If you're looking for something to lift your spirits each day in the Pittsburgh Pirates system, might I suggest taking a look at the pitching.
Anywhere. Any level.
At the Major League level, the Pirates have a 3.55...
Pittsburgh Pirates flame throwing reliever Aroldis Chapman was suspended for two games, after being ejected earlier this week for arguing the strike zone with an umpire.
I wrote about the ejection earlier in the week, noting how...
The Pirates have signed their 4th round draft pick, Colten Brewer. Brewer is a right-handed pitcher who was drafted out of high school in Canton. He will likely report to the GCL Pirates to begin his pro career. All of the Pirates' draft picks, and the ones who have signed, are listed here.
Sixteen-year-old Luis Heredia made his pro debut this afternoon, with a start for the GCL Pirates. Heredia made a good showing. He had a batter reach base on a fielding error by SS Alen Hanson in the 1st, but he retired the other three batters in that inning. He gave up a walk in the 2nd, but again retired the other three batters he faced. Heredia had some trouble in the 3rd, when he allowed 2 runs. He began the inning with two ground outs, then hit a batter with a pitch. That runner stole both second and third bases, then Heredia walked the next two batters to load the bases. A single lined into left field brought in two runs. Heredia was relieved by Robert Kilcrease, who finished the inning with a ground out.
Kilcrease gave up another 2 runs in the 4th. Back-to-back singles with one out and a walk loaded the bases with Jays. A sacrifice fly brought in one run, then an RBI single brought in the second, giving the Blue Jays a 4-0 lead.
The Pirates were relatively quiet over the first 3 innings, but they broke out in the bottom of the 4th. With one out, 3B Yhonathan Barrios beat out a bunt for a hit, then moved to second and on to third on two wild pitches. He scored on LF Jose Osuna's RBI single. 1B Jared Lakind walked, then DH Jon Schwind doubled in Osuna. C Joey Schoenfeld tapped back to the mound, where the Jays' pitcher tried for a fielder's choice -- but failed, allowing Lakind to score, and leaving Pirate runners on the corners. Hansen's 3-run homer brought in Schwind and Schoenfeld, giving the Pirates a 6-4 lead.
The Blue Jays also homered in the top of the 5th, but it was a solo shot off Pirates' reliever Diomedes Mateo. In the bottom of the 5th, RF Gregory Polanco walked and stole second base, then scored on Barrios' triple lined into right field. Pirates ahead, 7-5. Mateo also gave up 2 more runs in the top of the 6th. A single, a hit batter, and a sacrifice bunt put runners on second and third bases. A fielding error by Barrios allowed both runners to cross the plate, tying the score at 7-7.
The Pirates went down in order in the 6th and 7th innings. Mateo gave up a single in the top of the 7th, but erased that runner with a double play. He also allowed a walk in the 7th, and a single in the 8th. Then the Pirates broke the tie in the bottom of the 8th. Osuna walked and was replaced by pinch-runner Junior Sosa. Lakind's sacrifice bunt put Sosa on second, but Lakind was also safe at first. Schwind also bunted, and was safe at first to load the bases. Schoenfeld's single brought in Sosa, then Hanson's double lined into left scored both Lakind and Schwind. That gave the Pirates a 10-7 lead. 2B Jodaneli Carvajal was hit by a pitch, loading the bases again for the Pirates. Schoenfeld tried for the steal of home but didn't make it, and that was the first out of the inning. A strikeout and a ground out ended the frame, but the Pirates had the lead.
Joe Parsons relieved Mateo on the mound to begin the top of the 9th. He loaded the bases with two outs, on a hit batter, a walk, and a single. Parsons got a pop out to end the game, and the Pirates had the win.
Friday's action with the Pirate's lower minor league teams -- the brief version, as we're on the road:
The Bradenton Marauders are off for the Florida State League's All-Star weekend. The 50th FSL All-Star Game will be played on Saturday, in Clearwater, FL. Representing the Marauders: C Ramon Cabrera and INF Aaron Baker and Jarek Cunningham. Kyle McPherson and Brett Lorin were also named to the team but won't be participating because McPherson was promoted to AA, and Lorin is injured.
The Pirates have signed Jon Schwind (41st round pick), and he will report to the GCL Pirates. Schwind was listed as a catcher when drafted, but he also plays some infield and out field.
Williamsport Crosscutters 7, State College Spikes 0 [ box ]
Not the way the Spikes wanted to start the season. Starter Nick Kingham had two good innings, allowing only a single, but things fell apart in the 3rd. That inning began with a lead-off homer, then after one out, a single and a stolen base put a runner on second. After the second out, an RBI single drove in the second run of the inning. A walk and a 3-run homer made it 5-0. Joely Rodriguez took over for Kingman in the 4th, and gave up an unearned run on a double, a wild pitch, and a passed ball. Rodriguez also loaded the bases in the 5th, but got out of the jam with a fly out. Vince Payne pitched the next two innings, allowing only two singles. Joan Montero took the bottom of the 8th, and gave up the final Williamsport run on a hit batter, a walk, and an RBI double.
