Billy Cook hit a grand slam for Indianapolis on Tuesday night. The home run, which was the 13th of the year in Triple-A for Cook, came with one out in the bottom of the seventh inning, turning a 4-1 game into a 5-4 victory for the Triple-A squad.
The Pirates acquired Cook at the trade deadline from Baltimore for RHP Patrick Reilly, who was drafted in the fifth round last year, and was pitching in High-A Greensboro. The 25-year-old Cook was drafted in the tenth round in 2021, and has shown some impressive power/speed results in his minor league career.
Last year at the Double-A level, Cook hit 24 homers and stole 30 bases, while putting up a .776 OPS. He’s stepped up his game in Triple-A this year, with an .857 OPS, 11 homers and 12 stolen bases in Triple-A for the Orioles, prior to the trade. He also hit a homer and stole four bases in less than a month in Double-A.
Since joining the Pirates, Cook was batting .360/.452/.680 with a home run and four stolen bases. That was prior to adding his second homer with Tuesday’s grand slam. As the Pirates continue falling out of the playoff chase in the majors, they might benefit from seeing what they have in Cook at the big league level by the end of the year.
TRIPLE-A: INDIANAPOLIS INDIANS
INDIANAPOLIS won 5-4, after the deciding grand slam by Billy Cook.
- RF Billy McKinney: 1-for-2, HR, BB, RBI
- 3B Alika Williams: 1-for-4, 3B
- C Henry Davis: 0-for-2, 2 BB, 2 SB
- RHP Fineas Del Bonta-Smith: 2.0 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 2 K
- RHP Connor Sadzeck: 1.0 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 0 K
Billy McKinney also homered, hitting a solo shot in the second inning. It was the fourth of the year in Triple-A for the outfielder. Nick Yorke saw his 15-game hitting streak end, going 0-for-4. He did reach base, and stole his seventh base of the year. Henry Davis reached base twice with a walk, and stole two bases on the night.
STATCAST HEROES
The homer from Cook traveled 422 feet at 104.3 MPH. He also had a 102 MPH flyout that traveled 394 feet. The homer from McKinney traveled 393 feet at 101.8 MPH.
DOUBLE-A: ALTOONA CURVE
ALTOONA lost 5-0
- CF Matt Fraizer: 2-for-4, 2B
- C Abrahan Gutierrez: 2-for-4
- LF Tres Gonzalez: 2-for-4
- RHP Justin Meis: 2.1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 3 K
- RHP Brad Case: 3.0 IP, 3 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 3 K
Abrahan Gutierrez extended his hitting streak to seven games on Tuesday, picking up two hits. He’s batting .306 this month, with a .705 OPS. Tres Gonzalez had a big month of July, hitting .357/.429/.393. He’s cooled a bit in August, but has hits in his last four games.
HIGH-A: GREENSBORO GRASSHOPPERS
GREENSBORO lost 8-1
- SS Termarr Johnson: 2-for-4
- 1B Josiah Sightler: 1-for-4
- LF Hudson Head: 1-for-2, BB
- RHP Alessandro Ercolani: 3.2 IP, 3 H, 2 R, 1 ER, 0 BB, 4 K
- CF Lonnie White Jr.: 0-for-3, BB, R
Greensboro went up 1-0 in the second inning, but they were down 6-1 after four. Termarr Johnson picked up two hits on the night. Hudson Head had a walk and a hit. Alessandro Ercolani pitched 3.2 innings starting in the fifth. He gave up two runs in the seventh, while striking out four in his outing.
SINGLE-A: BRADENTON MARAUDERS
BRADENTON lost 2-0
- RF Esmerlyn Valdez: 2-for-3, 2B, BB
- 1B Axiel Plaz: 2-for-4
- C Justin Miknis: 2-for-3
- RHP Zander Mueth: 3.0 IP, 3 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 3 BB, 4 K
- LHP Connor Wietgrefe: 1.0 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 3 K
Esmerlyn Valdez reached base three times on the night, hitting his 17th double of the year. Axiel Plaz and Justin Miknis each had two hits. Zander Mueth got the start, allowing two runs in his third inning of work, while walking three and striking out four. Connor Wietgrefe and Will Taylor both made their pro debuts. Wietgrefe threw a shutout inning, and Taylor went 0-for-3 with a walk.
STATCAST HEROES
Mueth threw 41 sinkers, getting five whiffs and eight called strikes for a 32% called and swinging strike rate. The pitch sat 94 MPH, touching 97. His slider had one whiff and five called strikes for a 33% CSW. He also got a whiff on three swings against his changeup, and threw one cutter. Plaz had the hardest hit of the game with a 107.5 MPH single. The double from Valdez went 102.5 MPH.
ROOKIE: DSL PIRATES BLACK
DSL PIRATES BLACK lost 11-5
- 2B Frankeli Mesta: 2-for-2
- C Javier Acevedo: 1-for-2, RBI
- SS Jayden Kim: 1-for-4, RBI
The Pirates took a 2-0 lead in the first, but allowed eight runs in the fourth inning. Frankeli Mesta, who was signed in this year’s international class, has a .730 OPS in his pro debut.
ROOKIE: DSL PIRATES GOLD
DSL PIRATES GOLD lost 5-3
- LF Isaias Dipre: 1-for-3, HR, 2 RBI
- 1B Samuel Escudero: 2-for-3, 2B
- DH Jonathan Rivero: 2-for-3, RBI
Isaias Dipre hit his seventh homer of the year, in a breakout season for the fourth-year DSL outfielder. He’s got a .309 average and a 1.034 OPS. Samuel Escudero hit his eighth double of the season. He has a .309 average with an .884 OPS.
WEDNESDAY’S SCHEDULE
- Triple-A: Indianapolis, 1:35 PM – RHP Jared Jones (0-1, 6.75)
- Double-A: Altoona, 6:00 PM – LHP Anthony Solometo (0-4, 6.49)
- High-A: Greensboro, 7:35 PM – TBD
- Single-A: Bradenton, 6:30 PM – LHP Michael Kennedy (2-5, 4.38)
- Rookie: DSL Pirates Black, TBD – TBD
