Ignoring the walkoff loss late Friday night, I think the Pittsburgh Pirates got one positive sign in the opening game of their series with the Giants. In his latest MLB start, Quinn Priester tossed six shutout innings.
The 2019 first round pick had a 7.74 ERA in ten appearances in the Majors last year. He made his first start of the season one week ago, allowing five runs, four earned, in 4.1 innings. Friday night’s start was not only the best of Priester’s brief MLB career, but the first time in 12 appearances that he didn’t allow a run.
What stood out the most was the swing and miss. Priester was missing more bats early in the season with Indianapolis, with 20 whiffs in his debut on March 31st, and 17 more in his final start before the callup on April 13th. On Friday night, Priester led all pitchers on both sides of the contest with 14 whiffs. The breakdown of his pitches:
Priester led with the slider, getting 6 whiffs on 14 swings (43%), along with 3 called strikes for a 35% called and swinging strike rate (CSW%) on 26 pitches.
The sinker was his next used pitch, getting a lower whiff rate (3-for-14, 21%), but five called strikes for an overall 33% CSW on 24 pitches.
Priester’s curveball led to two whiffs on six swings (33%), with three more called strikes for a 42% CSW on 12 pitches.
The four-seam fastball was thrown 12 times, getting two whiffs on four swings (50%), with two more called strikes for a 33% CSW.
His changeup was thrown ten times, getting one whiff on five swings (20%), along with two swinging strikes for a 30% CSW.
Priester had a 25.8% CSW last season, and that was due to a higher called strike rate, rather than a high amount of swinging strikes. He was 30% or higher on all five of his pitches on Friday night, while showing improved control.
The most encouraging thing was the composure from Priester. There were times in the past where he allowed hits, or got into big situations, and you could see the frustration on his face, or the uncontrolled intensity of the moment which ultimately led to him angrily reacting to runs allowed. In his latest start, Priester maintained composure, channeling all of that energy into his attack plan.
In the second, he allowed a leadoff single, but struck out the next two batters. In the sixth inning, he allowed a single and a walk with one outs, before getting a big strikeout against Jorge Soler, and a groundout against Michael Conforto to end his shutout appearance. These were moments that would have spiraled on Priester in the past.
The Pirates ended up losing 3-0 on a walk off home run by Patrick Bailey against David Bednar. The offense had plenty of scoring chances, including a man on third and one out in the top of the ninth. They went 0-for-7 with runners in scoring position, leaving 11 men on base.
Single-A: Bradenton, 6:30 PM – LHP Michael Kennedy (0-1, 4.50)
PIRATES PROSPECTS DAILY
I didn’t publish a daily feature on Friday, as the second day of a migraine led me to take most of the day off. I’ll finish what I had and publish this weekend. Look for Saturday Sleepers on the site at noon.
Subscribe to Pirates Prospects Daily below for free, and get these Pittsburgh Pirates updates delivered to your inbox.
THIS WEEK ON PIRATES PROSPECTS
This week’s premium article drop for Patreon subscribers looks at players in Single-A with the Bradenton Marauders. Like every other level, this group is highlighted by interesting pitchers. There are also some hitters to follow on the position player side, which I broke down in my premium column.
**Williams: Pirates Prospects Sleepers to Follow in Single-AMichael Kennedy was an over-slot prep pick in the fourth round of the 2022 draft. The lefty is in his first full-season league in pro ball, and showed promise this past weekend with an eight strikeout performance.
**Michael Kennedy Shows Path to Big Leagues With Eight Strikeout PerformanceKhristian Curtis has a six pitch mix, despite not having a lot of time on the mound in his pitching career. The Pirates gave him an over-slot bonus as a 12th rounder last year, giving them the chance to develop his arsenal.
**Khristian Curtis Features Big Stuff From a Six Pitch MixCarlson Reed is showing promise in his early results with Bradenton. The West Virginia draftee has a 2.45 ERA in his first three starts this year, after being taken in the fourth round last year.
**West Virginia Pitcher Carlson Reed is Off to a Great Start With the Pirates
Relievers aren’t usually prospects in the lower levels, but Magdiel Cotto is a lefty who can get his fastball up to 95. The Pirates went over-slot on him in the 11th round last year, and he’s showing good results as a reliever in the 2024 season.
