Zach Thornton

WTM’S PIRATE PLAYER PROFILES

2010
R:  0-0-0, 0.00 ERA, 0.60 WHIP, 3.1 IP, 0.0 BB/9, 5.4 K/9
A-:  2-2-0, 4.39 ERA, 1.54 WHIP, 26.2 IP, 2.7 BB/9, 9.8 K/9

Other than a high K rate, Thornton didn’t pitch especially well in his short season debut.

2011
A:  5-4-5, 2.39 ERA, 1.01 WHIP, 83.0 IP, 2.4 BB/9, 8.9 K/9
AA:  0-0-0, 0.00 ERA, 0.67 WHIP, 3.0 IP, 3.0 BB/9, 12.0 K/9

Thornton pitched well in low A, but he was old for the level at 23.

2012
A+:  4-0-16, 4.53 ERA, 1.42 WHIP, 53.2 IP, 3.2 BB/9, 11.7 K/9

Thornton served as closer in the California League.  He got hit harder, but California League ERAs don’t necessarily mean a lot due to the extreme high-offense environment.  Thornton had a very high K rate.

2013
A+:  2-1-3, 1.93 ERA, 0.93 WHIP, 14.0 IP, 0.6 BB/9, 9.0 K/9
AA:  2-1-2, 2.00 ERA, 0.86 WHIP, 36.0 IP, 1.8 BB/9, 11.2 K/9
AAA:  3-1-0, 3.91 ERA, 1.03 WHIP, 25.1 IP, 1.4 BB/9, 11.0 K/9

Considering that he was nearly 25 when the 2013 season started, it was a little surprising that the Pirates sent Thornton to Bradenton.  He didn’t stay there long, though, as he pitched extremely well and continued to do so through AAA.  (He was much better in AAA than his ERA indicates.)  Not surprisingly, given his arm angle, Thornton had a large platoon split, but he still was very effective against left-handed hitters.  He was deadly against righties, holding them to a 172/212/244 line on the year.  He held lefties to 260/294/337, although they batted .318 against him in AAA.  Thornton made one spot start for Altoona and threw five scoreless, one-hit innings, walking one and fanning six.

Thornton is not eligible for minor league free agency but was eligible for the Rule 5 draft.  The Pirates sent him to the Arizona Fall League and he continued to pitch well there, but they did not add him to the roster.  He was reportedly a good candidate to get selected, but he wasn’t.  He’ll return to Indianapolis in 2014 and has a good chance of a callup at some point.