The Spikes collected 6 hits. C Samuel Gonzalez singled and doubled, and RF Carlos Mesa singled twice, while two newly signed draft picks, CF Taylor Lewis and DH Derek Trent, each singled. The Spikes threatened in the 3rd inning, when 3B Walker Gourley was hit by a pitch, then Trent reached base on a fielding error by the Williamsport left fielder. Gourley came around from first and tried to score on the play, but was tagged out at the plate. They had another chance in the 4th, when LF Exicardo Cayonez was hit by a pitch and Gonzalez doubled, moving Cayonez to third, but both were left on base.
Continuing to look at Pirates' pitchers in the lower levels of the organization:
Jarryd Sullivan -- R/R, 6' 0", 181 lb The 21-year-old Sullivan came to the Pirates out of the new Australian Baseball Academy. He has a fastball in the high 80's, a curve, and a strong changeup. Sullivan made his US debut in 2010, and after extended spring training, he began the short season at State College. He made 3 appearances there, for 3 innings, but allowed 5 runs (3 earned) on 4 hits and 4 walks, for an 8.10 ERA. He went down to the GCL for the rest of the season, and pitched better there, making 5 starts and 7 relief appearances. In 35 innings, Sullivan gave up 16 earned runs on 40 hits, for a 4.11 ERA. He walked only 3 batters, and struck out 15. Over the winter, Sullivan returned to his native Australia and pitched for the Sydney Blue Sox in the Australian Baseball League. He made 5 relief appearances for the Blue Sox, for a total of 7.2 innings without allowing a run. He did give up 4 hits and 3 walks, while striking out 7 batters. Sullivan should get another try at State College to begin 2011.
Joely Rodriguez -- L/L, 6' 1", 175 lb Rodriguez is a 19-year-old Dominican, who made his US debut in 2010 after one year in the Dominican Summer League. He made 9 starts for the GCL Pirates, for a total of 47.1 innings. He allowed 44 hits and 21 earned runs, including 10 homers. He walked only 7 batters, while striking out 26 batters. That's a little high on the homers and a little low on the strikeouts, but the latter could improve with some more work on his off-speed pitches. He gets a lot of ground-ball outs. At the end of the season, Rodriguez was promoted to State College, where he appeared in 2 games. The first was tough, as he allowed 3 runs on 4 hits and a walk, in one inning. The second appearance went better -- one unearned run on 2 hits and a walk in 3 innings. Rodriguez should be back in State College for 2011.
Power starter Nate Baker pitched 8 no-hit innings tonight in Hagerstown, to earn his 6th win of the season. �He was not perfect, though. �After striking out the first two batters he faced, a batter reached base on a throwing error by SS Benji Gonzalez. A grounder force out ended the inning. �With one out in the 2nd inning, Baker hit a batter with a pitch, though he left that runner stranded on base. �From there, Baker retired the next 20 batters he faced, including 8 strikeouts. �Only three of those batters got the ball out of the infield.
Baker did not come out to pitch the 9th inning, probably due to pitch count. �Reliever Gabriel Alvarado took the 9th, and he was the victim of the Suns' pent-up frustration and stifled hits. � Alvarado struck out the first batter of the inning, but then gave up a line-drive single, a triple, and a home run, as the Suns avoided both the no-hitter and the shut-out.
The Power batters provided Baker with plenty of run support, though not until the later innings. �C Ramon Cabrera had 3 hits and 2 RBI, while CF Evan Chambers, 2B Jarek Cunningham, and 1B Aaron Baker all had 2 hits. �The Power threatened in the 2nd inning, when Cabrera singled, Benji Gonzalez doubled, and Chambers walked, but a strikeout ended the inning. �They got going in the 6th inning, with a single by Aaron Baker, a walk to LF Jose Hernandez, and a 2-RBI triple by Cabrera. �DH Elevys Gonzalez followed with a double, scoring Cabrera, for a 3-0 lead. �They added another run in the 7th, when Chambers led off with a single and scored on Aaron Baker's double.
Two walks, to 3B Jesus Brito and Cabrera, began the 8th inning, and a fielding error on Elevys Gonzalez's sacrifice bunt loaded the bases for the Power. �Benji Gonzalez brought in Brito on a grounder force out, then Chambers doubled, scoring Cabrera. �Benji Gonzalez tried to score from first base, but he was thrown out at the plate. �Cunningham also singled, plating Chambers for the Power's final run of the game.
