The best way to keep the opposing offense off the board is to keep them from putting the ball into play. Once it is, there are so many factors outside of the pitcher’s control, it feels like more can go wrong than right.
Of all pitchers with at least 40 innings pitched last year in the Pirates system, only four had a swinging strike rate of at least 13%, and a ground ball rate over 50% — Anthony Solometo, Quinn Priester, Ricky DeVito, Noe Toribio.
After a rough start in Triple-A Indianapolis, he was sent back to Altoona, where he saw the strike outs started to come back.
Now pitching out of the bullpen again for Altoona, not only does Toribio have a swinging strike rate of over 16%, but has struck out over 40% of the batters he’s faced.
He picked up his first win of the season on Wednesday, pitching two innings while striking out four batters.
Toribio is still just 23-years-old, which is still a year younger than the average pitcher in the Eastern League.
He may be buried a little deep on the organizational depth chart, but if he continues to build off of last year, Toribio not only could be an option to move up to Indianapolis, but as a deeper sleeper bullpen option later in the season.
Pirates Notes
I dropped some mini wisdom on Twitter last night, saying that ‘it’s not the spectacular plays you make, it’s the routine ones you don’t’, which pretty much sums up the Pirates right now.
I don’t think a three game losing streak over the course of 162 games really means it’s time to hit the panic button — even if they’ve lost in the fashion they have.
It’s a long season, and a lot of things are going to happen, good and bad. The teams that stay in contention for the entire season are the ones who limit the bad.
What’s the best way to limit the bad? Control the controllable. Make the easy play over and over again.
We saw it with Ji-Hwan Bae, he saved a run with a fantastic diving stop, only give it right back up on the easier of the two plays.
We will see what this Pirates team is made of in how they respond to this, and each of the struggles that comes across the way.
— I’m not one get worked up over a small sample size, but it has been a really rough start to the season for Termarr Johnson. He has over a 50% strikeout rate, while also committing four errors.
It’s only been seven games for Johnson, and he’s coming off an injury. Nothing to see here, yet.
Daily Video Rundown
Early and often.
Josh Palacios simply cannot be stopped.
There may not be a hotter player in the system right now than Josh Palacios, which all started when he got called up to Indianapolis.
Liover Peguero with his first home run of the season, giving Altoona the lead again #LetsGoBucs pic.twitter.com/jc5gVPSyV5
— Anthony Murphy (@__Murphy88) May 4, 2023
Liover Peguero picks up his first home run on the season Wednesday night, temporarily giving Altoona the lead.
Matt Gorski with a two run home run for Altoona, giving them a 3-0 lead in the first inning #LetsGoBucs pic.twitter.com/jxXSY7FVA6
— Anthony Murphy (@__Murphy88) May 3, 2023
Another home run hit on Wednesday, Matt Gorski hit a two-run shot in the first inning, giving them a 3-0 lead right out the gate.
PIRATES PROSPECTS DAILY
By Tim Williams
The Pirates have their first three game losing streak of the year. In my latest column, I wrote about how this is when they need that veteran presence.
Williams: This is When the Pirates Need That Veteran Presence
Pirates Recap: Pirates Are Reminded There’s No Room For Mistakes Against the Best Team in Baseball
Prospect Watch: Altoona Wins Behind Homers from Liover Peguero and Matt Gorski
**Owen Kellington Might Have One Of The Best Pitches In The System
**Pitching Led the Pirates System in the First Month of the 2023 Season
SONG OF THE DAY
