The Pittsburgh Pirates had some activity around their farm system today, so here’s a summary of all of the moves they made today. If there are more later, we will update the article.
Starting with Altoona, they placed right-handed pitcher Austin Coley on the disabled list with a right shoulder strain. Pedro Vasquez was just activated from the DL, so expect him to take Coley’s place in the rotation. Coley threw five shutout innings on Wednesday.
Bradenton released outfielder Garrett Brown. He hit .257/.299/.275 in 36 games. The 25-year-old was drafted in 23rd round in 2016. He was known for his plus speed, which was near the top of the system, but he was raw as a baseball player, playing football in college. Surprisingly, that speed translated to him going 6-for-13 in steals this year.
Infielder Raul Siri took Brown’s spot on the Bradenton roster. He had just two short stints with West Virginia this season, playing eight games total, and was only there recently due to multiple injuries. The 23-year-old has spent most of the last two seasons with Morgantown and can play second base (his best spot), third base and shortstop in a pinch.
Deon Stafford (pictured) and Ben Bengtson both returned from the West Virginia disabled list. They were both there due to concussion protocol and they missed the minimum amount of time.
Jhoan Herrera, who was assigned to West Virginia at the same time Raul Siri joined the club, was sent the other way. He returns to Morgantown, where he was hitting .235/.259/.444 in 22 games. He played just two games for the Power.
The GCL Pirates released catcher Yair Babilonia. After spending two years in the DSL, Babilonia played just five games in the GCL this season, going 0-for-8 at the plate. He wasn’t an invite to the Fall Instructional League last year or Spring Training this year, but came over during the spring to help with a shortage of catchers. The Pirates signed catchers Mason Fishback and Justin Morris as non-drafted free agents earlier this week, so Babilonia became expendable.
