Liover Peguero hit his ninth homer of the year for Indianapolis on Thursday. The homer put the Triple-A squad on the board in the second inning, as the start of an eventual 7-5 victory.
Peguero has fallen on the depth charts, especially after a trade deadline that saw the Pirates add a Major League second base option in Isiah Kiner-Falefa, along with two Triple-A depth options in Nick Yorke and Billy Cook. Once seen as a top prospect for a middle infield starting job, Peguero has hit .251/.311/.401 in 342 plate appearances in Triple-A this year, while dealing with a 23.6% strikeout rate.
Things might be starting to turn around for the 23-year-old infielder. He’s picked up hits in six of his last seven games, with three home runs during that stretch. He homered on July 24th, hit another on the 27th, and launched the third last night. Peguero is still dealing with strikeout issues, with as many strikeouts as hits during this stretch, getting eight each.
There is still time for Peguero to get back on track as a future Major League player, but he’s got even more competition today than he did at the start of the season. He lost out the second base job to Jared Triolo in camp, and saw Nick Gonzales eventually move up to take over the role. Now, he’s got one more option in the majors, and two more in Triple-A. That could push him to improve from what has been a disappointing season with Indianapolis.
TRIPLE-A: INDIANAPOLIS INDIANS
INDIANAPOLIS won 7-5
- DH Henry Davis: 2-for-3, BB
- LF Edward Olivares: 1-for-3, HR, BB, RBI
- 2B Nick Yorke: 1-for-3, RBI
- 1B Jose Rojas: 2-for-4, HR, 2B, 2 RBI
- RHP Isaac Mattson: 4.0 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 5 K
Every member of the Indianapolis starting lineup had at least one hit. Nick Yorke made his debut in the Pirates’ system, picking up an RBI single and making a nice diving stop in the field at second base. Edward Olivares hit his first homer in Triple-A. Recently signed veteran Jose Rojas hit his 19th homer of the year in Triple-A, with his 15th double. Henry Davis extended his hitting streak to 11 games, and finished the month of July batting .359/.414/.578 with three homers.
STATCAST HEROES
After Nick Dombkowski opened the game with a scoreless first, Isaac Mattson came on to pitch four shutout innings. Mattson sat 92.9 MPH with his fastball, touching 5. He had four whiffs on 16 swings, with five called strikes. His slider added two more whiffs, and he threw his changeup for strikes. Mattson mostly works off the fastball/slider combo, and has a 3.99 ERA in 38.1 innings in Triple-A this year, with 51 strikeouts and 25 walks.
DOUBLE-A: ALTOONA CURVE
ALTOONA won 9-7
- LF Tres Gonzalez: 3-for-4, 2B, 2 RBI
- 2B Kervin Pichardo: 2-for-4, BB
- CF Sammy Siani: 2-for-4, 2 RBI
- 1B Nick Cimillo: 2-for-4, BB, 2 RBI
- LHP Jaden Woods: 2.0 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 2 K
Every member of the Altoona starting lineup had at least one hit. Tres Gonzalez finished the month of July with a seven game hitting streak, batting .357 with a .429 on-base percentage during the month. The outfielder doesn’t hit for power, but makes good swing decisions, with good plate patience, and the defense at the corners. Jaden Woods pitched two shutout innings, picking up the win after Nick Cimillo’s RBI single in the eighth inning gave Altoona the lead.
HIGH-A: GREENSBORO GRASSHOPPERS
GREENSBORO lost 4-0
- LHP Dominic Perachi: 5.0 IP, 5 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 0 BB, 7 K
- 2B Termarr Johnson: 1-for-4
- LF P.J. Hilson: 1-for-4
- SS Mitch Jebb: 0-for-3, BB, SB
- RHP Valentin Linarez: 2.0 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 2 K
Dominic Perachi finished his month of July with a 2.33 ERA in 27 innings for Greensboro, along with a 33:3 K/BB. He’s been pitching well at this level all season, posting a 2.08 ERA in 73.2 innings, with an 81:19 K/BB. Perachi got the call to Altoona as depth earlier in the season, and could be a candidate to move back up before the end of the year. Mitch Jebb stole his 29th base of the season. Greensboro only had two hits in the game.
SINGLE-A: BRADENTON MARAUDERS
BRADENTON lost 9-8
- RHP Zander Mueth: 2.0 IP, 1 H, 3 R, 2 ER, 4 BB, 1 K
- RF Shalin Polanco: 2-for-4, 2 2B, BB, 2 RBI
- SS Yordany De Los Santos: 1-for-4, BB, 2 RBI
- 2B Keiner Delgado: 1-for-4, BB, RBI
- LF Braylon Bishop: 1-for-4, RBI
Zander Mueth made his debut in Single-A, after a successful season in the FCL. I wrote about Mueth recently over at Baseball America. Yordany De Los Santos made his return to Single-A, picking up a two RBI single. Shalin Polanco had two doubles, giving him 14 on the season.
STATCAST HEROES
Mueth threw 24 sinkers, averaging 93.2 MPH and topping out at 95.6. He had some control issues, only throwing 38% of those pitches in the zone, but picking up six called strikes on the pitch. His slider sat mid-80s, with one whiff on five swings, and two called strikes. He threw three changeups and two hitters, both mid-80s pitches.
ROOKIE: DSL PIRATES BLACK
DSL PIRATES BLACK won 12-3
- SS Deshandro Tromp: 2-for-3, HR, 4 RBI
- 3B Yosmar Gimenez: 2-for-5, 2 RBI, SB
- 2B-SS Jayden Kim: 3-for-4, RBI
Deshandro Tromp hit a grand slam in the fourth inning, for his first career home run. The Pirates signed Tromp as part of the 2024 international class. Yosmar Gimenez stole his fourth base, getting two hits from the leadoff spot. Jayden Kim was signed in December out of Korea. He’s had a consistent .457 OBP during both months of his first pro season.
THURSDAY’S SCHEDULE
- Triple-A: Indianapolis, 7:05 PM – TBD
- Double-A: Altoona, 6:00 PM – TBD
- High-A: Greensboro, 7:00 PM – RHP Derek Diamond (5-3, 5.01)
- Single-A: Bradenton, 6:30 PM – TBD
- Rookie: DSL Pirates Black, 11:00 AM – TBD
- Rookie: DSL Pirates Gold, 11:00 AM – TBD
