Mike Burrows made his return to Triple-A on Thursday night. Burrows went down with Tommy John after his start on April 8th last year, and has been rehabbing this year since June 17th.
Burrows tossed four innings, allowing one run on four hits, with no walks and five strikeouts in his return. The return to Triple-A went well, but also provided an opportunity to see the Statcast data of Burrows against upper-level competition.
- His fastball averaged 94.8 MPH, touching 95.9. He had one whiff and three called strikes on the pitch, with 24 fastballs pacing his outing. His secondary offerings stood out, with results from the slider and changeup.
- The slider had three whiffs in ten swings, with five called strikes. He had a 40% called and swinging strike rate on 20 sliders.
- He threw 12 changeups, with a 58% CSW, getting two whiffs and seven called strikes.
- Burrows also threw four curveballs, getting one strike from the pitch.
This was the second time in his rehab that Burrows went four innings. The Pirates will likely limit his innings the remainder of the season. Most pitchers returning from Tommy John are limited to four inning starts, although a few have been allowed to go longer toward the end of their return season.
The start from Burrows is promising for his potential to be a depth option in the Major League rotation in 2025.
TRIPLE-A: INDIANAPOLIS INDIANS
INDIANAPOLIS won 7-2, led by the start from Mike Burrows.
- RHP Aaron Shortridge: 4.0 IP, 1 H, 1 R, 0 ER, 1 BB, 6 K
- SS Alika Williams: 3-for-3, 2B, 2 BB
- 1B Jake Lamb: 1-for-2, 2B, 2 BB, 3 RBI
- 3B Malcom Nunez: 3-for-5, 2 RBI, SB
- RF Matt Gorski: 2-for-3, BB
Aaron Shortridge pitched four innings after Burrows, allowing one unearned run and striking out six. Shortridge returned from Tommy John in 2022, and pitched his first full season last year, arriving in Triple-A by the end of the year. This season has been delayed with an injury, but Shortridge now has allowed one earned run in eight innings across two appearances in Triple-A. Indianapolis scored four runs in the third inning, after a two RBI double from Jake Lamb and a two RBI single by Malcom Nunez.
STATCAST HEROES
Shortridge had four whiffs on 12 swings against his fastball, which averaged 90.8 MPH and topped out at 92.9. He had two whiffs on his cutter, and four on his slider. The two hardest hit balls of the game came from Matt Gorski, who hit singles of 113.3 MPH and 107.7 MPH.
DOUBLE-A: ALTOONA CURVE
ALTOONA lost 5-4
- RHP Po-Yu Chen: 7.0 IP, 5 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 0 BB, 3 K
- 1B Nick Cimillo: 2-for-4
- LF Tres Gonzalez: 2-for-4
- RF Jase Bowen: 1-for-3, 2B, BB, SB
- 3B Charles McAdoo: 1-for-5, SB, RBI
Po-Yu Chen has been one of the best pitchers in the system during the month of July. He has a 1.00 ERA in 27 innings, with a 24:5 K/BB ratio. He’s pitched seven innings with one earned run three different times, with his other start being a six shutout inning appearance. Chen has a 2.13 ERA in 67.2 innings since May 26th. Nick Cimillo had his first multi-hit game in Double-A, and has hits in three of his last four games.
HIGH-A: GREENSBORO GRASSHOPPERS
GREENSBORO won 12-3
- LHP Dominic Perachi: 6.0 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 11 K
- 2B Mitch Jebb: 3-for-4, BB, 2 RBI
- SS Jack Brannigan: 3-for-4, HR, 2B, 4 RBI
- 1B Josiah Sightler: 1-for-4, HR, BB, 2 RBI
- 3B Maikol Escotto: 2-for-4, HR, 3 RBI
Dominic Perachi has a 1.97 ERA in 68.2 innings this year in Greensboro. He was moved up to Altoona in May for depth, and has been pitching consistently well since returning. Perachi has a 2.31 ERA in 58.1 innings since May 14th, with a 67:15 K/BB. Jack Brannigan hit his 17th homer and his 13th double. This was the second game in a row that he’s homered, and his seventh homer of the month. Josiah Sightler hit his fourth homer in the last week. Termarr Johnson was hitless, ending his hitting streak at 17 games.
