Blue Jays  5,  Pirates  0
 
The Pirates were held to just 4 hits in this afternoon's game against the Blue Jays at McKechnie Field.  3B Pedro Alvarez had two of the hits --  a two-out single up the middle in the 1st inning, and a single on a pop up in the 6th.  The single in the 1st moved CF Andrew McCutchen, who had walked, to third base, and the single in the 6th followed a line drive double by 2B Pedro Ciriaco and moved Ciriaco to third base.  Both times, however, the innings ended without the Pirates being able to get the run in.  The only other hit in the game was by 2B Brian Friday, who led off the top of the 9th by beating out a grounder to third.  After a strikeout, 1B Andy Marte walked, putting two runners on base.  But pinch-hitter Gift Ngoepe struck out and C Jason Jaramillo grounded out to end the game.  

James McDonald made the start and was responsible for 4 of the Jays' runs.  He gave up a double, two singles, a walk, and a sacrifice fly for 2 runs in the top of the 1st.  He retired the side in order in the 2nd, but got into trouble again in the 3rd.  A double and a throwing error by SS Corey Wimberly gave the Jays a run in the 3rd.  With two outs and a runner on second base, McDonald had reached his pitch limit (about 50 pitches), and he was relieved by Justin Thomas.  Thomas gave up an RBI single and a walk, then ended the inning with a strikeout.  Chris Resop surrendered the remaining Toronto run in the 5th.  Back-to-back doubles by former Pirate Jose Bautista (who went 3-for-3) and Travis Snyder brought in that run.  Resop struck out the next two batters, and ended the inning with a ground out.  Joel Hanrahan, Aaron Thompson, Daniel McCutchen, Justin Wilson, and Jeff Locke each pitched one scoreless inning for the Pirates.  McCutchen gave up two hits and Locke gave up one.  Wilson walked one batter and struck out the other three he faced.  

Also in the game:  SS Chase d'Arnaud, LF Gorkys Hernandez, CF Alex Presley, RF Andrew Lambo, 3B Garrett Atkins. 

As we continue to look at the minor leaguers in the Pirates' organization, we'll move on to the catchers:

Joey Schoenfeld -- R/R,  6' 2",  187 lb
Schoenfeld was chosen by the Pirates in the 10th round of the 2009 draft.  He got in just 5 games with the GCL Pirates in that year, and went 0-for-14 at the plate.  In 2010, Schoenfeld was back with the GCL Pirates, sharing playing time with Elias Diaz and Dylan Child.  Schoenfeld still needs a lot of work on his defense, though the Pirates believe the potential is there.  He threw out 2 of 21 base stealers -- definitely a work in progress.  With the bat, Schoenfeld hit .273 in July and improved to .296 in August, to average out at a solid .281, with 3 RBI.  He did strike out a lot:  21 strikeouts in 23 games (32.8%), but also took a lot of walks (10, or 13.3 %).  He'll turn 20 years old in June, so he still has some time to work on everything.  He should begin 2011 in State College.

Elias Diaz  --  R/R,  6' 1",  175 lb
Diaz is a 20-year-old Venezuelan, who made his US debut after just one season in the VSL.  Of the three catchers, he got the bulk of the playing time behind the plate for the GCL Pirates in 2010 (38 games).  Diaz was the best of the three defensively, including throwing out 21 of 51 base stealers.  His hitting needs some work, as he hit just .218, with 2 homers and 20 RBI.  Diaz started out stronger, with a .261 average in 6 games in June, then dropping to .227 in July and .182 in August.  The Pirates are hoping that he will develop more power over the next few years.  He'll probably begin 2011 in State College, sharing duties with Schoenfeld.  He's got an outside chance of being assigned to West Virginia, where he'd share with Matt Skirving.  
Dylan Child --  R/R,  6' 1",  181 lb
Child is an Australian and a product of MLB's Australian Academy.   He made his US debut with the GCL Pirates in 2010, though of these three catchers, he got the least amount of time behind the plate -- just 8 games.  He also played 14 games at first base, and 2 at third.  Partly because he is relatively new to catching (he was a shortstop initially), he needs the most work on his defense.  He threw out only one of 12 base stealers last season.  Child needs to work on his hitting as well -- he hit .179 in 12 games in July and .217 in 9 games in August.  Overall, he had a .180 average with a double and 2 RBI.  His strikeout rate was not high -- 11 strikeouts in a total of 24 games (18%).  Child was listed as a "reserve" on the Adelaide Bite in the Australian Baseball League over the winter, but was never placed on the active roster.  With so little playing time behind the plate last year, the 20-year-old will probably return to the GCL in 2011.

