Jack Suwinski is having a great week. On Saturday night, the outfielder homered and doubled, hitting his third of each this season for Indianapolis.
It has not been a good season for Suwinski. He hit .182/.264/.324 with nine homers in the Majors. In 100 plate appearances at the Triple-A level, Suwinski has hit .180/.260/.360. This comes after season where he hit 26 homers with a .793 OPS.
In his last three starts in Triple-A, Suwinski has gone 5-for-12 with two home runs and two doubles. It’s a small sample size, but it’s the best stretch of the season for Suwinski at either level.
Suwinski broke into the majors in 2022 with a .709 OPS and 19 homers. He followed that with last year’s above-average performance. He’ll be in his age 27 season next year, but will still be a league minimum player. The Pirates will hope that he can get back to his 2023 hitting, or at worst, the 2022 rookie campaign.
The last few games from Suwinski provide a sliver of hope that he might be turning his season around and getting back on track.
TRIPLE-A: INDIANAPOLIS INDIANS
INDIANAPOLIS lost 6-3, despite the big game from Jack Suwinski.
- 2B Nick Yorke: 2-for-5
- DH Henry Davis: 1-for-5, 2 RBI
- C Jason Delay: 2-for-3, BB
- RF Edward Olivares: 1-for-3, BB
- RHP Aaron Shortridge: 5.1 IP, 9 H, 6 R, 6 ER, 1 BB, 2 K, 3 HR
Nick Yorke had his third straight multi-hit game. It was also his ninth of the month. He’s batting .370/.432/.493 with nine doubles during the month of August. Henry Davis knocked in two runs with two separate groundouts in the later innings.
STATCAST HEROES
The hardest hit of the game was a 107.7 MPH single by Edward Olivares. He also had a 102.2 MPH lineout. The homer by Suwinski traveled 410 feet at 104 MPH. His double was 101.2 MPH, and he had a 102.2 MPH flyout that traveled 389 feet. Both singles by Yorke were hit 98 MPH.
DOUBLE-A: ALTOONA CURVE
ALTOONA lost 8-4
- RHP Po-Yu Chen: 4.0 IP, 6 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 1 BB, 4 K, 1 HR
- C Carter Bins: 2-for-4, 2B, 2 RBI
- RF Matt Fraizer: 2-for-5, RBI
- DH-LF Yoyner Fajardo: 1-for-1, 2 BB
- CF Sammy Siani: 1-for-3, BB
Carter Bins had two hits, including the only extra base hit for Altoona with his eighth double of the year. Altoona scored all of their runs in the ninth inning. Two came in off the Bins double. Another scored on a wild pitch, followed by an RBI single by Matt Fraizer.
HIGH-A: GREENSBORO GRASSHOPPERS
GREENSBORO won 10-6
- CF Lonnie White Jr.: 1-for-5, HR, 3 RBI
- DH Shawn Ross: 2-for-5, HR, 2 RBI
- SS Mitch Jebb: 2-for-5, 2B, 2 SB
- C Omar Alfonzo: 2-for-4, 2B, BB, 2 RBI
- RF Hudson Head: 1-for-3, HR, BB, RBI
Greensboro won thanks to three home runs. Lonnie White Jr. hit his 14th of the season, launching a three run shot in the second inning. Hudson Head hit a solo shot in the fifth for his 13th of the year. Shawn Ross added two runs in the eighth with his 21st homer. Mitch Jebb hit his tenth double and stole two bases, giving him 37 on the season. Termarr Johnson went 0-for-4, but stole three bases, raising his total to 19. Wilber Dotel got the start, allowing four earned runs in five innings, but striking out ten batters.
SINGLE-A: BRADENTON MARAUDERS
BRADENTON won game one 3-2.
- RHP Antwone Kelly: 2.1 IP, 2 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 2 BB, 2 K
- 3B Javier Rivas: 2-for-3, HR, 2B, RBI
- 1B Esmerlyn Valdez: 1-for-3, HR, BB
- LHP Jacob Bimbi: 1.2 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 2 BB, 1 K
- RHP Luigi Hernandez: 3.1 IP, 3 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 2 K
Antwone Kelly returned from the injured list, pitching 2.1 innings in his first start in two months. Javier Rivas hit his 12th homer of the year in the fifth inning, tying the score. He also hit his 19th double. Esmerlyn Valdez hit a solo homer in the first inning, his 18th of the year. Jacob Bimbi, drafted in the 11th round this year, made his pro debut with 1.2 scoreless innings. Luigi Hernandez pitched 3.1 scoreless, and picked up the win after Keiner Delgado knocked in the go-ahead run.
STATCAST HEROES
The homer from Valdez was hit 104.9 MPH and traveled 390 feet. Rivas hit his homer 102.7 MPH with a distance of 384 feet. He also doubled at 101.4 MPH. Kelly sat 92 MPH with his fastball, touching 94.4. He had three whiffs on his changeup and two on his slider. Bimbi sat 92 MPH in his debut, touching 93.4 MPH. His sinker had three whiffs on ten swings, and his changeup had one whiff and three called strikes on 16 pitches. He also threw a slider and a four-seam fastball.
BRADENTON won game two 4-3
- RHP Celvari Tejada: 4.2 IP, 3 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 3 BB, 5 K
- 2B Duce Gourson: 3-for-3, 2B, BB, 2 RBI
- CF Will Taylor: 1-for-4, SB
- C Axiel Plaz: 1-for-2, BB, RBI
- DH Keiner Delgado: 1-for-2, BB
Clevari Tejada is having a good finish to his season. He allowed two runs in 9.2 innings in his final two starts in the FCL. He’s made five appearances since moving up to Single-A. The 19-year-old has pitched 4+ innings with one or fewer earned runs in three of those appearances. Duce Gourson, drafted in the ninth round, is off to a good start in his pro career. He’s batting .250/.455/.375 and hit his fourth double on Saturday night.
STATCAST HEROES
Tejada sat 94.1 MPH with his sinker, touching 96.1. He had six whiffs on 19 swings, with six more called strikes for a 30% CSW. His slider had three whiffs on six swings, and three called strikes for a 40% CSW. His changeup had four whiffs on six swings, with two called strikes for a 50% CSW. He threw his curveball for three called strikes (50% CSW) and got a whiff and a called strike on his two four-seam fastballs. Gourson had two hits at 97-98 MPH and another at 90 MPH.
SUNDAY’S SCHEDULE
- Triple-A: Indianapolis, 1:05 PM – RHP Luis Cessa (4-4, 4.34)
- Double-A: Altoona, 1:35 PM – LHP Anthony Solometo (0-5, 6.33)
- High-A: Greensboro, 2:00 PM – RHP Derek Diamond (5-5, 4.89)
- Single-A: Bradenton, 12:00 PM – LHP Michael Kennedy (2-5, 4.05)