**Magdiel Cotto is an Over-Slot Lefty With a Fastball That Gets Up to 95
The Pirates traded for Connor Oliver at the start of the season, getting something in return for Colin Selby. This marks his sixth different organization since the start of 2020, with hopes that the Pirates can develop the lefty into an MLB option.
**Connor Oliver Remains on the Move With Trade to Pirates
The decision to move former reliever Carlson Reed to the rotation continues to look like a good one. The Pirates drafted Reed in the fourth round last season, after he put up a 2.61 ERA in 38 innings of relief with West Virginia University. After 4.2 shutout innings on Friday night, Reed has a 1.72 ERA in four starts with the Bradenton Marauders.
The Single-A level might be too low for Reed’s experience level pitching in college. It’s probably a more comfortable setting for him to convert back to the rotation and build up innings. It also comes with the added bonus of Statcast data.
Reed allowed three hits, two walks, and struck out five in his 4.2 scoreless innings. He was sitting 93.6 MPH with the sinker, touching 95.6, and hitting 96.3 MPH with the four-seam fastball. He picked up 12 whiffs on the night, with most of them coming off the slider and changeup. Both pitches sit mid-80s. The slider had five whiffs on eight swings, with seven more called strikes for a 55% called and swinging strike rate (CSW%). The changeup had four whiffs on six swings, plus one called strike for a 36% CSW. His sinker had three whiffs, but is more of a contact pitch, getting a 17% CSW. The four-seam was also at 17%.
The concern for Reed has been his ability to control three pitches that grade average or better — with at least two above-average offerings. His ability to throw the slider for strikes, while also getting swing and miss from the pitch, will help him stay ahead of pro hitters. I wrote about Reed this past week in the latest premium article drop.
Reed’s performance led a 1-0 shutout in Bradenton on Friday.
PIRATES PROSPECT WATCH
INDIANAPOLIS was postponed due to wet grounds.ALTOONA lost 6-2
RHP Braxton Ashcraft allowed four runs on six hits in five innings of work. He walked one and struck out five. In his first full season returning from Tommy John, this was the first time Ashcraft went five innings since May 20, 2021 when he was with Greensboro.
C Abrahan Gutierrez went 1-for-3 with a walk.
SS Tsung-Che Cheng went 1-for-3 with a walk.
RF Jase Bowen went 1-for-4 with an RBI.
CF Tres Gonzales went 1-for-4.
GREENSBORO won 4-2.
RHP J.P. Massey allowed two runs on seven hits in five innings of work. He struck out seven batters and walked one.
LHP Luis Peralta pitched 2.1 perfect innings, striking out five of the seven batters he faced. Peralta has now pitched 8.2 shutout innings with 20 strikeouts.
CF Sammy Siani went 1-for-2 with two walks and an RBI.
2B Mitch Jebb went 1-for-5 with two RBI and a stolen base.
SS Termarr Johnson went 1-for-3 with two walks.
BRADENTON won 1-0 after 4.2 shutout from Carlson Reed.
CF P.J. Hilson went 2-for-3 with a two out homer in the eighth. He also doubled.
C Garret Forrester had the only other hit for the game for Bradenton, also drawing a walk.
RHP Tyler Kennedy pitched a shutout inning, allowing two walks and striking out two.
LHP Yoldin De La Paz pitched two perfect innings with a strikeout.
RHP Landon Tomkins pitched a shutout inning, allowing one hit and striking out one.
STATCAST HEROES
P.J. Hilson had the two furthest hit balls of the game, with a 102.5 MPH double that went 330, and a 101.8 MPH home run that went 405. STATS
TOMORROW’S SCHEDULE
Triple-A: Indianapolis, 7:05 PM – LHP Eric Lauer (2-0, 2.37)
The Pirates couldn’t hold the lead against the Brewers on Thursday, dropping the final game 7-5 to split a four game series.
Milwaukee got on the board immediately against Mitch Keller with a solo homer in the top of the first. The Pirates responded in the bottom half of the inning with a home run of their own, this time a three run shot by Joey Bart.
The Brewers added two more runs in the third, tying the score. They took the lead in the fifth inning on a Rhys Hoskins double. The Pirates once again answered in the bottom half, picking up an RBI double from Jack Suwinski, and a sac fly RBI by Jared Triolo to take a 5-4 lead.
