Your daily Pittsburgh Pirates Prospect Watch article for recaps of all of today’s games. Be sure to pick up your copy of the latest Prospect Guide in our store, available as an ebook or a limited edition paperback.
INDIANAPOLIS
Starting Pitcher: Miguel Yajure 6 IP, 4 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 6 SO
Notable Performances:
Jared Oliva 1-for-4, 2B
Michael Chavis 1-for-3, BB
Diego Castillo 0-for-3, BB
Game Recap: Miguel Yajure had quite an outing on Friday night, tossing six shutout innings on four hits and a walk, with six strikeouts. This is his longest outing since returning from injury. He came into the night with a 3.58 ERA in 37.2 innings with Indianapolis. Joe Jacques, Shea Spitzbarth and Tyler Bashlor each tossed a scoreless inning in the 2-0 win. The Indians scored their first run on a double by Bligh Madris in the fifth inning, his 21st double. They added a run in the sixth on an RBI single by Ethan Paul. Michael Chavis in his second rehab game went 1-for-3 with a single and a walk. Jared Oliva hit his 11th double.
ALTOONA
Starting Pitcher: Jeffrey Passantino 4 IP, 3 H, 2 ER, 1 BB, 6 SO
Notable Performances:
Oneil Cruz 0-for-3, BB, SB
Ji-hwan Bae 0-for-4
Rodolfo Castro 0-for-4
Mason Martin 0-for-4
Jack Suwinski 1-for-3
Matt Fraizer 1-for-3
Game Recap: Jeffrey Passantino went four innings on Friday night, allowing three runs (two earned) on three hits, a walk and six strikeouts. That gave him a 4.62 ERA in 76 innings. Noe Toribio had an impressive outing in relief with four hitless/shutout innings, with one walk and seven strikeouts. The Curve offense didn’t show anything until the eighth inning and the defense may have been worse with five errors. They lost 3-1 and their only run scored on an error. They didn’t have a hit until the eighth inning and they finished with two singles and one walk. Oneil Cruz stole his 18th base. Rodolfo Castro went 0-for-4 with three strikeouts. He is 5-for-70 in his last 18 games.
GREENSBORO
Starting Pitcher: Valentin Linarez 4 IP, 4 H, 2 ER, 1 BB, 3 SO
Notable Performances:
Nick Gonzales 0-for-3, BB
Liover Peguero 1-for-4
Game Recap: Valentin Linarez got a second start with Greensboro and he went four innings, allowing four hits and a walk, while giving up two runs, both of them coming on solo homers. He had a 2.63 ERA and 38 strikeouts in 24 innings in the FCL before joining Greensboro last week. Jack Carey tossed two scoreless innings. Michell Miliano allowed a run in his only inning. Austin Roberts pitched a scoreless eighth in the 3-2 loss. The runs scored on an error and a wild pitch, a common theme for tonight. Aaron Shackelford hit his 15th double. Eli Wilson hit his second triple.
BRADENTON
Starting Pitcher: Jared Jones 4 IP, 3 H, 3 ER, 3 BB, 7 SO
Notable Performances:
Sammy Siani 0-for-3, BB
Endy Rodriguez 2-for-4
Jack Herman 0-for-3, BB
Hudson Head 2-for-3, BB
Jase Bowen 1-for-4, SB
Alexander Mojica 0-for-4
Game Recap: Bradenton has playoff games left, but this was the last regular season appearance for Jared Jones and it was a typical outing. He ran up the strikeouts while allowing three runs on three hits and three walks in four innings. He finishes up with a 4.64 ERA in 68 innings, with 103 strikeouts. Sergio Umana and Nick Dombrowski each followed with two scoreless innings. Bradenton lost 3-1 and their only run scored on a wild pitch. Hudson Head reached base three times. Endy Rodriguez had two singles and a run scored. Jase Bowen stole his 16th base. All five Bradenton hits were singles.
DSL PIRATES BLACK
Starting Pitcher: Isaias Uribe 4 IP, 3 H, 0 ER, 0 BB, 3 SO
Notable Performances:
Enmanuel Terrero 0-for-3, BB, SB
Javier Rivas 1-for-4, 2B
Shalin Polanco 3-for-4, 2B, 2 3B, 2 RBI
Ruben Vizcaya 1-for-2, 3B, 3 RBI, 2 BB
Game Recap: Shalin Polanco has been having a disappointing season as the highest paid international prospect for the Pirates during the 2020-21 signing period. He had a .559 OPS in 38 games coming into today. He made a big improvement on those numbers (+68 points on the OPS) by collecting a double and two triples, with three runs scored and two RBIs. Ruben Vizcaya had a triple, two walks and he drove in three runs. The Pirates scored six runs in the first, two in the second and added three more runs in the fourth for the 11-2 win. Starter Isaias Uribe came into the day with a 2.74 ERA in 23 innings this season. He went four innings in this contest and allowed two runs, but both were unearned. Diego Chiquillo pitched three hitless/shutout innings to get the win, which gives him a 6-0 record.
DSL PIRATES GOLD
Starting Pitcher: Jose Garces 5 IP, 4 H, 1 ER, 0 BB, 4 SO
Notable Performances:
Rodolfo De La Cruz 0-for-3
Wesley Zapata 0-for-3
Esmerlyn Valdez 0-for-2, BB
Dioris Valdez 0-for-2, BB
Delfin Ramirez 0-for-3
Game Recap: Starter Jose Garces came into today’s game with a 5.16 ERA in 22.2 innings over eight starts and two relief appearances. He improved that ERA by allowing one run over five innings on four hits, no walks and four strikeouts. Rafael Mendez took the loss in the seventh when he allowed a double, two walks and a walk-off single. The Pirates lost 2-1 and they had just one hit, an infield single by Pedro Figuereo in the second inning. Their only run scored on a strikeout, when the combination of a wild pitch and an error allowed Rodolfo De La Cruz to score. He reached base leading off the game on a wild pitch on a strikeout.
*** FCL season wrapped up yesterday for the Pirates.