Last year at this time, the focus of the Morning Report was on the switch-hitters in the system and their splits from each side of the plate. One of the things that really stood out was how bad Cole Tucker was doing against left-handed pitching. Here are his slash lines on this date last year:
vs LHP .143/.262/.163
vs RHP .271/.332/.371
Tucker would finish the season with a .164/.263/.194 slash line in 77 plate appearances against left-handed pitchers, so the improvement over the final few weeks was minimal. The obvious reason to mention those stats now is to see if things have improved. Those are the type of splits that turns someone into a platoon player if they continue, or they stop switch-hitting and stick with their strong side.
This season, using the split between Bradenton and Altoona, Tucker has an overall slash line of .262/.337/.381 in 93 games. The stats were a lot better in Bradenton, although he has turned into a defensive highlight reel in Altoona. Here is the breakdown of his left/right splits this season:
vs LHP .255/.355/.404 in 111 plate appearances
vs RHP .264/.331/.373 in 317 plate appearances
That’s quite a drastic turnaround for one season. He went from being much better from the left side to being better from the right side in one season.
Here is the odd part when looking at his stats. This is his fourth season of pro ball, so it makes sense to use the entire sample size, since the struggles haven’t carried over from one season to the next. As a rookie in the GCL in 2014, Tucker had a tough time versus left-handed pitching:
vs LHP .227/.292/.288 in 75 plate appearances
vs RHP .289/.409/.395 in 141 plate appearances
His stats weren’t as bad at his 2016 numbers against southpaws, but they were still well off his numbers as a lefty hitter. Then you look at the 2015 stats in West Virginia.
vs LHP .322/.364/.433 in 100 plate appearances
vs RHP .281/.304/.352 in 229 plate appearances
So just like this season, he stats against left-handed pitching improved dramatically over the previous season, to the point they were better than his right-handed stats. What does it all mean? He’s basically just inconsistent against southpaws. You hope that what he shows this season is an adjustment he made and it’s something that if he does have splits in the future that favor the right side, they aren’t as drastic as they have been during his down seasons.
** I mentioned not long ago that the Pirates didn’t have anymore prospects in the majors, completely ruining my prospect status updates. That changed in a hurry this week when they called up three players who all put in time this year already and last year. So now I can do an update finally, featuring Steven Brault, Elias Diaz and Max Moroff.
Brault pitched four innings yesterday and I’m not sure why he didn’t keep on going. He was scheduled to start in the minors, so he was going to throw more than 64 pitches. Once he reached 64 pitches though, you’re not going to be able to use him for at least a few days, so why not let him finish the blowout (which turned into a tough loss) and save the rest of the pen? Anyway, with four innings, he now has eight innings this season and 41.1 in his career. That’s exactly nine innings away from losing his prospect status. He will get that, but I’m not sure if he is just up for good now or they might want to bring up a different reliever since he isn’t going to be available for a few days.
Elias Diaz finally got a start last night, although he played half of Thursday’s game. He is going to come down to the wire I think. With five at-bats tonight, he needs 40 the rest of the way. His chances probably depend on how long Cervelli is out. It doesn’t sound like he will be out long, but I think Diaz is in the majors to stay now. That’s mostly because if he goes down after Cervelli comes back, he would need to wait ten days before he can be recalled and they are definitely going to have three catchers on the roster on September 1st.
Max Moroff hit a home run last night. Not sure if that’s the big news or that he actually played is the bigger news. He has spent a lot of time in the majors for someone who only has 65 at-bats. I can’t see any way possible he gets 66 more at-bats, and just like Diaz, he might be up for good now.
PLAYOFF PUSH
The Pirates trail in their division by 6.5 games. They are nine games back for the second wild card spot.
Indianapolis is in first place, with a 3.5 game lead. Their season ends September 4th.
Altoona is in second place, a 1/2 game back and one game ahead of third place. Their season ends September 4th.
Bradenton is in fourth place, eight games behind. Their season ends September 3rd.
West Virginia is in fourth place, 3.5 games out of first. Their season ends September 4th.
Morgantown is in first place, two games ahead. Their season ends September 7th.
Bristol has been eliminated from the playoffs.
The GCL Pirates are in third place, 5.5 games behind. Their season ends September 2nd.
The DSL Pirates are in fourth place, five games back. Their season ends August 26th.
PIRATES GAME GRAPH
Source: FanGraphs
TODAY’S SCHEDULE
Today’s Starter and Notes: The Pittsburgh Pirates lost 11-10 to the St Louis Cardinals on Friday night. The Pirates will send Chad Kuhl to the mound today for his 25th start. He has posted a 3.86 ERA in six starts since the All-Star break. At home this season, Kuhl has a 5.15 ERA in 12 starts. He has faced the Cardinals twice this year and allowed six earned runs over 11 innings. The Cardinals will counter with right-hander Michael Wacha, who has a 3.85 ERA in 121.2 innings, with 116 strikeouts and a 1.32 WHIP. He faced the Pirates back in April and allowed one run over 6.2 innings.