That lead looked safe until the 8th inning, when Gary Sanchez hit a two run homer off Aroldis Chapman, giving the Brewers a lead they would not relinquish. They added an insurance run in the ninth for good measure.
The loss for the Pirates continues an early trend of the bullpen losing leads late in games. The Pirates have won some games in this manner, but the bullpen was expected to be a strength, so the losses stand out.
STATCAST HEROES
The minor league Statcast Heroes can be found in the nightly Pirates Prospect Watch.
DAILY VIDEO RUNDOWN
Joey Bart hits his third home run with the Pirates.
https://twitter.com/Pirates/status/1783539599672803804
Ji Hwan Bae homered in Indianapolis.
https://twitter.com/indyindians/status/1783644295083213183
Jack Brannigan hit his third homer of the year for Greensboro.
As seen above, Jack Brannigan homered for the second day in a row. He also hit a double tonight in an 11-1 Greensboro victory. I recapped Brannigan’s performance, along with all of the other highlights, in the nightly Pirates Prospect Watch.
ROSTER MOVES
RHP Ryder Ryan was optioned to Indianapolis after the game. The Pirates will call up another player on Friday before the game.
RHP Brad Case was sent up to Indianapolis from Altoona, after putting up a 3.18 ERA in 11.1 innings, with a 9:2 K/BB ratio.
LHP Dominic Perachi was promoted from Greensboro to Altoona. Perachi pitched 10.1 shutout innings in Greensboro, with seven strikeouts and four walks. He allowed three runs in three innings during his Altoona debut.
The Pirates released outfielder Jack Herman. The outfielder was batting .176/.236/.216 with 26 strikeouts in 51 at-bats in Single-A.
TODAY: PIRATES (13-13) AT GIANTS (12-14)
Game Time: 10:15 PM EDT
Watch: SportsNet-PIT
Listen: KDKA-FM 93.7
Pirates Starter: Quinn Priester, RHP (0-1, 8.31)
Giants Starter: Kyle Harrison, LHP (2-1, 5.00)
In the Minors…
Triple-A: Indianapolis, 7:35 PM – LHP Michael Plassmeyer (1-3, 6.86)
The Pirates have two catchers taken at the top of the draft in 2021 first overall pick Henry Davis, and 2018 second overall pick Joey Bart. The Pirates got Bart after he struggled in San Francisco. Davis is struggling in the same way, and the Pirates aren’t doing him any favors with the usage. I wrote about the comparison of the two catchers, and how the Pirates are expecting too much right away from Davis.
Subscribe to Pirates Prospects Daily below for free, and get these Pittsburgh Pirates updates delivered to your inbox.
THIS WEEK ON PIRATES PROSPECTS
This week’s premium article drop for Patreon subscribers looks at players in Single-A with the Bradenton Marauders. Like every other level, this group is highlighted by interesting pitchers. There are also some hitters to follow on the position player side, which I broke down in my premium column.
**Williams: Pirates Prospects Sleepers to Follow in Single-AMichael Kennedy was an over-slot prep pick in the fourth round of the 2022 draft. The lefty is in his first full-season league in pro ball, and showed promise this past weekend with an eight strikeout performance.
**Michael Kennedy Shows Path to Big Leagues With Eight Strikeout PerformanceKhristian Curtis has a six pitch mix, despite not having a lot of time on the mound in his pitching career. The Pirates gave him an over-slot bonus as a 12th rounder last year, giving them the chance to develop his arsenal.
**Khristian Curtis Features Big Stuff From a Six Pitch MixCarlson Reed is showing promise in his early results with Bradenton. The West Virginia draftee has a 2.45 ERA in his first three starts this year, after being taken in the fourth round last year.
**West Virginia Pitcher Carlson Reed is Off to a Great Start With the Pirates
Relievers aren’t usually prospects in the lower levels, but Magdiel Cotto is a lefty who can get his fastball up to 95. The Pirates went over-slot on him in the 11th round last year, and he’s showing good results as a reliever in the 2024 season.
**Magdiel Cotto is an Over-Slot Lefty With a Fastball That Gets Up to 95
The Pirates traded for Connor Oliver at the start of the season, getting something in return for Colin Selby. This marks his sixth different organization since the start of 2020, with hopes that the Pirates can develop the lefty into an MLB option.
