Tag: Joey Schoenfeld

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.

 

Some action with the Pirates' lower minor league affiliates on Wednesday...� still can't get anything done in Bradenton this evening, though the GCL Pirates did get their game in this afternoon.

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Erie SeaWolves� 3,� Altoona Curve� 1 ...�� (box)

The Curve were held to just 2 hits as they lost to the SeaWolves at home.� The Curve got two walks, one of which resulted in their only run, and they also had a runner reach on a fielding error.� 1B Matt Hague had the first Curve hit, a two-out single in the 4th inning.� 2B Jordy Mercer walked in the 2nd inning, and RF Miles Durham reached on a fielding error to begin the 8th inning.� None of them got as far as second base.� Finally, in the bottom of the 9th, SS Chase d'Arnaud led off with the second walk, and then he stole second base (his 32nd steal of the season).� DH Andrew Lambo lined a double into left field, scoring d'Arnaud with the Curve's lone run.

Justin Wilson pitched 4 innings in his start, and gave up all three of the SeaWolves' runs, on 6 hits and 3 walks, with 6 strikeouts.� He surrendered a run in the 2nd inning on three singles.� Another single and a double brought in one run in the 4th.� Wilson walked the next batter, then got a grounder to short for what looked like it would be an inning-ending double play.� The out was made at second, but Mercer's throw to first was not on target, and the batter was safe, which allowed the runner who had doubled to score from second base.

Mike Colla relieved Wilson to begin the 5th inning.� He gave up a walk to former teammate Brandon Jones to lead off the 5th, then erased him in a double play.� Colla allowed only one base runner in the rest of his four innings, a double to lead off the 7th inning.� Ramon Aguero pitched a perfect top of the 9th, with one strikeout.

Wednesday, with games going on all afternoon and evening....

Bradenton Marauders� 3,� Tampa Yankees� 1 (box)

A 3-run 5th inning was all it took from the Marauders' bats this afternoon.� The inning began with 3B Jose De Los Santos reaching base on a fielding error.� RF Robbie Grossman singled, moving De Los Santos to third base, and LF Quincy Latimore doubled, scoring De Los Santos.� Both Grossman and Latimore scored on 1B Erik Huber's single into right field.� Huber stole second base, but was left there when the inning ended on a fly out. All three runs were unearned.

Those three hits were half of the Marauder's total for the game.� Latimore and Huber also singled in the 2nd inning, and C James Skelton walked, loading the bases, but three consecutive strikeouts ended the inning with all three runners still in place.� CF Austin McClune singled to lead off the 6th, 2B Adenson Chourio reached on a fielding error, but a double play ended the inning with Chourio forced out at second.� The Marauders went down in order in the last three innings of the game.

The only run the Yankees scored was also unearned.� Bradenton starter Aaron Pribanic pitched 5 innings and scattered 4 hits.� He came back out to begin the 6th, but was relieved after giving up a single and a walk.� Tom Boleska struck out the first batter he faced, then Skelton threw out the second runner as he tried to steal second in a double steal.� When the next batter reached on a throwing error by De Los Santos, the runner (who had stolen third base) scored from third.� Boleska pitched a scoreless 7th.� Tyler Cox allowed a single and a walk in the scoreless 8th.� Diego Moreno, who has finished his organizational suspension and has been reassigned to the Marauders, pitched a scoreless 9th, allowing just one walk.

Reliever Mike Colla has been promoted from the Marauders to AA Altoona, trading spots with Moreno.

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Good news and bad news today...

The bad news is that OF Starling Marte has had some problems with his hand after surgery.� Marte had played in two rehab games last week, going 3-for-6, but has not played in over a week.� He's going to need to rest the hand for awhile yet -- a setback indeed.

The good news is that OF Mel Rojas Jr, the Pirates' 3rd-round pick in the 2010 draft is reported to be on his way to Pittsburgh to sign a contract.� If all goes as expected, he could report to the State College Spikes by the weekend.

A few non-all-star-games going on today:

State College Spikes� 11,� Connecticut Tigers� 1 (box)

The Spikes posted 13 hits on their way to 11 runs this evening in Connecticut. 1B Matt Curry led the team with a 3-for-3 game and 2 RBI.� RF Adalberto Santos, DH Chase Lyles, LF Pat Irvine, and C Miguel Mendez each had 2 hits, and 3B Kelson Brown contributed 3 RBI.

The Spikes started off with 2 runs in the top of the 1st.� 2B Walker Gourley began the rally with a walk, and Santos reached base on a fielder's choice that Gourley beat out.� Curry singled, scoring Gourley, and Lyles singled, bringing in Santos.� They added 4 runs in the 3rd inning, when Curry and Lyles both singled again.� Irvine followed with a double to plate Curry.� Brown's single drove in both Lyles and Irvine.� Mendez made it runners on the corners with another single, and Brown scored when CF Kyle Saukko bounced into force out at second but beat the throw to first base.