SINGLE-A: BRADENTON MARAUDERS
BRADENTON lost 5-3
- RHP Carlson Reed: 5.0 IP, 2 H, 2 R, 0 ER, 2 BB, 9 K
- 2B Keiner Delgado: 2-for-4, BB, SB
- LF Enmanuel Terrero: 2-for-3, HR, BB
- CF Braylon Bishop: 2-for-5
- DH Justin Miknis: 1-for-2, BB
Carlson Reed has a 2.43 ERA in 77.2 innings this year with Bradenton. The encouraging thing is that he’s cut down his walks over the last two months, with 16 walks in 38 innings. By comparison, he walked 16 in 24 innings during the month of May. He tied his career high in strikeouts in this start, previously set on June 6th in a five shutout inning start. Enmanuel Terrero hit his third homer of the year. Keiner Delgado stole his 15th base of the year.
STATCAST HEROES
Reed had six whiffs on his four-seam fastball, which averaged 94 MPH and topped out at 96. He had seven whiffs on his slider and five whiffs on his changeup. The home run from Terrero traveled 394 feet at 102.7 MPH.
ROOKIE: FCL PIRATES
FCL PIRATES won 9-3
- RHP Zander Mueth: 3.2 IP, 5 H, 3 R, 1 ER, 4 BB, 5 K, 1 HR
- SS Yerry De Los Santos: 2-for-4, 3 SB
- 3B Jhonny Severino: 2-for-4, 2B
- 2B Carlos Caro: 2-for-3, 2B, BB, SB
- LF-CF Estuar Suero: 2-for-3, BB, RBI
The FCL Pirates clinched the post-season, and will play a one-game semi-final on Saturday. Yerry De Los Santos stole three bases, giving him 24 on the season. He’s batting .344 with a .912 OPS. Jhonny Severino hit his 12th double of the year. Carlos Caro hit his eighth double and stole his ninth base, stealing home on the back end of a double steal with De Los Santos.
ROOKIE: DSL PIRATES BLACK
DSL PIRATES BLACK won 2-1
- 3B Frankeli Mesta: 2-for-3
- RF Angel Aquino: 1-for-3, RBI
- RHP Bladimir Pichardo: 3.2 IP, 2 H, 1 R, 0 ER, 3 BB, 3 K
Bladimir Pichardo is in his second DSL season, showing improvements on his walk rate. He walked 21 in 27 innings last year. This year he has a 3.18 ERA in 22.2 innings, with only eight walks.
ROOKIE: DSL PIRATES GOLD
DSL PIRATES GOLD lost 5-4
- 1B Samuel Escudero: 2-for-3, 2B, RBI
- C Angel Perez: 1-for-3, HR, 3 RBI
- RF Angel Rodriguez: 2-for-3, SB
Angel Perez hit his first homer of the year. Angel Rodriguez stole his fourth base. Samuel Escudero has a .966 OPS in his fourth season in the DSL, with this being his first year above an .800 OPS.
FRIDAY’S SCHEDULE
- Triple-A: Indianapolis, 8:08 PM – RHP Jake Woodford (1-5, 4.16)
- Double-A: Altoona, 6:35 PM – RHP Thomas Harrington (2-2, 2.44)
- High-A: Greensboro, 6:30 PM – RHP Derek Diamond (5-2, 4.45)
- Single-A: Bradenton, 6:30 PM – LHP Anthony Solometo (0-0, -.–)
- Rookie: FCL Pirates OFF
- Rookie: DSL Pirates Black, 11:00 AM – TBD
- Rookie: DSL Pirates Gold, 11:00 AM – TBD