**Connor Oliver Remains on the Move With Trade to Pirates
Jack Brannigan showed some power tonight in Greensboro, as part of an 11-1 victory by the Pittsburgh Pirates High-A squad. Brannigan went 2-for-5, hitting a double and a home run, with each being his third of the season.
After Mitch Jebb led things off with a walk, Brannigan connected for a double to center field, putting the Grasshoppers up 1-0. Nick Cimillo later broke open the inning with a three run homer. Brannigan led off the third inning with a solo homer of his own, making the score 5-0 by that point.
On the season, Brannigan is now batting .250/.391/.481. His power results are down, but his strikeout rate is also down. Brannigan did strike out in his next three at-bats, but he entered the game with a 15.3% strikeout rate, down from 33.5% in High-A last season.
I wrote about Brannigan at the start of the season, highlighting his plus defense at third base, along with his adjustment to help eliminate swing and miss.
PIRATES PROSPECT WATCH
INDIANAPOLIS lost 5-4
2B Ji Hwan Bae went 2-for-5 with a home run, his second of the season.
1B Jake Lamb also homered, hitting his third of the year for his only hit of the day.
RF Canaan Smith-Njigba went 2-for-4.
LF Gilberto Celestino also went 2-for-4.
CF Matt Gorski went 1-for-4 with his second double of the year.
ALTOONA lost 4-0
RHP Sean Sullivan pitched five innings, allowing one run on two hits. Sullivan walked two and struck out three. His ERA dropped to 3.06 on the season.
CF Matt Fraizer went 2-for-5 with a double.
DH Seth Beer went 1-for-2 with two walks.
2B Kervin Pichardo went 1-for-3 with a walk.
SS Tsung-Che Cheng didn’t pick up a hit, but walked three times.
GREENSBORO won 11-1, with help from Jack Brannigan’s homer and double.
RHP Patrick Reilly received a four run lead before he took the mound, and he never let the other team on the board. Reilly pitched five shutout innings, allowing two hits, two walks, and striking out eight. I wrote about Reilly last week as a pitching prospect to follow in the lower levels.
DH Nick Cimillo went 3-for-4 with a three run homer.
C Geovanny Planchart hit a grand slam in the fifth inning, putting Greensboro up 10-0 at the time.
CF Hudson Head went 2-for-5 with a triple.
2B Mitch Jebb went 1-for-4 with a double and a walk.
BRADENTON lost 5-4
3B Garret Forrester picked up two hits, including his fourth double of the year.
LHP Connor Oliver pitched 2.2 shutout innings, with two hits, a walk, and a strikeout. I wrote about Oliver this week, who the Pirates added in a trade earlier in the month.
1B Juan Jerez went 1-for-4 with a double and two RBI.
LF Esmerlyn Valdez went 1-for-3. I wrote about Valdez as a young hitter to watch earlier this week.
RF Solomon Maguire, recent added to the roster, went 1-for-4.
STATCAST HEROES
Despite two exit velocities over 100 MPH, Nick Gonzales went 0-for-4, ending his 14-game hitting streak. This was also the first time all season, spanning 22 games, that he didn’t reach base safely. STATS
RHP Antwone Kelly allowed one earned run and two more unearned in four innings. He gave up six hits and walked four. The velocity and swing and miss has been there for Kelly, but he gets hit hard consistently. STATS
TOMORROW’S SCHEDULE
Triple-A: Indianapolis, 7:35 PM – LHP Michael Plassmeyer (1-3, 6.86)
The problem with the Pirates development can be seen with the comparison of Joey Bart and Henry Davis.
Bart was the second overall pick in 2018. He made his MLB debut in 2020 with the Giants. Davis is the first overall pick from 2021. He made his MLB debut in 2023 with the Pirates. Both had similar timelines to the majors. Both had lofty projections as catchers with impact bats that made them high picks.
These teams took a different approach with their catcher of the future.
The Giants had Bart batting 7th through 9th in the order. Very rarely did he get a start batting sixth. Thursday’s start with the Pirates, where Bart is batting cleanup, is the first game in his MLB career that Bart has started higher than 5th in the order — which was another game with the Pirates. He only started batting 6th with the Giants a total of four times.
Compare that to Davis, who was called up by the Pirates and spent most of his first month in the Majors as the number five hitter. Davis has 32 career MLB starts batting 5th, six batting cleanup, nine batting third, and two games where he set the pace of the offense batting leadoff.
