The Pirates optioned Nick Gonzales to Indianapolis prior to Thursday’s game. The 2020 first round pick made his MLB debut on June 23rd, batting .216/.268/.353 in 112 plate appearances, with two homers. This came with a 27.7% strikeout rate and a 3.6% walk rate.
Gonzales did well hunting four seam fastballs, putting up a 1.201 OPS against the pitch. He really struggled against offspeed stuff, and was attacked heavily with sliders. Against 137 sliders he had a .434 OPS and an 18.2% whiff rate. He saw more sliders than any two non-four seam pitches, or more than all of the other offspeed pitches combined. Gonzales also struggled heavily against curveballs and changeups.
He’ll obviously get some work in Indianapolis on pitch recognition and having a better approach against breaking stuff.
The Pirates have shown a tendency to have a revolving door for prospects between Triple-A and the majors. They will give a player a shot when he looks ready, but if he doesn’t show he’s ready in the majors, they aren’t afraid to send the player back down. From there, the player knows what he needs to work on.
Gonzales will obviously be working on the swing and miss issues. Meanwhile, the Pirates have a pretty strong defensive infield after the additions of Alfonso Rivas, Alika Williams, and the return of Ke’Bryan Hayes.
QUICK PIRATES RECAP
The Pirates lost to the Brewers 14-1.
Last night’s game showed that defense in the infield doesn’t matter when the other team can consistently hit the ball to the outfield, and over the wall. Mitch Keller allowed eight runs on nine hits in five innings. Jose Hernandez gave up a three run homer in his inning of work. Dauri Moreta gave up three runs in his inning. It wasn’t a good night for the pitching.
The offense was quiet. After a leadoff walk and a run by Rivas, the offense was quiet the rest of the game. Endy Rodriguez started behind the plate, and moved to first base by the end of the game, with Rivas moving to left field.
MINOR MOVES
Other moves throughout the system:
- LHP Hunter Barco was assigned to the Bradenton Marauders. Barco was the team’s second round pick last year, and was recovering from Tommy John surgery.
- Infielder Mike Jarvis hit the 7-day injured list in Altoona. Jarvis has 25 stolen bases on the year, and good defense up the middle.
- Braeden Ogle went to Indianapolis and pitched in Thursday’s game.
- Luis Ortiz is on the paternity list for the birth of his child.
AROUND THE SYSTEM
The Pirates had a horrible day in the majors, but there were a lot of good things in the minors. Check out all of the action in the nightly Prospect Watch.
Prospect Watch: Po-Yu Chen is Lights Out, Lonnie White Jr. Keeps Homering
INDIANAPOLIS
Gonzales will give a prospect to follow in Indianapolis down the stretch. That team right now is largely veterans and bench/bullpen depth.
ALTOONA
Sean Sullivan went five shutout innings for Altoona, making one of his best starts since the month of May.
GREENSBORO
Po-Yu Chen was lights out for Greensboro, allowing one run in five innings with no walks and seven strikeouts. He was the player of the day on Thursday.
BRADENTON
Lonnie White Jr. is heating up, with two homers, three doubles, and a triple in his last three games. That’s after going 2-for-4 with a double and a homer last night.
ROOKIE LEVELS
Luigi Hernandez led off the strong pitching on Thursday in the FCL, throwing three shutout innings with five strikeouts. Hernandez was signed in 2019, working with a 93-96 MPH fastball at the time.
Check out all of the nightly minor league action in the Prospect Watch.
