Braxton Ashcraft looked great in his Triple-A debut. The right-hander allowed one run in six innings of work. He allowed three hits, no walks, and struck out four. I’ve written lately that Ashcraft looks like the best current rotation depth option in the upper levels of the Pittsburgh Pirates system. The Triple-A debut did nothing to change my mind.
The benefit of Ashcraft pitching in Triple-A is that we get to see official Statcast data on how his stuff has developed since returning from Tommy John last year. Ashcraft threw 72 pitches in his six innings, using his four-seam fastball, slider, changeup, and curveball.
- The four-seam fastball was used the most, with 56% of the pitches thrown. Ashcraft generated four whiffs on 23 swings (17%) with five more called strikes for a 23% CSW. The pitch sat 96.1 MPH and topped out at 98.3.
- The slider was the most frequent secondary pitch, with 12 thrown. Ashcraft went 1-for-7 with whiffs, and added three called strikes for a 33% CSW. The poitch sat 89.8 MPH, touching 91.2, and had 2536 average RPMs of spin.
- Right behind the slider was the changeup, at 11 pitches. Ashcraft got one whiff on three swings, with another called strike for an 18% CSW. The changeup sat 88.5 MPH, touching 90.1. It was the only offering with below 2000 RPMs of spin, with the rest of his pitches sitting around 2400-2600 average.
- The curveball was thrown nine times. It had two whiffs on three swings, along with two more called strikes for a leading 44% CSW. The curve offers separation from the previous two secondary offerings, sitting 83.5 MPH, touching 85.7, and averaging 2600 RPMs.
Ashcraft was originally drafted by the Pirates in the second round in 2018. He had Tommy John after pitching in High-A in 2021, and returned for a limited, protected workload last year. Between the lost season from the pandemic, and the Tommy John, Ashcraft went almost three years without development. Despite this, he returned last year with more velocity on his fastball, and better quality breaking stuff.
This year, Ashcraft pitched 53.2 innings in Double-A, with a 3.69 ERA and a 63:8 K/BB ratio. The Pirates are no longer restricting his individual starts after Tommy John, and Ashcraft has now pitched into the sixth inning during each of his last four starts.
With the Pirates short a starter in the majors, Ashcraft won’t have to do anything more than what he did on Thursday night in Triple-A to show he deserves a shot at the next level.
TRIPLE-A: INDIANAPOLIS INDIANS
INDIANAPOLIS won 4-1 in Braxton Ashcraft’s Triple-A debut.
- 2B-SS Liover Peguero: 1-for-4, HR
- CF Gilberto Celestino: 2-for-4, HR
- C Grant Koch: 2-for-3, HR, BB, 2 RBI
- DH Canaan Smith-Njigba: 1-for-3, 2B, BB
- RHP Brent Honeywell: 2.0 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 2 K
Liover Peguero hit his third homer of the year. Gilberto Celestino also hit his third homer of the year. Grant Koch homered for the second time in Triple-A. All three were solo shots. This game featured the start of the rehab process for Alika Williams.
STATCAST HEROES
Connor Sadzeck pitched a scoreless inning in relief. After Paul Skenes was promoted to Pittsburgh, Sadzeck became the hardest thrower for Indianapolis. He averaged 96.6 MPH on nine sinkers, and hit 98.5 on his four-seam fastball for the fastest pitch of the game, but he now has competition from Ashcraft in the velocity department.
DOUBLE-A: ALTOONA CURVE
ALTOONA won 2-0
- RHP Drake Fellows: 5.0 IP, 5 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 4 K
- RHP Eddy Yean: 2.0 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 3 K
- RHP Jack Carey: 2.0 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 1 K
- C Wyatt Hendrie: 1-for-3, SB, RBI
- 1B Seth Beer: 1-for-3, RBI
Drake Fellows was recently moved back down to Double-A, after getting two starts at the Triple-A level. He allowed seven earned runs in seven innings at the higher level. Fellows has a 1.23 ERA in 22 innings now in Double-A, with 22 strikeouts and nine walks. His start on Thursday was the second time he’s gone five innings, but the first start this year where he hasn’t issued a walk. Fellows is in his age 26 season, but was sidelined with Tommy John surgery in 2021. As a sixth round pick in 2019, who didn’t debut in 2019, Fellows has been limited to 23.2 career pro innings prior to this season, due to the pandemic and the surgery. He was originally part of the Joe Musgrove trade, prior to the 2021 season.
HIGH-A: GREENSBORO GRASSHOPPERS
GREENSBORO won 6-1
- DH Nick Cimillo: 1-for-4, HR, 3 RBI
- CF Lonnie White Jr.: 1-for-4, HR, RBI
- 3B Charles McAdoo: 2-for-4, 2B
- LF Hudson Head: 1-for-4, 2 SB
- RHP Wilber Dotel: 5.1 IP, 6 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 4 BB, 4 K
Nick Cimillo hit his ninth home run of the season, a three run shot in the first inning to give Greensboro an early lead. Lonnie White Jr. extended the lead to 4-0 in the fourth inning with his ninth homer of the year. Hudson Head stole two bases, including stealing home on the back end of a double steal with P.J. Hilson. Charles McAdoo remains the most consistent hitter in Greensboro. Wilber Dotel has struggled over the last month, but rebounded for his best start since May 14th. Part of his struggles have been due to walks, which were present in this game. Part of the struggles were due to home runs, which he limited this time around.