This happens frequently with the Pirates. They call up a top prospect who could be “the future”, but they expect the future to arrive instantly, and put the prospect in a high profile role.
The rest of this post is for Pirates Prospects subscribers!
Six weeks ago, Pirates Prospects returned as a solo project. Since that point, this article is the 122nd that I’ve posted. If you’re doing the math at home, that’s an average of about three articles per day over a little more than a month of daily publishing.
At this point, the site is publishing almost four articles per day.
Every day features two recap-style articles. The nightly Pirates Prospect Watch recaps the action in the minor league system. This article, Pirates Prospects Daily, recaps the happenings in the entire organization, and doubles as a free daily newsletter. These two articles are reactionary to the events that take place, and they don’t take a lot of time to produce. I could produce this type of content on the side from a full-time job, and I’m saying that as a person who has been running this site full-time for over a decade.
From there, I have been producing 12 “premium” articles per week. Six of these articles are released in an article drop form every Tuesday. The other six are released as individual features every other day of the week at noon. These are “premium” features due to the amount of time and effort put into them, compared to the nightly recaps. These articles lead to about 100-150 hours of work per month on my end.
Until today, only the article drops required a subscription. Starting today, a subscription to Pirates Prospects on Patreon will be the only way you can access these premium articles. This includes every column I write, every player feature and scouting note, and basically every article that isn’t the Pirates Prospect Watch or P2Daily.
The goal is to get paid for my work, and my time. Your subscription pays for less than one meal per month. I need over 100 subscribers just to stay alive each month with sustenance. The site needs almost 200 subscribers to pay the server fees and avoid all of the hacking attempts we received right before last year’s MLB draft. After 300 subscribers, the site stays online, and I can feed myself with no other expenses covered. Ultimately, I need 1,000 subscribers per year in order to continue doing this full-time.
You can support the effort, and get access to all of my work on this site, with a Patreon subscription.
PIRATES LOSE TO BREWERS
The Pirates dropped a 3-2 contest to the Milwaukee Brewers. They were playing a bullpen game, sending Josh Fleming to the mound for the start. Fleming pitched 2.1 scoreless frames, before Luis Ortiz entered the game and allowed three runs in the third. The Pirates scored two on a Bryan Reynolds home run, but pitching ruled the rest of the game on each side, leaving all of the scoring in the third inning.
STATCAST HEROES
The home run from Reynolds traveled 402 feet with a 103.1 MPH exit velocity. STATSThe minor league Statcast Heroes can be found in the nightly Pirates Prospect Watch.
DAILY VIDEO RUNDOWN
Bryan Reynolds tried to get the Pirates back in the action, cutting the Brewers lead to one run with this two run homer.
Paul Skenes pitched into the fifth inning on Wednesday, while Bubba Chandler didn’t make it out of the first. Read all about their outings and more in the latest Pirates Prospect Watch.
TODAY: PIRATES (13-12) VS BREWERS (15-8)
Game Time: 12:35 PM EDT
Watch: SportsNet-PIT
Listen: KDKA-FM 93.7
Pirates Starter: Mitch Keller, RHP (2-2, 4.80)
Brewers Starter: Freddy Peralta, RHP (2-0, 1.90)
In the Minors…
Triple-A: Indianapolis, 7:05 PM – TBD
Double-A: Altoona, 6:00 PM – RHP Sean Sullivan (0-2, 3.55)
High-A: Greensboro, 7:05 PM – RHP Patrick Reilly (0-1, 6.17)
Single-A: Bradenton, 6:30 PM – RHP Antwone Kelly (0-2, 11.70)
PIRATES PROSPECTS DAILY
This week’s Statcast Heroes, which is now a premium article, looks at the whiffs from Jared Jones and Bailey Falter, last week’s Paul Skenes start, the success from Eric Lauer in his most recent start for Indianapolis, and the hard hits from Omar Alfonzo in Bradenton.
Subscribe to Pirates Prospects Daily below for free, and get these Pittsburgh Pirates updates delivered to your inbox.
THIS WEEK ON PIRATES PROSPECTS
This week’s premium article drop for Patreon subscribers looks at players in Single-A with the Bradenton Marauders. Like every other level, this group is highlighted by interesting pitchers. There are also some hitters to follow on the position player side, which I broke down in my premium column.
