Wandy Rodriguez and Tony Watson will be over from major league camp today, as the Triple-A and Double-A teams take on the Phillies farm system. We’ll have bonus coverage tonight. Jessica Quiroli is in Clearwater, and will be providing some notes from the A-ball games on the road.
The Pirates made what appears to be their final cuts today. A lot of the moves are starting to impact the minor league rosters. Below I’ve got the daily lineups, pitchers, and the notes discuss how the rosters are shaping up.
Triple-A (Home)
Lineup: Darren Ford (8), Brett Carroll (DH), Clint Robinson (DH), Jerry Sands (9), Matt Hague (3), Jared Goedert (5), Jeff Larish (7), Adalberto Santos (4), Alex Valdez (6), Miguel Perez (2)
Pitchers: Wandy Rodriguez, Vic Black, Duke Welker, Brooks Brown, Kyle Waldrop, Kenn Kasparek
Notes: Wandy Rodriguez will be getting the start today, and probably pitching most of the game. This will be the first game for Welker since being sent down. I’d expect a few changes to the Indianapolis roster after today. Felix Pie should be in center field, moving Ford to the bench. Jordy Mercer and Ivan De Jesus Jr. will be the middle infield starters. That will push Adalberto Santos to Double-A, and Alex Valdez to the bench. Alex Presley will start in left, which will eventually push Jeff Larish to the bench.
Double-A (Home)
Lineup: Gift Ngoepe (6), Andy Vasquez (8), Matt Curry (3), Andrew Lambo (9), Alex Dickerson (7), Drew Maggi (4), Dan Grovatt (DH), Charlie Cutler (2), Justin Howard (DH), Yhonathan Barrios (5)
Pitchers: Tony Watson, Stolmy Pimentel, Tim Alderson, Nate Baker, Robbie Kilcrease
Notes: Tony Watson will be getting some work in, and will be followed by Stolmy Pimentel, who has looked good every time I’ve seen him. Pimentel will be a starter, and at this point it looks like he’ll be starting for Altoona. That’s not certain though, since he always seems to be pitching on days where major leaguers are starting in Triple-A. One interesting note here is Alex Dickerson starting in left field. Dickerson was drafted as an outfielder, but immediately moved to first base. Now that Matt Curry has been pushed down to Double-A, the Pirates will need to find time for both Curry and Dickerson. I’d imagine they’ll be the 1B/DH options during the season. The outfield will probably have Lambo, Grovatt, and Santos. Mel Rojas Jr. could also be an option, although today’s moves could push him back to Bradenton to start the year.
High-A
Lineup: TBD
Pitchers: Matt Benedict, Joan Montero, Quinton Miller, Tom Harlan, Lance Breedlove
Notes: No lineup announced today for Bradenton.
Low-A
Lineup: Max Moroff (6), Dilson Herrera (4), Josh Bell (9), Stetson Allie (3), Wyatt Mathisen (2), Eric Wood (5), Jonathan Schwind (7), Raul Fortunato (8), Walker Gourley (DH)
Pitchers: Zack Dodson, Pat Ludwig, Josh Smith, Kyle Haynes, Kevin Kleis, Clario Perez
Notes: Wyatt Mathisen is finally down in West Virginia, where I think he’ll start the year. He’s been impressive with the bat this Spring. Jin-De Jhang has been with the short-season players for the last week, so at this point it doesn’t look like he’ll be in West Virginia. Jonathan Schwind playing left field is a bit of a surprise. Schwind has been a catcher since being drafted, and he was a super utility player in college. I don’t think left field is unfamiliar to him, but it’s a change for him from the time he entered the system.
Short-Season Intra-Squad Game
Lineup 1: Jodaneli Carvajal (4), Jimmy Rider (6), Harold Ramirez (8), Danny Arribas (2), Edwin Espinal (3), Kevin Ross (5), Candon Myles (9), Francisco Aponte (7)
Pitchers 1: Adrian Grullon, Hayden Hurst, Angel Sanchez
Lineup 2: Elvis Escobar (8), Ulises Montilla (4), Jordan Steranka (7), David Valesente (2), Luis Urena (9), Enyel Vallejo (6), Samuel Gonzalez (3), Maximo Rivera (5), Jin-De Jhang (DH)
Pitchers 2: Miguel Rosario, Melvin Del Rosario, Christian Santiago
Notes: I’ll probably be spending most of my time watching this game. The Pirates haven’t done a lot of short-season games, mostly due to the lack of position players. I haven’t seen a lot of these guys in game action, and some of them I haven’t seen at all (Enyel Vallejo).
