Saturday was a convergence of many schedules to create an eclipse type moment for me. For starters, I try to take off work every Saturday, minus the minimum work to keep this site updated. I have a writing schedule which is separate from the Monday-Friday weekly schedule, and my latest writing day fell on a Saturday. It was also 4/20. As a result, I’ve been planning this day off for two months.
I say all of this because I not only didn’t watch the Pirates game, but I also decided to enjoy a full day off yesterday from writing about baseball. Rather than spending an hour or two at the end of the night recapping the day’s games, I made the decision yesterday to go to bed early, watching Edge of Tomorrow. And rather than watching the Pirates game, I was in a state park in Florida, with a 100 mg edible chocolate bar and a goal to write one chapter of a novel.
So, I can’t really tell you what happened in the Pirates game, other than reading the box scores, as I was only seeing the score alerts on a delay. I did end up outlining a 23-chapter story called “Mantis”, which I figure I could slowly write alongside my baseball schedule, and be finished with a ~400 page book by the end of June. I also fell asleep during Edge of Tomorrow. Not that it was a bad movie, but the dangers of too much 420 is ultimately that you fall asleep and wake up the next morning feeling more rested than you’ve ever felt before.
This morning, I woke up and checked the box scores to see Bryan Reynolds picked up three hits. Ke’Bryan Hayes doubled and scored a run. Connor Joe had a pinch hit home run, for his second homer of the year. Joey Bart returned and went 1-for-3 with a walk and two strikeouts.
Mitch Keller pitched six innings, allowing four runs on five hits, with four walks and four strikeouts. Keller didn’t have a lot of swing and miss to his game on Saturday, with an 11% whiff rate. He did have 21 called strikes, for a 28% called and swinging strike rate. He also had a lot of hard-hit shots. Luis Ortiz followed with two shutout frames, and Colin Holderman finished with one shutout inning.
Check out the links below for yesterday’s minor league recap and stories on Pirates Prospects.
STATCAST HEROES
The Pirates could use Colin Holderman stepping up in the later innings right now. Holderman had five whiffs on 12 swings on his sweeper, while throwing a fastball that got up to 98.1 MPH. STATS
The minor league Statcast Heroes can be found in the nightly Pirates Prospect Watch.
DAILY VIDEO RUNDOWN
Connor Joe homers for the second time this season.
Connor clears the deck! 💥 pic.twitter.com/5K4LSUonCw
— Pittsburgh Pirates (@Pirates) April 20, 2024
Charles McAdoo hit his first homer of the season for Greensboro.
Charles McAdoo HOMER!!
Hoppers: 3 | Crawdads: 0 pic.twitter.com/3nDCTryIvV
— Greensboro Grasshoppers (@GSOHoppers) April 20, 2024
Geovanny Planchart also added his first homer of the year for Greensboro.
Another Hopper HOMER by Geovanny Planchart!
Hoppers: 5 | Crawdads: 0 pic.twitter.com/ryUGiys6Zw
— Greensboro Grasshoppers (@GSOHoppers) April 20, 2024
One more time in Greensboro, Rodolfo Nolasco homers.
Homers only tonight! Rodolfo Nolasco homers to left field.
Hoppers: 8 | Crawdads: 0 pic.twitter.com/XhmjH17NW1
— Greensboro Grasshoppers (@GSOHoppers) April 21, 2024
LHP Michael Kennedy struck out eight batters in Bradenton.
Eight STRIKEOUTS! The southpaw ties his career-high! pic.twitter.com/AqWfOZA2Zk
— Bradenton Marauders (@The_Marauders) April 20, 2024
PROSPECT WATCH
Braxton Ashcraft had his best start of the season for Altoona on Saturday. There were also two very good starts in the lower levels from Wilber Dotel and Michael Kennedy. Check out all of the results in the Pirates Prospect Watch.
Pirates Prospect Watch: Braxton Ashcraft Has His Best Start of the Season
TODAY: PIRATES (11-10) VS RED SOX (12-10)
Game Time: 1:35 PM EDT
Watch: SportsNet-PIT
Listen: KDKA-FM 93.7
Pirates Starter: Martin Perez, LHP (1-0, 2.55)
Red Sox Starter: Josh Winckowski, RHP (1-1, 4.63)
In the Minors…
- LHP Eric Lauer makes his next start for Indianapolis at 1:35 PM EST.
- LHP Anthony Solometo pitches on a Sunday for his third start in a row with Altoona. The game starts at 1:05 PM.
- RHP Alessandro Ercolani takes the mound for Greensboro at 2:00 PM. I wrote about Ercolani this past week.
- Bradenton sends RHP Khristian Curtis to the mound at noon.
PIRATES PROSPECTS DAILY
The latest in the Saturday Sleepers series looks at right-handed pitcher Carlos Jimenez, who features one of the best changeups in the Pirates system.
Saturday Sleepers: Carlos Jimenez Has One of the Best Changeups in the System
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THIS WEEK ON PIRATES PROSPECTS
The premium article drop each week features the best articles on the site. These are the ones that take the most time and work, but also the topics which occupy the most head space in my brain. In most weeks, there is a reporting aspect. This week’s articles featured more scouting, stats, and a bit of speculation.
In my premium column for Patreon subscribers, I looked at the cautious approach the Pirates are taking with Paul Skenes. I agree with the approach, but broke down how it could have limits that would call for him being up before the Super Two dates pass.
**Williams: The Pirates Should Be Taking a Cautious Approach With Paul Skenes
I wrote two articles this week looking at depth options who stand out to me in Triple-A.
Nick Gonzales was taken seventh overall in the 2020 draft. He’s dealt with swing and miss issues, which have kept him in Triple-A. In the early part of the season, he’s showing positive overall improvements with his strikeout rates, while still having some underlying concerns about swing and miss.
**Examining the Swing and Miss of Nick Gonzales
Malcom Nunez is a stocky corner infield prospect who can play third, but has the power for first base. After hitting three home runs to start the season, I looked deeper at the power bat of Nunez, and his brief history in Triple-A already as a 23-year-old prospect.
**Malcom Nunez Brings Plus Power Bat to Indianapolis
This week I also highlighted three lower level pitchers who have stood out to me in early looks as potential MLB starters.
The Pirates drafted Hunter Barco in the second round of the 2022 draft, while the lefty from Florida was out with Tommy John. Now fully recovered, Barco is pitching in Greensboro, and has thrown seven shutout frames in his first two starts of the season, with an advanced mix of pitches.
**Hunter Barco is Showing Why the Pirates Invested in Him
Alessandro Ercolani is a 19-year-old pitcher from the small country of San Marino, with a mix of six pitches that all show promise. The Pirates gave him the assignment of pitching in High-A Greensboro, which he embraced with four shutout innings in his debut.
**Alessandro Ercolani is a Big Talent From a Small Country
Patrick Reilly was drafted as a reliever out of Vanderbilt last season, but with a mid-90s fastball that gets up to 98, and a plus slider, it’s easy to see why the Pirates are giving him a shot in the rotation. He’s showing promising control results in the early games, reversing the issue that has held him back the most.
**Patrick Reilly Features An Elite Fastball, With Early Positive Results in Control
SONG OF THE DAY