**Williams: Pirates Prospects Sleepers to Follow in Single-AMichael Kennedy was an over-slot prep pick in the fourth round of the 2022 draft. The lefty is in his first full-season league in pro ball, and showed promise this past weekend with an eight strikeout performance.
**Michael Kennedy Shows Path to Big Leagues With Eight Strikeout PerformanceKhristian Curtis has a six pitch mix, despite not having a lot of time on the mound in his pitching career. The Pirates gave him an over-slot bonus as a 12th rounder last year, giving them the chance to develop his arsenal.
**Khristian Curtis Features Big Stuff From a Six Pitch MixCarlson Reed is showing promise in his early results with Bradenton. The West Virginia draftee has a 2.45 ERA in his first three starts this year, after being taken in the fourth round last year.
**West Virginia Pitcher Carlson Reed is Off to a Great Start With the Pirates
Relievers aren’t usually prospects in the lower levels, but Magdiel Cotto is a lefty who can get his fastball up to 95. The Pirates went over-slot on him in the 11th round last year, and he’s showing good results as a reliever in the 2024 season.
**Magdiel Cotto is an Over-Slot Lefty With a Fastball That Gets Up to 95
The Pirates traded for Connor Oliver at the start of the season, getting something in return for Colin Selby. This marks his sixth different organization since the start of 2020, with hopes that the Pirates can develop the lefty into an MLB option.
**Connor Oliver Remains on the Move With Trade to Pirates
Paul Skenes is human, after all.
The 2023 first overall pick gave up his first runs of the season against Omaha on Wednesday afternoon, in his first start where he pitched into the fifth inning.
Skenes allowed his first run of the season in the second inning. He allowed a triple on a play that wasn’t fielded well by outfielder Billy McKinney. With two outs, that runner scored on a single to right field. It’s likely the runner would have scored from second if the previous play was held to a double.
In the fourth inning, Skenes allowed a leadoff single, followed by a walk. After a fly out, he almost escaped the inning with no damage. A grounder back to the mound gave Skenes a potential double play ball. He fired low to second base, and Nick Gonzales couldn’t field the ball. The result was an error on Skenes that allowed a runner to score from second, rather than an inning ending double play.
Even the human version of Skenes is elite. In total, he allowed two runs, one earned, on five hits in 4.1 innings. He walked one and struck out seven. Check out more of the daily results below, including a look at the stuff from Skenes in the Statcast Heroes section.
PIRATES PROSPECT WATCH
INDIANAPOLIS won 7-4 in the latest start from Paul Skenes.
2B Nick Gonzales extended his hitting streak to 14 games, going 3-for-5 with a home run. Gonzales picked up singles in his first two at-bats, then capped off his day in the sixth inning with his second homer of the year.
SS Liover Peguero went 2-for-5 with a double and two RBIs.
1B Malcom Nunez went 1-for-4 with two RBIs.
DH Jake Lamb went 0-for-1 with three walks and an RBI.
LHP Brady Feigl pitched two scoreless innings in relief of Skenes, allowing two hits, one walk, and striking out three.
ALTOONA lost 8-7, after being down 7-1 after four innings.
RHP Bubba Chandler struck out his first batter, then dealt with control issues, leading to his removal after 34 pitches and two outs in the first. Two runs scored off him with RHP Valentin Linarez on the mound.
SS-2B Kervin Pichardo went 2-for-3 with a home run and three RBIs. He also reached base on a walk.
1B Seth Beer went 4-for-4 with two runs.
CF Jase Bowen went 2-for-4 with two runs.
LF Joe Perez went 2-for-5 with an RBI.
GREENSBORO lost 6-5, after carrying a 5-2 lead into the bottom of the ninth.
LHP Hunter Barco got the start, allowing two runs in four innings of work. Both runs came in the fifth inning, with one scoring off a reliever. Barco struck out seven in four scoreless innings prior to the fifth. I wrote about Barco recently, who is off to a great start with a 1.80 ERA in his first five starts.
RHP Derek Diamond pitched three shutout innings in relief, allowing two hits, no walks, and striking out four.
CF Sammy Siani got the scoring going, hitting a solo homer in the first inning for his second long shot of the year.
3B Jack Brannigan went 1-for-5 with his second homer of the year, a two run shot in the fifth inning.
RF Charles McAdoo went 2-for-4 with a double.
BRADENTON lost 5-3 to Clearwater.
