PIRATES PROSPECTSPITTSBURGH PIRATES MINOR LEAGUE NEWS, TRANSACTIONS, AND ARTICLES

The Curve played an early game on Wednesday afternoon, with the Marauders and the Power playing in the evening: 

Trenton Thunder  7,  Altoona Curve  3
[box] 

A 4-run 6th inning by the Thunder was too much for the Curve to overcome, in an early afternoon game in New Jersey.  The Curve posted 11 hits, with Brad Chalk, playing center field today, collecting 3 hits.  LF Quincy Latimore, 1B Matt Curry, and 3B Jeremy Farrell all had 2 hits each.   

Each team scored one run in the 1st inning.  Chalk began the Curve rally with his first single, but was forced out at second on Latimore's grounder force out at second.  A throwing error by the second baseman on the play let Latimore reach second base.  SS Jordy Mercer singled into right field, scoring Latimore.  Two singles and a grounder force out gave the Thunder a run in the bottom of the inning to tie the game.  

Latimore also double in the 3rd inning, but didn't score.  Curry began a rally in the top of the 4th when he worked a walk.  Farrell singled, pushing Curry to third base, and a passed ball let Farrell move up to second base.  DH Tony Sanchez's RBI ground out scored Curry to give the Curve a 2-1 lead.   Trenton tied it up again in the bottom of the 5th, with a single, a throwing error by starter Aaron Thompson, and a sacrifice fly.  

Chalk singled again in the 5th, but was out in a force play.  The Curve threatened in the top of the 6th.  Curry, Farrell, and Sanchez hit three consecutive singles to load the bases with one out.  C Kris Watts grounded to first for a fielder's choice as a throw back to the plate forced Curry out at home.  A ground out ended the inning, leaving the bases loaded.  

Trenton got to Thompson again in the bottom of the 6th.  With one out, a single, a stolen base, and an RBI single gave Trenton a 3-2 lead.  Matt McSwain relieved Thompson, but the first batter McSwain faced reached base on a fielding error by Curry.  The next batter swatted a 3-run homer, giving Trenton a 6-2 lead.

The Curve got one run back in the top of the 7th.  Chalk and Latimore hit back-to-back line drive singles with one out.  Mercer popped up for an infield fly rule out, then Curry's single through the hole and into left field brought Chalk in to score.  That was all the Curve could get, though.  Sanchez walked to begin the 8th inning, and was erased on a double play, and the next four Altoona batters went down in order.  

McSwain gave up one more run in the bottom of the 7th, on a two-out triple and an RBI single.  Thompson was charged with his 5th loss of the season.  

Shelby Ford's lead-off home run was a bright spot for the Indians.  












Scranton/Wilkes-Barre Yankees  10,  Indianapolis Indians  3
[box] 

A shaky first inning from Tribe starter Rudy Owens gave the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre Yankees a lead they would never give up, as the Indians lost at Victory Field tonight.  Owens suffered his 4th loss of the season, and with the Tribe bullpen getting thin, outfielder Corey Wimberly made his professional pitching debut.  The Yankees posted 17 hits and scored in every other inning.  

It was a tough night for Owens (photo).  He lasted 5 innings and allowed 7 runs on 10 hits and 2 walks.  The first inning began with three consecutive hits:  a double by CF Austin Krum, a single by SS Ramiro Pena, and a 2-RBI triple by C Jesus Montero.  The triple hit near the top of the right field wall, over the leaping RF Miles Durham, who then crashed into the wall and fell to the ground, as CF Alex Presley chased down the ricochet.  Montero held at third when 1B Jorge Vazquez grounded to third for the first out of the inning, then Owens walked LF Justin Maxwell.

 Maxwell was leaning off first, and Owens' throw to first picked him off.  Maxwell took off for second base.  1B Matt Hague took a quick look over at Montero on third to make sure he was not thinking of going home on the steal attempt.  But that extra second it took Hague to look to third was enough so that the throw to SS Brian Friday, covering second, was a second too late.  Montero made an awkward slide into second base and Friday's tag was late, and Montero was called safe (photos below).  As Friday looked at the umpire in protest, Montero, still off balance, rolled off the base -- if Friday had held the tag, Montero would have been out.  

  After a strikeout by 3B Brandon Laird, DH Jordan Parraz lined a 2-RBI single into center field, driving in both Montero and Maxwell.  2B Kevin Russo also walked, then RF Dan Brewer's RBI single plated Parraz.  Brewer tried to advance to second base on the throw in from Durham in right, but a quick throw by 3B Andy Marte to Friday this time let Friday tag out Brewer.  The Yankees had a 5-0 lead.

The Power had an early game today, while the Curve and the Marauders are scheduled for the evening:

West Virginia Power  3,  Hickory Crawdads  2  
[box] 

Three Power pitchers combined to hold Hickory to just 4 hits in the late-morning start.  Colton Cain earned his 4th win of the season, going 6 innings and allowing 2 runs, only one of which was earned.  He gave up 3 hits and 2 walks, and struck out 5 batters.  Two of those 3 hits came in the top of the 1st -- a lead-off single, then after two outs moved the runner to second base, another single when the batter beat out the throw on a grounder to third base.  But Power 1B Justin Howard was paying attention, and he was able to throw from first base back to the plate, where C Elias Diaz tagged out the runner who had rounded third and was trying to score.  

Three consecutive hits began the bottom of the 1st for the Power:  singles by SS Drew Maggi and CF Mel Rojas, and an RBI double by RF Dan Grovatt, who drove in Maggi.  DH Cole White brought in Rojas with an RBI ground out, to give the Power an early 2-1 lead.  

Cain retired the side in order in the 2nd, then began the 3rd by giving up a double.  A sacrifice bunt moved that runner to third base.  The next batter was hit by a pitch, giving Hickory runners on the corners.  Then a wild pitch by Cain and a throwing error on Diaz as he tried to retrieve the ball, let both base runners score, to tie the game.  

The Power put runners on base over the next two innings, but base running problems eliminated the runners -- picked off and caught stealing, and being caught off base on a fly out for a double play.  2B Andy Vasquez singled to lead off the 5th, and he too was doubled off first base when Maggi flied out.  Rojas walked after Maggi was out, then Grovatt doubled for the second time in the game, and also drove in his second run, as Maggi gave the Power the lead.  

Cain allowed only 2 walks over his last three innings of work.  Vincent Payne made his first appearance for the Power this season, with 2 scoreless innings.  He retired the side in order in the 7th, then gave up a walk in the 8th, but that runner was caught stealing.  Zac Fuesser pitched the 9th.  He gave up a single, but also picked the runner of first base, and was credited with his first Save.  

The Power had only two base runners over the last 3 innings, when 3B Eric Avila walked and was erased in a double play, and a single by Grovatt, for his third hit of the game, in the 8th.  Grovatt stole second base, but was left on base.