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Prospect Watch: Keller Continues Shutout Streak; Escobar Impresses for Morgantown

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P2 Top 30

A look at how the current top 30 prospects did today. If a player is in the majors and loses his prospect eligibility, he will be removed. Everyone below him will be shifted up a spot, and a new player will be added to the bottom of the list. If a player is out for the season, he will be removed and everyone below him will move up a spot. Removing these guys doesn’t mean they have lost prospect status. It is just an attempt to get 30 active prospects on the list. Rankings are from the 2016 mid-season update, and links on each name go to their Pirates Prospects player pages.

We’re working on a solution for the PHP stat codes not working in the app.

1. Tyler Glasnow, RHP, Pirates -[insert_php]
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2. Austin Meadows, CF, Indianapolis – [insert_php]
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3. Josh Bell, 1B, Pirates – [insert_php]
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4. Kevin Newman, SS, Altoona – [insert_php]
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5. Mitch Keller, RHP, West Virginia -[insert_php]
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6. Nick Kingham, RHP, Bradenton – [insert_php]
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7.Cole Tucker, SS, Bradenton – [insert_php]
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8. Chad Kuhl, RHP, Pirates – [insert_php]
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9. Will Craig, 3B, Morgantown –  [insert_php]
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10. Steven Brault, LHP, Indianapolis – [insert_php]
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11. Ke’Bryan Hayes, 3B, West Virginia -[insert_php]
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12. Elias Diaz, C, Indianapolis – [insert_php]
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13. Clay Holmes, RHP, Altoona – [insert_php]
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14. Yeudy Garcia, RHP, Bradenton -[insert_php]
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15. Gage Hinsz, RHP, West Virginia  – [insert_php]
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16. Trevor Williams, RHP, Indianapolis – [insert_php]
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17. Alen Hanson, 2B, Indianapolis – [insert_php]
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18. Tito Polo, OF, Bradenton – [insert_php]
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 19. Stephen Tarpley, LHP, Bradenton – [insert_php]
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20. Brandon Waddell, LHP, Altoona – [insert_php]
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21. Tyler Eppler, RHP, Altoona -[insert_php]
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22. Max Moroff, 2B, Indianapolis -[insert_php]
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23. Taylor Hearn, LHP, West Virginia – [insert_php]
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24. Adrian Valerio, SS – Bristol – [insert_php]
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25. Braeden Ogle, LHP, GCL Pirates – [insert_php]
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26. Kevin Kramer, 2B, Bradenton -[insert_php]
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27. Travis MacGregor, RHP, GCL Pirates – [insert_php]
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28. Max Kranick, RHP, GCL Pirates – [insert_php]
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29. Frank Duncan, RHP, Indianapolis – [insert_php]
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30. Dovydas Neverauskas, RHP, Indianapolis – [insert_php]
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P2 Top Performers

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Prospect-Watch-Indy

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Indianapolis was eliminated from the playoffs on Wednesday afternoon in their 3-1 loss to Columbus. Austin Meadows had the lone bright spot on offense, hitting his tenth home run of the season. He became the fifth Pirate to reach double figures in doubles, triples, homers and steals in the same season since 2005. The other were Keon Broxton last year, Alen Hanson (2012 and 2014), Starling Marte in 2012 and Alex Presley in 2010.

Jacob Stalling had two hits, as Indianapolis put up just three hits in the game. Austin Meadows drew the only walk for the Indians, while the other seven hitters in the lineup went 0-for-23.

Drew Hutchison started and looked great during the first two innings with four strikeouts, then fell apart in his last three innings. He finished with three runs on four hits and five walks in five innings. That included a mammoth solo home run to Michael Choice, which was one pitch after Danny Ortiz made a great running catch at the warning track in center field. Hutchison was wild over the last three frames, which led to 94 pitches thrown in a limited outing. His fastball was 89-92 MPH all game.

A.J. Schugel threw three scoreless innings, facing the minimum. He had four strikeouts, and gave up one single, which was erased on a caught stealing.