RHP Hung-Leng Chang pitched five innings, allowing two unearned runs on five hits, with a walk and four strikeouts.
LHP Inmer Lobo made his US debut with a shutout inning, striking out two, after pitching the last two seasons in the DSL.
C Garret Forrester went 2-for-4 with a double and an RBI.
DH Omar Alfonzo went 1-for-1 with a 107.5 MPH double in the first, before being pulled from the game in the third inning.
DH Jack Herman, who replaced Alfonzo, went 2-for-4 with a run the rest of the game.
STATCAST HEROES
Skenes didn’t have his usual velocity today, pitching about 1 MPH slower on average. He only hit triple digits twice, which came later in the start. It seems like he was taking something off a lot of his pitches. He had seven pitches classified as sweepers, which fit the profile of his normal slider, just with less velocity and a bit more movement. Skenes used his splinker 22 times, after using the pitch 26 times combined in his previous four starts. STATS
The Pirates acquired Inmer Lobo in a trade for Hoy Park prior to the 2023 season. The lefty averaged 88 MPH with his fastball, and picked up two whiffs and three called strikes on ten sliders. STATS
TOMORROW’S SCHEDULE
Triple-A: Indianapolis, 7:05 PM – TBD
Double-A: Altoona, 6:00 PM – RHP Sean Sullivan (0-2, 3.55)
High-A: Greensboro, 7:05 PM – RHP Patrick Reilly (0-1, 6.17)
Single-A: Bradenton, 6:30 PM – RHP Antwone Kelly (0-2, 11.70)
Each week in Statcast Heroes, I’ll be recapping the weekly leaders at each level of the Pittsburgh Pirates system that has data available. That includes the Major Leagues, Triple-A, and Single-A. The results give a quick glimpse at players who stand out in a given week, with the chance to identify players who wouldn’t normally be discussed. As for the players who are normally discussed, this allows for a deeper dive into why they’re performing well.
The weekly leaders can be found at the bottom of the article, after these players who stood out in the last week.
Jones and Falter Whiff the Brewers
I wrote about this last night on Pirates Prospects Daily, but it’s worth repeating: What Jared Jones and Bailey Falter are doing this week against the Milwaukee Brewers is impressive. Jones had 25 whiffs on Monday, and Falter had 14 on Tuesday. The two pitchers combined for two runs allowed in 13 innings, with seven hits allowed and a 15:4 K/BB ratio.
The Brewers entered this series with one of the best offenses in baseball. They rank top five in overall position player fWAR, as well as on-base percentage. They rank bottom-third in swinging strikes, and are middle of the pack in strikeouts. Jones and Falter put up monster numbers against this offense, which is far from a pushover.
These are the type of results we’re starting to come to expect from Jones, who is looking like a Rookie of the Year candidate. In the case of Falter, who has a 6.0 K/9 this season, the high whiff rate is more of a surprise. The combination from the two pitchers led the Pirates back to two games above .500.
Paul Skenes Doesn’t Have His Best Stuff
The rest of this post is for Pirates Prospects subscribers!
The Milwaukee Brewers aren’t a big swing and miss team. Prior to Tuesday night’s game against the Pirates, they ranked 22nd in baseball in swinging strikes, at 10% of their total pitches. Yet, the Pittsburgh Pirates have sent Jared Jones and Bailey Falter to the mound to decimate the Brewers offense over the last two games.
Jones had 25 whiffs on Monday in his latest in an early campaign for Rookie of the Year. One day later, Falter whiffed 14 across seven innings, allowing one run with eight strikeouts. This continued an impressive run this season for Falter, who now has a 3.33 ERA in 27 innings. Or, as David Todd has been noting on Twitter, Falter has a 1.67 ERA this year after his first five batters of the season.
Falter got early help from a leadoff homer by Andrew McCutchen. That would be almost all of the help he would receive. Connor Joe added the eventual winning run with an RBI single in the sixth inning.
Falter continued pitching lights out, until the eighth. He allowed a solo homer to lead off the eighth inning, before Colin Holderman came in to pitch through the inning with two strikeouts. The Pirates turned to David Bednar in the ninth, who pitched a perfect inning with one strikeout for the save in a close 2-1 victory.
I wrote recently about the good and bad from Falter. So far this year, there has been far more good than bad.
