Anthony Solometo had his best start of the season on Thursday for the Bradenton Marauders. The left-hander pitched five shutout innings, allowing three hits, one walk, and striking out one.
Drafted in the second round as one of the over-slot prep players from the 2021 draft, Solometo took a step back this year in Altoona. He had control issues, with 21 walks in 33 innings, while also getting hit hard, with six homers allowed. The Pirates placed him on the development list after his start on June 14th, when he allowed three runs in three innings of work.
Solometo returned in the FCL on July 20th, throwing three shutout innings. He was moved up to Bradenton a week later, allowing three runs in 3.2 innings. He rebounded well this time around, with his most effective outing of the year.
Out of 60 pitches, Solometo threw his changeup 45 times. He had five whiffs on 25 swings, along with five called strikes. The pitch sat 88.4 MPH, touching 91.4, and was in the zone 38% of the time. He threw nine sliders, with one whiff and three called strikes. He only threw six fastballs the entire game.
Eventually, Solometo could return to Altoona, where he had a 4.35 ERA in 51.2 innings last year, along with 50 strikeouts and 14 walks. For now, it appears he’s taking a more development approach in the lower levels, and the overall results on Thursday were encouraging.
TRIPLE-A: INDIANAPOLIS INDIANS
INDIANAPOLIS won 7-3
- SS Liover Peguero: 2-for-2, 2B, BB
- 3B-1B Malcom Nunez: 2-for-3, 2 RBI
- 2B Nick Yorke: 1-for-4, 2B, 2 RBI
- RF Jack Suwinski: 1-for-3, 2B, BB, RBI
- RHP Luis Cessa: 6.0 IP, 4 H, 3 R, 2 ER, 1 BB, 5 K, 2 HR
Liover Peguero hit his 19th double of the season, and continued his recent stretch of success at the plate, reaching base three times and also contributing a sacrifice. Nick Yorke hit his ninth double at the Triple-A level, and his first since joining the Pirates organization at the trade deadline. He also made another nice play in the field, ranging far to his left to field a grounder in the grass, complete with the throw from a 360-bounce up from the sliding stop. Henry Davis went 0-for-2 with a walk, seeing his 11-game hitting streak come to an end. Davis has improved his strikeout rate as of late. While he didn’t get a hit, he also didn’t strike out, continuing another promising trend.
STATCAST HEROES
The hardest hit ball of the game was a 107.9 MPH double by Jack Suwinski. Yorke’s double went 100.3 MPH. He also had two more batted balls at 99.7 and 99.8 MPH. RHP Luis Cessa had six whiffs on 15 swings against his changeup, along with three whiffs and eight called strikes from his slider. He threw those two pitches a combined 58 times out of 90 pitches. He also threw a four-seam fastball 23 times, sitting 92.3 MPH and touching 93.7.
DOUBLE-A: ALTOONA CURVE
ALTOONA won 5-4
- RHP Emmanuel Chapman: 4.0 IP, 0 H, 1 R, 0 ER, 3 BB, 5 K
- RHP Justin Meis: 3.0 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 3 K
- 1B Nick Cimillo: 1-for-4, 2B
- DH Carter Bins: 1-for-3, BB, SB
- 3B Jackson Glenn: 1-for-3, BB, SB, RBI
Emmanuel Chapman got the start, replacing recently promoted Thomas Harrington. The Pirates signed the 25-year-old Chapman out of Cuba this past offseason. After four no-hit, shutout innings in this start, he’s got a 3.82 ERA in 35.1 innings, with a 32:14 K/BB at the Double-A level. Justin Meis closed out the game with three shutout innings. Nick Cimillo hit his second double in his last three games. The power hitter had 17 home runs with Greensboro, but has had an adjustment period since joining Altoona on July 19th. He’s gone 7-for-20 with four walks and two doubles over the last week, showing that he might be starting to adjust to the new level.
HIGH-A: GREENSBORO GRASSHOPPERS
GREENSBORO won 6-2
- 2B Termarr Johnson: 2-for-4, 2B, BB
- DH P.J. Hilson: 4-for-5, 2B, SB, 2 RBI
- C Shawn Ross: 1-for-4, 2B, BB, SB
- RHP Derek Diamond: 5.0 IP, 6 H, 2 R, 1 ER, 1 BB, 1 K
- RHP Alessandro Ercolani: 3.2 IP, 3 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 3 K
Termarr Johnson picked up two hits, including his 15th double. P.J. Hilson had a big day at the plate, with four hits, a double, a stolen base, and two RBIs. I feel like there is at least one player a week in this system who steals home on a double steal. Today it was catcher Shawn Ross, who stole home in the fourth with Hilson taking second. Derek Diamond and Alessandro Ercolani combined for 8.2 innings, allowing two runs, one earned.
SINGLE-A: BRADENTON MARAUDERS
BRADENTON lost 5-2, despite the five shutout innings from Anthony Solometo.
- DH Keiner Delgado: 2-for-3
- 3B Jhonny Severino: 1-for-3, BB
- 1B Axiel Plaz: 1-for-1, 2B
- CF Braylon Bishop: 1-for-3, RBI
- LF Enmanuel Terrero: 1-for-4, RBI
Jhonny Severino was recently promoted from the FCL, after batting .291/.373/.545 with ten home runs and 12 stolen bases. He picked up his first hit in Single-A in his second game. Axiel Plaz entered the game late, and picked up a double in his only at-bat. It was the only extra base hit. Plaz joined the team in mid-May, moving up from the FCL, and has seen his power take a step forward, with 13 homers and six doubles in 164 at-bats.
STATCAST HEROES
The double by Plaz was hit 99.6 MPH and traveled 353 feet. Severino’s hit was 99.5 MPH. RHP Garrett McMillan gave up four runs in the sixth inning, but had effective stuff in his remaining two innings. He finished with eight whiffs on 18 swings, with two each from his four-seam, sinker, and slider. He had six called strikes on the four-seam, and had an overall 42% called and swinging strike rate on 38 pitches.
ROOKIE: DSL PIRATES
Both DSL PIRATES games were suspended,
FRIDAY’S SCHEDULE
- Triple-A: Indianapolis, 7:05 PM – RHP Mike Burrows (0-0, 2.25)
- Double-A: Altoona, 6:00 PM – RHP Bubba Chandler (5-7, 3.93)
- High-A: Greensboro, 7:00 PM – RHP J.P. Massey (3-4, 5.49)
- Single-A: Bradenton, 6:30 PM – TBD
- Rookie: DSL Pirates Black, 10:00 AM – Completion of Suspended Game
- Rookie: DSL Pirates Black, Game Two – TBD
- Rookie: DSL Pirates Gold, 11:00 AM – TBD
