Greensboro rehab assignment in the FCL.
- The Pirates called Luis Ortiz up to the taxi squad. He will make the start today at 12:35 PM EST.
AROUND THE SYSTEM
My first game in Altoona was a 9-2 win, with five player reports in the nightly Prospect Watch.
Pirates Prospect Watch: Bubba Chandler’s Shutout, Nick Dombkowski’s Slider
INDIANAPOLIS
Jared Triolo homered for Indianapolis, but Jared Jones had a rough start.
ALTOONA
Nick Dombkowski showed his best slider of the year, striking out six in five innings of work on Tuesday.
GREENSBORO
Bubba Chandler was the player of the day, after throwing seven shutout innings. I’ve got a feature on Chandler hitting the site Wednesday afternoon.
BRADENTON
Rodolfo Nolasco hit two doubles on Tuesday, and now has a .250/.413/.518 line with four homers in 56 at-bats this month.
ROOKIE LEVELS
Hudson Head went 3-for-4 in his return to game action in the FCL. For the full daily results, check out the Pirates Prospect Watch.
SONG OF THE DAY
I was very happy to learn at the start of my long drive from North Carolina to Pennsylvania that the Black Pumas released new music.