STATCAST HEROES
Falter’s 14 whiffs ranked second on the Pirates in the last week, only to the 25 from Jones yesterday. STATSThe minor league Statcast Heroes can be found in the nightly Pirates Prospect Watch.
DAILY VIDEO RUNDOWN
Andrew McCutchen led things off with a home run for the second day in a row. This one was his 100th home run at PNC Park.
Nick Gonzales extended his hitting streak to 13 games, going 2-for-5 in an Indianapolis loss. Read about his game and all of the other action in the nightly Pirates Prospect Watch.
ROSTER MOVES
The Pirates traded Triple-A infielder Sergio Alcantara to the Arizona Diamondbacks for cash considerations.
OF Lonnie White Jr. was placed on the 7-day IL in Greensboro, retro 4/20.
LHP Inmer Lobo was added to the Bradenton roster, after a 1.16 ERA in 38.2 innings in the DSL over the last two seasons.
TODAY: PIRATES (13-11) VS BREWERS (14-8)
Game Time: 6:40 PM EDT
Watch: SportsNet-PIT
Listen: KDKA-FM 93.7
Pirates Starter: Quinn Priester, RHP (0-1, 8.31)
Brewers Starter: Bryse Wilson, RHP (2-0, 3.29)
In the Minors…
RHP Paul Skenes makes his next start for Indianapolis at 12:05 PM EST at Omaha.
RHP Bubba Chandler remains paired up with Skenes, and will start for Altoona at 11:00 AM.
Greensboro will start LHP Hunter Barco at 7:05 PM. Barco has a 0.82 ERA in 11 innings this season. I wrote about Barco last week, before his latest impressive outing.
Bradenton sends RHP Hung-Leng Chang to the mound at 6:30 PM. Chang has a 1.17 ERA in two starts this year.
PIRATES PROSPECTS DAILY
Tuesday is article drop day, featuring all of the site’s weekly premium player features. Check out the contents of this week’s drop below.
Subscribe to Pirates Prospects Daily below for free, and get these Pittsburgh Pirates updates delivered to your inbox.
THIS WEEK ON PIRATES PROSPECTS
This week’s premium article drop for Patreon subscribers looks at players in Single-A with the Bradenton Marauders. Like every other level, this group is highlighted by interesting pitchers. There are also some hitters to follow on the position player side, which I broke down in my premium column.
**Williams: Pirates Prospects Sleepers to Follow in Single-AMichael Kennedy was an over-slot prep pick in the fourth round of the 2022 draft. The lefty is in his first full-season league in pro ball, and showed promise this past weekend with an eight strikeout performance.
**Michael Kennedy Shows Path to Big Leagues With Eight Strikeout PerformanceKhristian Curtis has a six pitch mix, despite not having a lot of time on the mound in his pitching career. The Pirates gave him an over-slot bonus as a 12th rounder last year, giving them the chance to develop his arsenal.
**Khristian Curtis Features Big Stuff From a Six Pitch MixCarlson Reed is showing promise in his early results with Bradenton. The West Virginia draftee has a 2.45 ERA in his first three starts this year, after being taken in the fourth round last year.
**West Virginia Pitcher Carlson Reed is Off to a Great Start With the Pirates
Relievers aren’t usually prospects in the lower levels, but Magdiel Cotto is a lefty who can get his fastball up to 95. The Pirates went over-slot on him in the 11th round last year, and he’s showing good results as a reliever in the 2024 season.
**Magdiel Cotto is an Over-Slot Lefty With a Fastball That Gets Up to 95
The Pirates traded for Connor Oliver at the start of the season, getting something in return for Colin Selby. This marks his sixth different organization since the start of 2020, with hopes that the Pirates can develop the lefty into an MLB option.
**Connor Oliver Remains on the Move With Trade to Pirates
The minor league Statcast Heroes can be found in the nightly Pirates Prospect Watch.
The minor league Statcast Heroes can be found in the nightly Pirates Prospect Watch.
RHP Antwone Kelly allowed one earned run and two more unearned in four innings. He gave up six hits and walked four. The velocity and swing and miss has been there for Kelly, but he gets hit hard consistently. 
The minor league Statcast Heroes can be found in 
The Pirates acquired Inmer Lobo in a trade for Hoy Park prior to the 2023 season. The lefty averaged 88 MPH with his fastball, and picked up two whiffs and three called strikes on ten sliders. 
The minor league Statcast Heroes can be found in 