 

Pirates  4,  Phillies  3
 
A 2-run homer by 2B Neil Walker in the top of the 6th gave the Pirates the go-ahead run and one more for insurance, as the Pirates beat the Phillies in Clearwater, FL.   A solo homer by Phillies' DH Ben Francisco off Pirates' starter Paul Maholm put the first run on the board in the bottom of the 2nd.  It was the only run Maholm allowed in his 3 innings of work.  He did not walk any batters and struck out two.  Jeff Karstens took over for Maholm to begin the 4th.  He also gave up a run, when Francisco and 2B Delwyn Young both doubled.  Karstens retired the side in order in the 5th inning.  

1B Lyle Overbay had 3 hits for the Pirates, beginning with a lead-off single in the 2nd inning.  That time, he was forced out at second on a subsequent play.  Overbay led off the 4th with a double into left field.  He moved to 3rd base on Neil Walker's ground out, then scored on DJ Garrett Jones' sacrifice fly.  RF John Bowker tied the score in the top of the 5th, when he doubled into left field, then scored on ground outs by SS Chase d'Arnaud and CF Andrew McCutchen.  Overbay's third hit of the game was a line drive single in the top of the 6th, and Walker followed that with his blast over the right field wall to give the Pirates a 4-2 lead.  

Tony Watson came on to pitch the 6th inning.  He had two runners get on base, with a walk and a throwing error by d'Arnaud.  But d'Arnaud redeemed himself moments later, when he took the throw from Watson on a bouncer back to the mound, and turned the inning-ending double play.  Watson gave up a run in the 7th on a pair of singles, a sacrifice bunt, and an RBI single.  That inning also ended on a double play, when Watson struck out former Pirate Brandon Moss, then C Dusty Brown threw out the runner from first as he tried to steal second base.   Sean Gallagher buzzed through three batters, retiring all on a total of 5 pitches in the 8th inning.  Chris Leroux took the top of the 9th, and he also got out of a jam with a spectacular double play.  A walk, a sacrifice bunt, and another walk put two runners on base with one out.  SS Freddy Galvis lifted a long fly ball to left center field, but LF Alex Presley tracked it down with a long running catch, then whirled and fired in to the infield.  A relay by SS Brian Friday, then to 1B Garrett Atkins, and the runner from first base was doubled off, ending the game.  Leroux was credited with the Save, and Karstens got the win.

Also in the game:  2B Pedro Ciriaco singled in the 8th and stole second base.  CF Corey Wimberly, 3B Josh Fields, PH/DH Andrew Lambo, an PH/RF Steve Pearce all got into the game.   

Winding up with the third basemen in the Pirates' organization.  

Josh Harrison --  R/R,  5' 8",  175 lb
Harrison was chosen by the Cubs in the 6th round of the 2008 draft, and he came to the Pirates at the trading deadline in 2009.  He hit a solid .270 in 34 games at A+ Lynchburg to finish up that season, and went to the Carolina League Championship with his new teammates.  He moved up to AA Altoona for 2010, where he played about 60% of his games at third base and the rest at second base.  He's also played outfield a few times.  Harrison's bat took a step forward with the Curve.  He's not a big power hitter, but he did hit 33 doubles while he hit an even .300.  Harrison drew 32 walks (5.5%), which was an improvement over previous seasons.  He swings at a lot of pitches, but can hit the bad ones, so his strikeout rate (10%) dropped in 2010.  He also has some speed -- stole 19 bases for the Curve.  Harrison was named to the Eastern League All-Star team, and had a nice All-Star Game:  a 2-RBI triple and a single.  In the Curve's playoff run, Harrison hit .297 with 7 RBI.  After the regular season, Harrison was invited to the Arizona Fall League, where he hit .330 for the Mesa Solar Sox.  He contributed 10 doubles, 2 triples, one homer, and 8 RBI, while walking 10 times and striking out 12 times.  Harrison should be ready for a move to Indianapolis, but he might be competing with players who don't make the major league team.

Nothing unexpected here, though maybe a few days earlier than they had earlier suggested....