The Tigers scored their lone run in the bottom of the 3rd, on two singles and a sacrifice fly.� It was the only run that Zack Von Rosenberg allowed in his 5 innings.� He gave up 5 hits and one run, and he struck out 5 batters.� Colton Cain, Casey Sadler, Teddy Fallon, and Jason Townsend all pitched one scoreless inning.� Townsend was the only one who allowed a hit, a single in the 9th.� Fallon was the only one to allow a walk, and he erased that runner with a double play.� Sadler struck out the side, all swinging, in the 7th.

The Spikes kept going after Connecticut scored their run.� Santos tripled with one out in the 4th.� Curry walked, and Lyles reached on a fielding error, as Santos scored.� A throwing error on the play put Curry on third and Lyles on second.� Irvine singled, and Curry crossed the plate, then Brown's sacrifice fly brought in Lyles.� Spikes ahead, 9-1.� Back-to-back doubles by Santos (ground-rule) and Curry added the first run in the 6th.� A walk to Irvine and Brown being hit by a pitch loaded the bases.� Mendez singled, scoring Curry and giving the Spikes an 11-1 lead.� The Spikes' bats slowed down after that.� They had only one base runner over the last three innings -- Curry walked to begin the 8th, but was erased in a double play.

The Pittsburgh Pirates have reaquired infielder Brian Bixler (photo) from the Cleveland Indians' organization.� Bixler, who was originally drafted by the Pirates in the second round of the 2004 draft, played in the Pirates' organization for all of his career until he was traded to Cleveland in January 2010 for infielder Jesus Brito. Bixler did not make the Cleveland major league team out of spring training, and he was removed from their 40-man roster.� He has been playing for AAA Columbus, and has appeared in several games against the Indy Indians.� For the Clippers, the 27-year-old Ohio native has been hitting .278 with 13 doubles, one triple, 3 homers, and 27 RBI.� That's about the same average but with a little less power than he showed with the Indy Indians in 2009.� Bixler has not been able to take his AAA level success up to the major league level.� In a total of 68 games with the Pirates, Bixler hit .178 with 7 doubles, one triple, and 5 RBI, and struck out 62 times.� Bixler will join the Indy Indians after the All-Star break.


The Indy Indians are off for their All-Star break.� The AAA All-Star game will be played on Wednesday in Lehigh Valley.� The game will not be on ESPN2 as in past years, but will be televised on the MLB network.� It will also be on-line on milb.com.�� More Monday action in the Pirates' minor league organization:

Richmond Flying Squirrels� 6,� Altoona Curve� 3..... suspended (box)

They got into the 4th inning before rain halted play in Altoona this afternoon.� The Curve got busy in the bottom of the 1st, with a double by 3B Shelby Ford, and an RBI single by 2B Jordy Mercer. Mercer stole second, then went to third on walks to C Kris Watts and LF Brandon Jones. RF Miles Durham drove in both Mercer and Watts with a line drive single into left field.� Durham also stole second, but was left there when the inning ended.

Starter Tim Alderson retired the side in the top of the 1st, but struggled after that.� The Squirrels came right back in the top of the 2nd to tie the score.� The inning began with three consecutive singles, which brought in one run.� A throwing error by 1B Matt Hague loaded the bases, and another single drove in two more runs.� A sacrifice bunt moved two runners into scoring position -- and provided the first out of the inning.� A hit batter loaded the bases again, but an infield fly rule pop out and a grounder force out ended the inning.� The second inning did not go any better.� A double, a walk, and a double opened the inning, bringing in 2 runs.� After two ground outs, another double drove in the Squirrels' 6th run.� Alderson was relieved by Dustin Molleken to begin the top of the 4th, and Molleken retired the side in order.

The Curve went down in order in the 2nd.� Mercer and Watts both singled in the 3rd, though neither scored.� The bottom of the 4th began with a walk to Durham and a single by CF Anthony Norman, moving Durham to third.� Molleken's sacrifice bunt moved Norman to second base, and that's how things stood when play was halted.� The game will be resumed on August 26th.

After the game, Alderson was reassigned to A+ Bradenton.� He had made 17 starts for the Curve, and in 86.2 innings, Alderson had allowed 105 hits and 54 earned runs (5.30 ERA).� He had 26 walks and 57 strikeouts, and batters hit .307 against him. His record:� 7-5.

