The Pittsburgh Pirates made a surprising move at the start of the season, trading right-handed pitcher JT Brubaker to the New York Yankees for a player to be named later. Brubaker was rehabbing an injury, and wouldn’t return until the second half this year, with one more year of control remaining.
Last week, the Pirates acquired infielder Keiner Delgado from the Yankees to complete the trade. On Saturday, with the FCL Pirates beginning their season, Delgado made a memorable debut in the Pittsburgh farm system.
Delgado went 2-for-5 with a grand slam in the second inning, helping lead the Pirates to an 8-6 win. He also reached on a one-out single in the sixth inning, then stole second and third base. With two outs, Delgado scored on a wild pitch.
This is the second year for Delgado in the Florida Complex League. Last year with the Yankees he hit .293/.414/.485 with eight homers and 36 stolen bases during his age 19 season. He’s going to be a player to watch on an exciting looking FCL Pirates roster.
PIRATES PROSPECT WATCH
INDIANAPOLIS lost 9-3.
- LF Ji Hwan Bae went 2-for-3 with a walk and an RBI.
- SS Nick Gonzales went 1-for-4 with a triple.
- RF Jake Lamb went 1-for-3 with a double and an RBI.
- CF Gilberto Celestino went 2-for-3 with a stolen base.
- RHP Ryder Ryan pitched two innings, allowing one run on three hits, with no walks and four strikeouts.
ALTOONA lost 5-3.
- RHP Drake Fellows pitched four innings, allowing one run on one hit. He struck out five and walked two. The Pirates added Fellows in the Joe Musgrove trade, but injuries have limited him to 38 innings since the start of the 2021 season. This was his Double-A debut.
- 3B Jackson Glenn went 1-for-5 with a homer and two RBIs.
- 1B Seth Beer went 2-for-3 with a walk.
- RF Tres Gonzales went 2-for-3 with a walk.
- C Wyatt Hendrie went 1-for-4 with a double and an RBI.
GREENSBORO won 5-4.
- SS Jack Brannigan went 1-for-5 with a homer.
- 3B Charles McAdoo went 2-for-2 with a walk and a stolen base.
- DH Mitch Jebb went 2-for-4 with a stolen base.
- RHP Alessandro Ercolani allowed four runs in 3.2 innings, while walking two and striking out six. His ERA dropped to 2.84 with the start.
- RHP Jack Carey pitched 2.1 shutout innings, allowing one hit, no walks, and striking out two.
BRADENTON won 10-3.
- LHP Michael Kennedy pitched six innings, allowing one run on five hits, with no walks and eight strikeouts. Kennedy has allowed three runs in 16 innings over his last three starts, with 22 strikeouts and no walks.
- RF Esmerlyn Valdez went 2-for-4 with a homer and three RBIs.
- LF Eddy Rodriguez went 2-for-3 with a walk and four RBIs.
- 2B Jeral Toledo went 2-for-3 with a triple and an RBI.
- DH Solomon Maguire went 2-for-5 with a triple.
FCL PIRATES won 8-6.
- RHP Zander Mueth, drafted 67th overall last year out of Belleville East High, made his pro debut. He allowed six runs, all unearned, in 3.1 innings. Mueth walked one and struck out six.
- DH Estuar Suero went 2-for-4 with a double. The Pirates added Suero last year in the Rich Hill/Ji Man Choi trade.
- LF Eduardo Oviedo went 2-for-3 with a double, a walk, and three RBIs.
- SS Yerry De Los Santos went 1-for-2 with two walks and two stolen bases.
- RHP David Matoma pitched a perfect inning in relief, with one strikeout. I wrote about Matoma as a sleeper prior to the season.
STATCAST HEROES
The triple from Nick Gonzales traveled 313 feet at 105.6 MPH. STATS
LHP Michael Kennedy picked up 17 whiffs during his latest start for Bradenton. He had seven on 18 swings against his 90 MPH fastball. He added five more on nine swings against the slider, with another five whiffs on 11 swings against the changeup. STATS
SUNDAY’S SCHEDULE
- Triple-A: Indianapolis, 1:35 PM – RHP Paul Skenes (0-0, 0.53)
- Double-A: Altoona, 1:00 PM – LHP Anthony Solometo (0-1, 6.23)
- High-A: Greensboro, 2:00 PM – TBD
- Single-A: Bradenton, 12:00 PM – RHP Khristian Curtis (0-2, 6.28)
- Rookie: FCL Pirates OFF