Prospect-Watch-Altoona-Curve

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Altoona had a chance to cut their magic number to eight with a win tonight over Harrisburg, but a ninth inning comeback by the Senators kept them in the playoff race. Cody Dickson started the game and allowed one run over five innings. He had six strikeouts and a 5:3 GO/AO ratio. Jason Creasy gave up an unearned run in his only inning, then was followed by Jhondaniel Medina, who struck out the side in the seventh. After Altoona took a 3-2 lead in the eighth and Brett McKinney held that lead in the bottom of the inning, the ball was given to closer Montana DuRapau. That turned out to be a bad idea, as he gave up four singles to bring home the tying and winning runs. Instead of dropping six games back, Harrisburg moved to four games back.

Altoona could have done a better job before that ninth inning meltdown. They went 1-for-7 with runners in scoring position, left ten runners on base and they committed three errors. Edwin Espinal had the big hit in the game, doubling home two runs during a pinch-hit at-bat in the eighth. It was his 20th double of the season. Chris Stewart had a single, a walk and scored two runs. Stetson Allie had a single, a walk, a run scored and an RBI. Erich Weiss had two hits, while Eric Wood hit his 19th double.

Prospect-Watch-Bradenton

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Bradenton lost 6-1 to Jupiter on Wednesday night, as Austin Coley continued his recent struggles. He gave up four runs on six hits over four innings. Coley threw a lot of strikes on this night, with 56 of his 75 pitches going for strikes. That led to no walks and three strikeouts, as well as a nice 7:2 GO/AO ratio, but it didn’t result in a strong outing. In his last six starts combined, he has given up a total of 28 runs in 27 innings.

The offense had five hits and the only run came on a solo homer from Jordan Luplow in the seventh inning, his eighth home run of the season. He also had a single, and was the only Marauder to reach base twice. Cole Tucker had a single and his fifth stolen base, though he also committed his tenth error for Bradenton. Including his time with West Virginia, he has now made 13 errors this year, matching his total from each of his first two seasons. The positive part is that his fielding percentage has gone up each year.

Prospect-Watch-WV-Power

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West Virginia won 6-4 over Lexington, as Mitch Keller continued his strong finish to the season He threw five shutout innings, giving up three hits, two walks and he struck out seven batters. In his last four starts, Keller has thrown a total of 23 shutout innings, allowing 13 hits, four walks and 28 strikeouts. He lowered his ERA to 2.46, which now has him ranked second in the South Atlantic League. He is also fifth with 131 strikeouts (nine behind the leader) and his 0.92 WHIP ranks him first in the league. Keller has also been getting a lot of grounders during this streak, posting a 1.53 GO/AO ratio in August. That’s his best monthly mark since his first month in the GCL after he was drafted.

The Power had a 4-0 lead early before reliever Yunior Montero gave up four runs in the sixth. They won it with two in the eighth, and then Julio Eusebio pitched a scoreless ninth for his 11th save. Everyone in the Power lineup had at least one hit, except Casey Hughston, who went 0-for-4 with three strikeouts. Carlos Munoz had two hits, scored a run and picked up an RBI. Mitchell Tolman had  single, walk and two runs scored. John Bormann had an RBI double, while Daniel Arribas had an RBI single.

Prospect-Watch-Morgantown

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Luis Escobar had an impressive showing in his team’s 6-2 win on Wednesday night. He threw six shutout innings, with three hits, one walk and eight strikeouts. He needed just 76 pitches to get through his night. Escobar continued his season-long streak of allowing three earned runs or less, and he lowered his ERA to 2.51 through 57.1 innings.

This was an impressive game to watch, though I will note that even when he is at his best, he still seems to throw about ten pitches per games that are nowhere near the plate. Escobar got a lot of swing-and-misses in this game, and he was doing it with all three of his pitches. He had nice downward action on his fastball. His changeup was tough to pick up, as a few hitters were well out in front of the pitch. His curve was used as an out pitch and was nearly unhittable. Only a couple balls were hit well off of him all night, as Williamsport wasn’t squaring up the balls they were able to put into play.