Catchers Tony Sanchez and Eric Fryer and pitchers Donnie Veal and Cesar Valdez were all reassigned to minor league camp this morning.  Sanchez and Fryer are both likely to begin the season at AA Altoona.  Both had their 2010 seasons at A+ Bradenton shortened by taking pitches to the head.  Veal is still in the process of rehabbing from elbow surgery, and is not likely to be ready to pitch competitively until June or July.  Valdez, who came to the Pirates' from the Diamondbacks (Zach Duke trade), has spent the last two seasons at the AAA level, but was a very very long shot to make the major league club to begin the 2011 season.

Minor league spring training games will begin in about 10 - 12 days. 

Phillies  7,   Pirates  4

A  3-run rally in the 7th inning was enough to push the Phillies over the Pirates at McKechnie Field this afternoon.  
Starter Kevin Correia had a shaky top of the 1st inning.  The first four batters he faced all singled, bringing in 2 runs.  Then with runners on the corners, Correia buckled down, getting a foul pop out then two strikeouts to end the inning.  The Pirates got one of the runs back in the bottom of the inning.  With one out, SS Pedro Ciriaco doubled into left field, and 2B Neil Walker moved him to third base with a line drive single into right.  1B Lyle Overbay also lined into right field, to drive in Ciriaco, though Walker was out when he tried to get from first to third.  DH Matt Diaz also singled, but he and Overbay were left on base at the end of the inning.  
Correia worked around a single in the 2nd inning, then retired the side in order in the 3rd inning.  The Pirates also went down in order in both the 2nd and 3rd.  Diaz tied the score in the 4th, with a walk and a stolen base, then a single by 3B Andy Marte.   
Brian Burres pitched the 4th and 5th innings, allowing only a double.   Fernando Nieve took the mound next.  The first batter he faced was Ryan Howard, who blasted a 2-1 pitch over the left field wall to give the Phillies a 3-2 lead.  Nieve gave up a walk and a single after the homer, but left them on base.  The bottom of the inning began with a walk by Walker.  Pinch-hitter Tony Sanchez bounced a ground-rule double over the left field wall, moving Walker to third.  RF Garrett Jones ground out to first, which let Walker score to tie it up again.  Marte hit the next ground rule double, driving in Sanchez with the go-ahead run.  
Nieve came back out for the top of the 7th, and that's when he got into even more trouble.  Two singles (one to former Pirate Brandon Moss) and a double tied the score again, at 4-4.  Nieve was relieved by Mike Dubee (whose dad is Phillies' pitching coach Rich Dubee).  Dubee gave up a ground out to second, which allowed Moss to score from third base.  A single brought in the third run of the inning, then Dubee got a strikeout to end the inning.  Bryan Morris pitched the 8th inning, and gave up the final Phillies' run with a double, a ground out, and a sacrifice fly.  Daniel Moskos pitched a 1-2-3 inning in the top of the 9th to wrap things up.
The Pirates threatened in the bottom of the 7th.  Singles by CF Alex Presley and LF John Bowker and a walk by 2B Corey Wimberly loaded the bases with one out.   All three were left standing there when both 1B Josh Fields and Tony Sanchez struck out.  

C Wyatt Toregas also singled for the Pirates.  SS Chase d'Arnaud, RF Andrew Lambo, and CF Gorkys Hernandez all got into the game as well.   

Moving along with the third basemen in the Pirates' minor league organization.  Two new faces today, plus a familiar friend:

Jeremy Farrell  --  R/R,  6' 3",  200 lb
The Pirates selected Farrell in the 8th round of the 2008 draft.  His playing time has been limited by a series of injuries, so that he's only played in 73 games and 79 games in his two full years of pro ball.  In 2010, it was knee problems.  He began the season on fire in A+ Bradenton, hitting .315 in April and .327 in May, with a combined 7 homers and 33 RBI.  In June, the knee got bad, had to be drained, then got infected.  Farrell was out of the lineup until August, but when he returned, he went right back to hitting, though without the modest power he'd had earlier in the season --  .333 in August, but with no homers and just 6 RBI.  He did strike out less in August.  Farrell played some first base in State College in 2008, but has been exclusively at third in the two seasons since.  He's made 25 and 20 errors at third over those two season (respectively), and that's going to have to improve.  Farrell will likely be moved up to AA Altoona for 2011, where his two main jobs will be to cut back those errors and to stay healthy.