Pittsburgh Pirates rookie pitcher Jared Jones made his first rehab start for the Indianapolis Indians on Thursday, pitching 2.2 innings.
Jones allowed a walk and a two run homer to lead off the game. The home run was hit by former Pirates minor leaguer Vinny Capra, who hit two homers in the game. Jones settled down after the homer, recording eight outs in a row, with three strikeouts.
Throwing his fastball 29 times, Jones saw 92.6 MPH with the pitch, touching 97.7. He had four whiffs and four called strikes for a 28% CSW. He threw his slider eight times, getting one whiff and one called strike. Jones also threw the curveball six times and the changeup four times.
It could be a few more starts until he’s ready to return to the big leagues. The Pirates definitely shouldn’t rush him back, though he could finish his rehab by the end of the month at a conservative pace.
TRIPLE-A: INDIANAPOLIS INDIANS
INDIANAPOLIS lost 3-1
- RHP Mike Burrows: 5.0 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 2 K
- 2B Nick Yorke: 1-for-3, 2B, BB
- SS Liover Peguero: 1-for-4, 2B
- LF Jack Suwinski: 1-for-4
- CF Matt Gorski: 1-for-3
Mike Burrows entered the game in the fourth inning, and pitched the final five frames for Indianapolis. He allowed just two hits, with no walks and two strikeouts. Nick Yorke hit a double, extending his hitting streak to 12 games in Triple-A. Liover Peguero hit his 21st double of the season.
STATCAST HEROES
Burrows was sitting 94.9 MPH with his fastball, touching 96.5. He only had an 8% CSW with the pitch, but was more effective with the secondary stuff. His slider was thrown 13 times, getting six whiffs on ten swings, plus a called strike. He threw his changeup five times, getting three whiffs on four swings.
DOUBLE-A: ALTOONA CURVE
ALTOONA lost 4-2
- LHP Anthony Solometo: 1.2 IP, 2 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 2 BB, 2 K
- DH Yoyner Fajardo: 2-for-4, BB
- 1B Nick Cimillo: 2-for-4
- LF Sammy Siani: 2-for-4
- RHP J.C. Flowers: 3.1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 2 K
Anthony Solometo made his return to Altoona on Thursday, after spending nearly two months on the development list and pitching in the lower levels. He was removed in the second inning, and bailed out by J.C. Flowers, who stranded two runners with the final out. Flowers went on to record three more shutout innings. Yoyner Fajardo has a .435/.581/.609 line to start the month of August. Nick Cimillo is batting .391/.462/.609 this month. Sammy Siani has multiple hits in each of his last six games, and is batting .476/.500/.667 to start the month.
HIGH-A: GREENSBORO GRASSHOPPERS
GREENSBORO was postponed due to rain.
SINGLE-A: BRADENTON MARAUDERS
BRADENTON won 10-1
- LHP Michael Kennedy: 5.0 IP, 1 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 0 BB, 6 K, 1 HR
- 3B Jhonny Severino: 4-for-5, 2 3B, BB
- DH Duce Gourson: 1-for-4, 2B, 2 BB, RBI
- 1B Derek Berg: 2-for-4, HR, BB, 4 RBI
- RHP Luigi Hernandez: 4.0 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 3 BB, 7 K
Michael Kennedy had one of his best starts since the first six weeks of the season. He went down with an injury in mid-June, and has since returned to allow two runs in eight innings in August, with ten strikeouts and no walks. His lone hit allowed on Thursday was a solo homer. Jhonny Severino picked up four hits, including two triples. Since being called up to Single-A, the 19-year-old is batting .345 with a .923 OPS, with an active six-game hitting streak. Duce Gourson, drafted in the ninth round this year, picked up his first professional hit with a double. Derek Berg, drafted in the tenth round, also had his first professional hit. He later followed with his first home run of an inside-the-park variety, after the right fielder dove and missed the ball.
STATCAST HEROES
Kennedy was sitting 89.7 MPH with his fastball, topping out at 91. He had six whiffs and four called strikes for a 31% CSW. His slider had four whiffs and four called strikes on 19 pitches for a 42% CSW. He also threw a low-80s changeup that generated a lot of weaker contact, with an 89.6 MPH average exit velocity. Luigi Hernandez pitched four shutout innings to end the game. He had six whiffs on his four-seam, five on his slider, four on his sinker, and one on his cutter. He also threw two curveballs, giving him a five-pitch mix out of the bullpen.
ROOKIE: DSL PIRATES BLACK
DSL PIRATES BLACK lost 14-6
- 2B Frankeli Mesta: 2-for-4
- RF Iverson Allen: 2-for-4, 3B, RBI
- 3B Michell Ojeda: 2-for-3, 2B, RBI
All three of the top hitters for the Pirates in this game were signed during this year’s international class. Iverson Allen hit his second three of the season in 42 plate appearances, and now has a .728 OPS. Michell Ojeda hit his fifth double, and has a .432 on-base percentage.
ROOKIE: DSL PIRATES GOLD
DSL PIRATES GOLD won 6-4
- DH Isaias Dipre: 1-for-3, HR, 2 BB, RBI
- 1B-C Samuel Escudero: 1-for-4, BB, RBI
- RF-1B Angel Rodriguez: 1-for-4, BB, RBI
Isaias Dipre hit his fifth home run of the season. Signed back in August 2019, he’s had a rough start to his career. The pandemic delayed his debut until 2021, and he put up a .675 OPS. He improved in 2022 to hit for a .276/.359/.437 line in 206 plate appearances with three homers. Dipre missed the 2023 season with an injury. He’s returned this year to hit .301/.449/.531 in 148 plate appearances.
FRIDAY’S SCHEDULE
- Triple-A: Indianapolis, 7:35 PM – TBD
- Double-A: Altoona, 6:00 PM – TBD
- High-A: Greensboro, 6:30 PM – RHP Carlson Reed (0-0, 0.00)
- Single-A: Bradenton, 6:10 PM – TBD
- Rookie: DSL Pirates Black, 11:00 AM – TBD
- Rookie: DSL Pirates Gold, 11:00 AM – TBD