SINGLE-A: BRADENTON MARAUDERS
BRADENTON was suspended in the sixth inning of a scoreless game. It will be completed on Friday.
- RHP Carlson Reed: 5.0 IP, 3 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 8 K
I’ll recap this game in tomorrow’s Prospect Watch, but I wanted to note another great start from Carlson Reed. In two starts this month, Reed has combined for ten scoreless innings, allowing five hits, two walks, and striking out 17. He was a reliever for West Virginia, drafted in the fourth round by the Pirates last year. They’ve been converting him to a starter, and the biggest thing holding him back has been poor control in some of his starts. He walked five in four innings on May 31st, but has since put up his best stretch of control all season over the last two starts. This is also the most he’s struck out in a two-game stretch.
ROOKIE: FCL PIRATES
FCL PIRATES lost 2-0 in game one.
- SS Jhonny Severino: 1-for-4
- RHP Carlos Mateo: 3.2 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 4 BB, 6 K
- 1B Luke Scherrer: 1-for-3, SB
- CF Jhonson Pena: 0-for-2, BB, SB
- LF Miguel Sosa: 1-for-3, SB
The Pirates signed Carlos Mateo in January 2023 as an international free agent out of the Dominican Republic. He made his pro debut last season with an 18.75 ERA in 12 innings in the DSL, walking 30 batters in the process. This year he has a 9.45 ERA in 13.1 innings in the FCL, with 22 walks and 14 strikeouts. His start on Thursday saw the continuation of control problems, but also saw his career best in strikeouts.
FCL PIRATES won 9-2 in game two.
- RHP Zander Mueth: 5.0 IP, 3 H, 0 R, 2 BB, 7 K
- SS Yerry De Los Santos: 2-for-4, 3B, BB, 2 RBI
- DH John Lopez: 3-for-5, 2B, RBI
- LF Miguel Sosa: 3-for-4, 2 RBI
- C Luke Scherrer: 2-for-3, BB
Zander Mueth had the best start of his young pro career. Drafted by the Pirates with the 67th overall pick last year as a high bonus prep pick, Mueth is making his pro debut this year. His start on Thursday was the first time he went longer than four innings, while also setting a new high in strikeouts for a game. He previously struck out six batters in his debut, but allowed six unearned runs in 3.1 innings. He also struck out five batters in 3.2 innings on May 18th, going without giving up a run. John Lopez, who was drafted in the 15th round last year out of the Puerto Rican Baseball Academy, has played three games this year. In his first game since May 31st, he picked up three hits, with a double, which was the first extra base hit of his young career. Mueth and Lopez are both in their age 18 seasons.
ROOKIE: DSL PIRATES BLACK
DSL PIRATES BLACK lost 9-6
- DH Bralyn Brazoban: 1-for-3, BB, 3 R, SB
- SS Kendrick Herrera: 2-for-3, BB, RBI
- 1B Yosmar Gimenez: 2-for-4, 3 RBI
Brazoban was the top international signing by the Pirates in this year’s class, receiving one of the biggest bonuses in team history on the international side. The outfielder picked up his fifth hit of the season on Thursday, also stealing his first base. He’s played seven games so far, and is off to a slow start at the plate, with a .450 OPS.
ROOKIE: DSL PIRATES GOLD
DSL PIRATES GOLD won 8-7
- RF Angel Rodriguez: 3-for-4, HR, 2B, 2 RBI
- CF Cristian Jauregui: 1-for-1, 4 BB, 2 RBI, 3 SB
- 2B Antonio Pimentel: 1-for-4, 3B
Angel Rodriguez is in his third season in the DSL, and hit his third pro home run on Thursday. Cristian Jauregui stole three bases, giving him six on the season. He also has more walks (9) than strikeouts (7) after a four walk game. Jauregui was one of the more notable international signings last year. He had a .745 OPS in his debut, but is up to .883 in this young DSL season.
FRIDAY’S SCHEDULE
- Triple-A: Indianapolis, 7:05 PM – TBD
- Double-A: Altoona, 6:00 PM – LHP Anthony Solometo (0-4, 6.00)
- High-A: Greensboro, 7:00 PM – TBD
- Single-A: Bradenton, 4:45 PM – Completion of 6/13 Game
- Single-A: Bradenton, 6:30 PM – LHP Michael Kennedy (1-4, 4.59)
- Rookie: FCL Pirates, 6:00 PM – TBD
- Rookie: DSL Pirates Black, 11:00 AM – TBD
- Rookie: DSL Pirates Gold, 11:00 AM – TBD
