Pittsburgh Pirates Prospect Watch 4/19/10

Posted by on April 20, 2010 | Comments Off

INDIANAPOLIS INDIANS (AAA)

Indianapolis lost 10-1 to Toledo, after the bullpen fell apart for seven runs in the final two innings, putting the game out of reach.  The Indians got a great start from Brad Lincoln, who went six innings, allowing three runs on five hits, with two walks and three strikeouts.  According to Indians broadcaster Scott McCauley (a must follow on Twitter, click the link to go to his account), Lincoln was hitting 96 MPH for the second straight start.  That’s encouraging, although it would be more encouraging if he was putting up the dominant numbers we saw from him at the AA level last year.

Indianapolis fell apart in the eighth when Vinnie Chulk gave up a leadoff homer, three straight singles to load the bases, and a walk to bring in another run.  Anthony Claggett came on to relieve Chulk, but immediately allowed an RBI single, a walk with the bases loaded, and another RBI single.  Claggett got credit for the last run, and allowed another run in the ninth after leading off the inning with two straight doubles.  The Indianapolis bullpen has struggled to start the season, and with Hayden Penn getting assigned to AAA today, someone might end up getting released.

The only offense from the Indians came on an RBI by Luke Carlin, scoring Jonathan Van Every.  Pedro Alvarez was 2-for-4, and didn’t strike out.  Alvarez also stole a base.  Jose Tabata went 1-for-3 with a walk, and stole his seventh base of the season, a number that is pretty strong for a season only two weeks old.

ALTOONA CURVE (AA)
Altoona won 10-3 against Akron, thanks to some strong offense in the middle innings, and another quality start from Michael Crotta.  Crotta went 6.1 innings, allowing three runs on nine hits, with no walks and two strikeouts.  His ERA on the season, over three starts, is 1.86.  I’m hoping to have the video of his start from last week uploaded by tomorrow, but I’ve been a little busy the last few days, and it takes forever to upload to YouTube, thus the delay.

Ronald Uviedo and Jeff Sues combined for 2.2 shutout innings, with both pitchers recording no walks and one strikeout, and Sues allowing the only hit.  The big contributor from the Altoona offense tonight was Alex Presley, who went 2-for-5 with his first homer of the year, a triple, and five RBIs.  Presley also stole a base.  Matt Hague also contributed from the bottom of the order, going 1-for-3 with two walks and two RBIs.  Jordy Mercer went 1-for-4 with his fourth double of the year, and scored twice.  Jim Negrych and Gorkys Hernandez each had two hits, while Josh Harrison went 1-for-2 with a double and three walks.

BRADENTON MARAUDERS (A+)
Bradenton won 6-0 against Jupiter, with the Marauders’ pitching staff combining for a one hitter.  Brian Leach led the staff with five innings, allowing the only hit, plus two walks and four strikeouts, getting his second win of the season.  Mike Colla pitched two no-hit innings, allowing a walk and striking out two.  Tom Boleska pitched a perfect inning with two strikeouts, followed by a perfect inning by Noah Krol with one strikeout.

Quincy Latimore led the offense by going 2-for-4 with two runs and two RBIs.  Tony Sanchez continued his hot hitting, going 1-for-3 with his fifth double of the season, plus a run, an RBI, and a walk.  Sanchez has been DHing the past few days due to tenderness in his shoulder, according to Kyle Stark via Rocco DeMaro.

WEST VIRGINIA POWER (A)
West Virginia was rained out.
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About Tim Williams

Tim is the owner and editor in chief of Pirates Prospects. He started the site in January 2009, and turned it into his full time job during the 2011 season. Prior to starting Pirates Prospects, Tim worked with AccuScore.com, providing MLB, NHL, and NFL coverage to various national media outlets, including ESPN Insider, USA Today, Yahoo Sports, and the Wall Street Journal. He also writes the annual Prospect Guide, which is sold through the site. Tim moved to Bradenton in 2013, and will be providing live coverage all year of the Bradenton Marauders, GCL Pirates, instructs, mini camp, Spring Training, and lunches at Mixon's Fruit Farms.

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