In the minors, Clay Holmes goes for Indianapolis tonight. He hasn’t allowed more than two earned runs in a start since June 16th. Holmes threw five no-hit innings in his last start. Altoona has a doubleheader today after a rain out yesterday. Game one starter Austin Coley ranks third in the Eastern League with a 3.11 ERA and fifth with 101 strikeouts. No starter has been named yet for the second game, though Casey Sadler is the likely choice. Ike Schlabach is scheduled to go Morgantown. The GCL starter should be Yeudry Manzanillo, with Leandro Pina seeing extended innings in relief.
MLB: Pittsburgh (58-64) vs Cardinals (63-59) 4:05 PM
Probable starter: Chad Kuhl (4.64 ERA, 52:102 BB/SO, 120.1 IP)
AAA: Indianapolis (68-56) @ Syracuse (47-78) 7:05 PM (season preview)
Probable starter: Clay Holmes (3.26 ERA, 49:89 BB/SO, 96.2 IP)
AA: Altoona (63-59) @ New Hampshire (48-73) 6:05 PM DH (season preview)
Probable starter: Austin Coley (3.11 ERA, 26:101 BB/SO, 124.1 IP) and TBD
High-A: Bradenton (65-56) @ Palm Beach (67-53) 6:30 PM (season preview)
Probable starter: Bret Helton (3.43 ERA, 34:78 BB/SO, 102.1 IP)
Low-A: West Virginia (59-61) @ Greenville (68-55) 7:05 PM (season preview)
Probable starter: Stephan Meyer (3.15 ERA, 11:9 BB/SO, 20.0 IP)
Short-Season A: Morgantown (33-23) vs Mahoning Valley (30-24) 7:05 PM (season preview)
Rookie: Bristol (11-42) vs Elizabethton (33-22) 12:00 PM
GCL: Pirates (18-28) vs Tigers West (24-23) 10:00 AM
DSL: Pirates (34-30) vs Indians/Brewers (25-37) 10:30 AM (season preview)
HIGHLIGHTS
Here is the first Bradenton home run by Stephen Alemais. This shot tied the game in the bottom of the 11th inning.
RECENT TRANSACTIONS
8/18: Wade LeBlanc placed on disabled list. Steven Brault recalled from Indianapolis.
8/18: Joey Terdoslavich activated from disabled list.
8/17: Francisco Cervelli placed on disabled list. Max Moroff recalled from Indianapolis.
8/15: Gregory Polanco placed on disabled list. Elias Diaz recalled from Indianapolis.
8/15: Austin Meadows activated from disabled list. Jackson Williams assigned to Indianapolis.
8/15: Tomas Morales activated from Altoona disabled list.
8/14: Gage Hinsz activated from disabled list. Jake Brentz assigned to Altoona and placed on disabled list.
8/12: Phil Gosselin claimed on waivers by Texas Rangers.
8/10: Jhan Marinez claimed on waivers by Texas Rangers.
8/10: Nick King assigned to GCL Pirates.
THIS DATE IN PIRATES HISTORY
Three former Pittsburgh Pirates players born on this date, plus three trades of note. Starting with the transactions, we have one that helped the 1909 World Series team. The Pirates gave up infielders Alan Storke and Jap Barbeau for third baseman Bobby Byrne. The Pirates got Byrne for his strong defense at third base, but he was also a better hitter than either player they gave up. He scored five runs during the World Series and stuck around in Pittsburgh until 1913.
In 1983, the Pirates traded catcher Steve Nicosia to the San Francisco Giants in exchange for catcher Milt May, who was a former Pirates player. Nicosia asked for a trade because he wasn’t happy about the limited playing time he was getting behind Tony Pena.
In 1988, the Pirates traded 1B/OF Mike Diaz for outfielder Gary Redus, who played on all three pennant winners from 1990-1992, spending most of his time at first base.
Players born on this date include:
Britt Reames, 2006 pitcher. Spent most of the season in the minors, getting into six games in August.
Terry Harper, 1987 outfielder. Was acquired in late June from the Detroit Tigers for two minor league players. Hit .288 in 36 games, seeing time at both corner outfield spots.
Ike McAuley, 1914-16 shortstop. Played a total of 24 games during his three seasons, occasionally taking the place of Honus Wagner, while Wagner also played third base a few times with McAuley in the lineup.