Morgantown put up four runs in the first inning and never looked back. The big hit was a three-run shot from Albert Baur, his third homer of the season. Will Craig went the other way for a couple base hits and would have had a third one if the defense didn’t catch on and shift more towards first base. Kevin Krause had two walks and scored a run. He also dropped a routine fly ball in right field, allowing the batter to get to second base, which Escobar worked around. Baur finished with two hits and a walk.

Prospect-Watch-Bristol
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Bristol had one of their best offensive games just one day after being eliminated from the playoffs. They put 20 runners on base in the 6-5 win over Johnson City. The Pirates got strong starting pitching from Nicholas Economos, who threw five shutout innings. It’s the first time he has thrown five shutout innings in a game during his career, and the five strikeouts ties a career-high. Unfortunately for Economos, Geoff Hartlieb just wanted the victory more on this night. He allowed three runs to tie the score, then was the beneficiary of some timely offense to allow him to vulture the win. Jordan Jess threw two shutout innings for his sixth save.

While the Pirates did have 20 base runners, they also went 3-for-15 with runners in scoring position. Victor Fernandez had a walk, three hits and drove in two runs. Adrian Valerio also picked up three hits and he scored a run. He is 7-for-12 in his last three games. Raul Siri had two hits, a walk and a run scored. Michael de la Cruz had two hits, including his third double, which was the only Bristol extra-base hit. He scored once and had an RBI.

Prospect-Watch-GCL

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The GCL Pirates lost 6-3 to the Yankee East on Wednesday, dropping them to 20-31 on the season. Despite the poor record, they still have a chance at the playoffs with seven games left. They trail the first place Braves by four games and the two teams meet this weekend for two games. The Pirates have lost six straight games.

Max Kranick started and allowed two runs on five hits and no walks over five innings. He had four strikeouts and a 4:4 GO/AO ratio. Kranick had now pitched 30.2 innings, and along with a 2.64 ERA, he has issued just two walks. Brian Sousa followed and gave up four runs over two innings for the loss.

The Pirates had nine hits and three walks, giving them plenty of scoring chances. They got on the board in the sixth inning on a Paul Brands single, which scored Luis Benitez from the third base. Benitez had singled, stole second and moved to third on an infield hit by Boomer Synek. In the seventh inning, the Pirates got singles from Sam Kennelly and Andrew Walker to put runners on the corners. Walker moved to second on a wild pitch, then Kennelly scored on a fielding error. Walker would score the third and final run on a sacrifice fly off the bat of Synek.

Walker was the only Pirate with two hits, which included his fourth double. Yondry Contreras hit his seventh double.

Prospect-Watch-DSL

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The DSL Pirates had their game suspended due to rain in the middle of the second inning with a 0-0 score. Adonis Pichardo pitched two innings with no hits or strikeouts and two walks. Kevin Sanchez drew a walk in the first before the next three hitters were retired. They will finish the game tomorrow before playing a seven inning contest for Thursday’s regularly scheduled game.

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John Dreker
John Dreker
John started working at Pirates Prospects in 2009, but his connection to the Pittsburgh Pirates started exactly 100 years earlier when Dots Miller debuted for the 1909 World Series champions. John was born in Kearny, NJ, two blocks from the house where Dots Miller grew up. From that hometown hero connection came a love of Pirates history, as well as the sport of baseball. When he didn't make it as a lefty pitcher with an 80+ MPH fastball and a slider that needed work, John turned to covering the game, eventually focusing in on the prospects side, where his interest was pushed by the big league team being below .500 for so long. John has covered the minors in some form since the 2002 season, and leads the draft and international coverage on Pirates Prospects. He writes daily on Pittsburgh Baseball History, when he's not covering the entire system daily throughout the entire year on Pirates Prospects.

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