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Prospect Watch: Solid Debuts from Max Kranick, Eduardo Vera and Brad Case; Polanco Begins Rehab

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P2 Top 30

A look at how the current top 30 prospects did today. If a player is in the majors for an extended time or loses his prospect eligibility (Kevin Newman, Nick Burdi and Pablo Reyes), he will be removed from this list. Everyone below him will be shifted up a spot, and a new player will be added to the bottom of the list. If a player is out for the season (Travis MacGregor), he will be removed and everyone below him will move up a spot. Removing these guys doesn’t mean they have lost prospect status. It is just an attempt to get more active prospects on the list. Rankings are from our updated 2019 Prospect Guide, and links on each name go to their Pirates Prospects player pages.

1. Mitch Keller, RHP, Indianapolis – DNP

2. Ke’Bryan Hayes, 3B, Indianapolis – 2-for-5, 2 2B, 2 RBI

3. Cole Tucker, SS, Indianapolis – 0-for-5

4. Oneil Cruz, SS, Bradenton – DNP

5. Travis Swaggerty, CF, Bradenton – 1-for-4

6. Kevin Kramer, 2B, Indianapolis – 1-for-5, 2B, RBI

7. Bryan Reynolds, OF, Indianapolis – 1-for-3, 2 BB, SB

8. Will Craig, 1B, Indianapolis – 0-for-4

9. Jason Martin, OF, Pirates – DNP

10. JT Brubaker, RHP, Indianapolis – DNP

11. Calvin Mitchell, OF, Bradenton – 1-for-4

12. Cody Bolton, RHP, Bradenton – DNP

13. Tahnaj Thomas, RHP, Extended Spring Training – DNP

14. Braxton Ashcraft, RHP, Extended Spring Training – DNP

15. Lolo Sanchez, CF, Greensboro – 1-for-4, 3B, RBI

16. Clay Holmes, RHP, Indianapolis – 1 IP, 2 H, 2 R, 0 ER, 1 BB, 0 SO

17. Braeden Ogle, LHP, Greensboro – DNP

18. Stephen Alemais, 2B/SS, Altoona – DNP

19. Michael Burrows, RHP, Extended Spring Training – DNP

20. Jared Oliva, CF, Altoona – DNP

21. Ji-Hwan Bae, SS, Extended Spring Training – DNP

22. Max Kranick, RHP, Bradenton – 4 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 3 BB, 7 SO

23. Luis Escobar, RHP, Bradenton – 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 2 SO

24. Osvaldo Bido, RHP, Greensboro – DNP

25. Eduardo Vera, RHP, Indianapolis – 6 IP, 3 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 6 SO

26. Gage Hinsz, RHP, Altoona – DNP

27. Aaron Shortridge, RHP, Bradenton –  DNP

28. Blake Weiman, RHP, Altoona – DNP

29. Steven Jennings, RHP, Greensboro – DNP

30. Brandon Waddell, LHP, Indianapolis – DNP

Prospect-Watch-Indy

Indianapolis won 5-2 to avoid a four-game sweep against Columbus. Eduardo Vera got the start after being promoted from Altoona yesterday. In his season and Triple-A debut, he tossed six shutout innings on three hits (all singles) and a walk, while picking up six strikeouts. Vera tossed 49 of his 73 pitches for strikes and he posted a 6:3 GO/AO ratio. Clay Holmes allowed two unearned runs in the seventh inning, though they were unearned due to his own error. Brandon Maurer and Montana DuRapau finished off the game with a shutout inning each.

Ke’Bryan Hayes drove in a pair of runs with his first two doubles of the season. He had just one hit over the first three games. Kevin Kramer and Jake Elmore each picked up an RBI. Kramer collected his third double of the season. Bryan Reynolds had a single, two walks, his second stolen base and a run scored. Eric Wood added a single, walk and a run scored.

Here is the boxscore from the MiLB site.

You can view the season preview here.

Prospect-Watch-Altoona-Curve

Altoona swept four games from Akron, winning 3-2 on Sunday. Scooter Hightower got the spot start, as the Curve were without Eduardo Vera (promoted) and Gage Hinsz (injured). He put up a solid start on short notice, allowing two runs on six hits, with no walks and three strikeouts, in five innings. The bullpen shut Akron down the rest of the way, with shutout innings from Jake Brentz and Matt Eckelman, and two scoreless frames by Vicente Campos, who picked up four strikeouts.

The offense was led by Logan Hill, who had three hits, an RBI and a run scored. Hunter Owen picked up two RBIs on a fourth inning double. Bligh Madris and Bralin Jackson each had two hits and a run scored.

Here is the boxscore from the MiLB site.

You can view the season preview here.

Prospect-Watch-Bradenton

Bradenton couldn’t complete the four-game sweep of St Lucie, losing 3-0 on Sunday afternoon. Max Kranick started the game and looked great except for a four-batter stretch in the second inning when he loaded the bases on walks. Otherwise, he allowed just two hits and struck out seven batters over four shutout innings. Dovydas Neverauskas followed with a shutout inning in his season debut, returning from an oblique injury. Gavin Wallace allowed three runs in his three innings, before Luis Escobar looked strong while retiring the side in the ninth.

Gregory Polanco played his first game and went 0-for-2 with two walks. He didn’t have much work in right field, with two fly balls that he caught and another that dropped in front of him. Bradenton had just six hits all game. Jesse Medrano had the only two-hit game. Michael Gretler’s first double of the season was the lone extra-base hit. The Marauders went 0-for-10 with runners in scoring position.

Here is the boxscore from the MiLB site.

You can view the season preview here.

Greensboro won 2-1 in ten innings on a walk-off infield single by Raul Siri. Brad Case started the game and lasted 5.2 innings, giving up one run on three hits and a walk, with three strikeouts. He threw 52 of 81 pitches for strikes. Samuel Reyes followed with 2.2 innings, giving up two walks and striking out two batters. Conner Loeprich got the win by retiring all six batters he faced.

Lolo Sanchez got the scoring started with an RBI triple in the eighth inning. That play scored Siri, who then drove in Pat Dorrian with the winning run two innings later. Chase Lambert had a single and a triple. The two teams combined for eight hits total.

Here is the boxscore from the MiLB site.

You can view the season preview here.

John Dreker
John Dreker
John started working at Pirates Prospects in 2009, but his connection to the Pittsburgh Pirates started exactly 100 years earlier when Dots Miller debuted for the 1909 World Series champions. John was born in Kearny, NJ, two blocks from the house where Dots Miller grew up. From that hometown hero connection came a love of Pirates history, as well as the sport of baseball. When he didn't make it as a lefty pitcher with an 80+ MPH fastball and a slider that needed work, John turned to covering the game, eventually focusing in on the prospects side, where his interest was pushed by the big league team being below .500 for so long. John has covered the minors in some form since the 2002 season, and leads the draft and international coverage on Pirates Prospects. He writes daily on Pittsburgh Baseball History, when he's not covering the entire system daily throughout the entire year on Pirates Prospects.

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