Jeff Locke is being promoted from Bradenton to Altoona -- a pitcher swap.� Locke has a 9-3 record with the Marauders.� He also has 17 starts, for 86.1 innings, allowing 82 hits and 42 earned runs (3.54 ERA).� Locke has walked 14 and struck out 83, and batters hit .248 against him.

Thursdays' action in the Pirates lower minor league organization:

Binghamton Mets �4, �Altoona Curve �3 (box)

It only took two innings to get all the scoring done in this game, as Bryan Morris suffered his 4th loss with the Curve in what will be his last start before the All-Star break and his participation in the Futures Game. �Morris didn't get past the 2nd inning, as he gave up all 4 Mets' runs on 6 hits. �Morris got the first batter he faced to ground out, but then immediately got into trouble with a single and a ground-rule double, putting two runners in scoring position. �A ground out allowed the runner from third base to score. �A hit batter put runners on the corners, and two singles followed, with a second run scoring. �Morris struck out the last batter of the 1st inning and the first batter of the 2nd inning. �Then he gave up a solo home run, and the Mets had a 4-0 lead. �A walk, a single, and a wild pitch followed the home run, but Morris was able to leave them on base as the inning ended. �I suspect he had run into problems with his pitch count as well, because Derek Hankins came out to pitch the 3rd inning.

The Curve batters came back with 3 runs of their own in the bottom of the 2nd. �2B Jordy Mercer led off with a line drive double, and he scored when 1B Miles Durham and LF Anthony Norman hit back-to-back singles. �Bryan Morris sacrifice bunted Durham and Norman into scoring position, and both of them scored on SS Chase d'Arnaud's RBI single. �The Curve were behind by just one run, 4-3.

But the Curve couldn't erase that narrow margin. �They put runners on base in all but one of the remaining innings, but none of them could come around to score. �Nine base runners were left stranded. �Two runners were left on base in the 3rd, when 3B Josh Harrison singled and RF Brandon Jones walked. �Mercer doubled again in the 6th, and Norman walked, again leaving two runners on. �In the top of the 9th, the Curve's final effort, CF Gorkys Hernandez singled with two outs, but a fly out ended the game.

Derek Hankins pitched 6 scoreless innings after Morris hit the showers. �He retired the first 6 batters he faced in order, including striking out the side in the 4th. �He hit a batter in the 5th, but immediately erased him with a double play. �Another double play got Hankins out of a walk-and-single jam in the 7th. �Anthony Claggett pitched the final inning. �He gave up a single, but that runner was thrown out trying to steal second base.

Lots of action in the Pirates' lower minors on Tuesday, partly because of two double headers making up for the two postponements yesterday.

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West Virginia Power �7, �Hagerstown Suns �3 (box)

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.

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Bradenton Marauders �11, �Ft. Myers Miracle �1 (box)

The Marauders scored early, then poured it on with two late-inning rallies to take a big win over Ft. Myers tonight. �Starter Aaron Pribanic earned his 4th win for the Marauders with 6 innings of work, allowing one run on 7 hits, no walks, and 2 strikeouts. �He scattered 4 of the hits over the first 5 innings, then gave up the lone run in the 6th, on a double and an RBI single, plus one more single. � Mike Colla earned his first save with 3 scoreless innings, in which he scattered 3 hits and a walk, while striking out 4 batters.

The Marauders began scoring in the 2nd inning. �CF Austin McClune walked, then scored on 3B Adam Davis' double. �A wild pitch moved Davis to third base, and after a walk, SS Greg Picart brought in Davis with an RBI single. �McClune also walked to led off the 4th inning. �Davis was hit by a pitch, and DH James Skelton moved both runners up one base with a sacrifice bunt. �Picart's RBI ground out brought McClune across the plate. �In the 5th, it was RF �Robbie Grossman who led off with a walk. �Singles by C Eric Fryer and LF Quincy Latimore brought in Grossman, and Bradenton was up 4-0.

Two errors by the Miracle got the Marauders' 8th inning rally started. �Picart reached on a fielding error and a throwing error let 2B Jose De Los Santos reach base on a sacrifice bunt and moved the runners to third and second bases. �Picart scored on a wild pitch, then C Eric Fryer walked and stole second base. �Latimore's grounder fielder's choice brought in De Los Santos, and McClune's single plated Fryer. �Those three runs gave the Marauders a 7-1 lead.

The 9th inning brought another rally, again started with a lead-off single. �It was Skelton who walked, then Picart singled and De Los Santos grounded into a force out at second, which was probably hoping to be a double play, but De Los Santos is too speedy. �The grounder force out brought in Skelton. �Grossman doubled and Fryer tripled, for two more runs, then 1B Calvin Anderson doubled, driving in Fryer with the 4th run of the inning.