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: Cody Ponce 2.2 IP, 3 H, 5 ER, 2 BB, 2 SO
Notable Performances:
Cole Tucker 0-for-3, BB
Kevin Kramer 0-for-2, BB, HBP
Will Craig 0-for-3, HBP
Anthony Alford 1-for-3
Nick Mears 0.2 IP, 3 H, 3 ER, 1 BB, 1 SO
Braeden Ogle 1.1 IP, 1 H, 4 ER, 3 BB, 1 SO
Game Recap: Cody Ponce started with two quiet innings to his night, then everything fell apart in the third. The inning started with two walks, followed by a sacrifice bunt and a sacrifice fly. The next three batters all singled in runs. Joe Jacques came on and Nashville collected their fourth straight RBI single before he could record the final out of the frame. Jacques allowed one run over 2.2 innings. Nick Mears came on in the sixth with one out and a runner on base. Before getting out of the inning, the inherited runner and three other runs scored, ending the night early for Mears. Braeden Ogle tossed a scoreless seventh, but four batters reached against him in the eighth. Blake Weiman took over with one out and the bases loaded and all three runners scored. He also gave up one run of his own.
The offense was quiet all game. They had doubles from Anthony Alford and Troy Stokes Jr, and a single from Hunter Owen, who scored the lone run. Chris Sharpe drove him in with a sacrifice fly. Kevin Kramer had a walk and hit-by-pitch. Cole Tucker walked and Will Craig reached on a hit-by-pitch.
ALTOONA
Starting Pitcher: Noe Toribio 5.2 IP, 6 H, 3 ER, 0 BB, 5 SO
Notable Performances:
Oneil Cruz 1-for-4, HR, 3 RBI
Canaan Smith-Njigba 2-for-4, HR, RBI
Rodolfo Castro 2-for-4
Mason Martin 0-for-4
Cal Mitchell 0-for-3
Game Recap: Starter Noe Toribio had a nice start to Friday night, as this game was scoreless through three innings. By the time he left with two outs in the sixth, the score was 5-4, with the Curve holding on to a slim lead. Toribio threw 76 pitches, with 48 going for strikes. He allowed four runs (three earned) on six hits and no walks, with five strikeouts. He now has a 4.18 ERA through 28 innings. Cam Vieaux came on in the sixth and stranded an inherited runner to keep it a one-run game. Vieaux pitched two more innings and he allowed three runs (two earned) for the 7-5 loss. Hunter Stratton threw a scoreless inning to give him a 1.29 ERA. The Curve committed four errors, leading to two unearned runs.
Josh Bissonette got the scoring started with an RBI single in the fifth, which made it 3-1. Oneil Cruz’s only hit of the game was a big one. He hit his seventh home run, a three-run shot in the fifth inning, which gave the Curve a 4-3 lead. Canaan Smith-Njigba followed with his third homer on the next pitch. All of the Altoona scoring happened within a matter of five pitches. Five of their seven hits came in the fifth inning and they failed to draw a single walk.
GREENSBORO
Starting Pitcher: Tahnaj Thomas 2.2 IP, 6 H, 4 ER, 4 BB, 3 SO
Notable Performances:
Matt Gorski 2-for-3, 2B, 3 RBI
Jared Triolo 0-for-2, BB
Lolo Sanchez 0-for-3
Game Recap: Tahnaj Thomas got the start in game one of a doubleheader for Greensboro and he had a rough outing, as Hickory put up runs in each of the first three innings and knocked him out after 2.2 frames and 66 pitches (35 strikes). Thomas allowed six runs (four earned) on six hits and four walks, with three strikeouts. He now has a 4.58 ERA in 19.2 innings, with 26 strikeouts. Garrett Leonard took over in the third and stranded an inherited runner. He ended up finishing out the game with 3.1 shutout innings, but the Grasshoppers lost 6-4.
Chase Murray debuted and had a big game, including a seventh-inning home run. He also had a single and three runs scored. Matt Gorski drove in three runs with a single and his seventh double. Claudio Finol went 1-for-2 with a walk, picking up his first hit since joining Greensboro (1-for-16). Dylan Shockley had the only other hit (a double) and it was just his second hit of the season (2-for-22).
Game Two
Starting Pitcher: Omar Cruz 5 IP, 4 H, 3 ER, 1 BB, 2 SO
Notable Performances:
Matt Fraizer 3-for-5, HR, 3 RBI
Liover Peguero 3-for-4, RBI, SB, BB
Lolo Sanchez 3-for-4, 2B, 3 RBI
Jared Triolo 3-for-4
Game Recap: Greensboro took game two of the doubleheader by an 11-3 score. Omar Cruz cruised through three innings before allowing three runs in the fourth. He stayed in the game long enough to pick up the win. Cruz has a 3.97 ERA in 22.2 innings over six starts, with 33 strikeouts. Alex Manasa tossed shutout ball over the final two innings in the seven-inning contest.
The Grasshoppers had 18 hits in this contest, including eight hits with runners in scoring position. Matt Fraizer, Liover Peguero, Lolo Sanchez and Jared Triolo all had three hits. Sanchez collected his seventh double and he now has a .928 OPS. Fraizer hit his sixth homer and he now has a .966 OPS. Peguero stole his seventh base and also drew a walk. Fabricio Macias had two hits, a walk, a run scored and an RBI. Kyle Wilkie had two hits and two runs scored.
BRADENTON
Starting Pitcher: Domingo Gonzalez 4.1 IP, 4 H, 3 ER, 2 BB, 5 SO
Notable Performances:
Sergio Campana 0-for-5
Jase Bowen 2-for-4, 2B
Sammy Siani 2-for-5, HR, RBI
Dariel Lopez 1-for-5, RBI
Alexander Mojica 1-for-3, HR, RBI, BB
Eli Wilson 1-for-3, RBI, 2 BB
Jasiah Dixon 0-for-3
Game Recap: Domingo Gonzalez made his sixth start for Bradenton and this was his longest outing, but he still hasn’t been able to make it through five innings. He allowed three runs on four hits and two walks, with five strikeouts. He left in the fifth with a runner on, which scored off of reliever Ryan Troutman, who allowed two runs of his own in his only inning of work. Logan Hofmann took over in the sixth and pitched brilliantly, allowing just one hit and a walk, while striking out nine batters in four scoreless innings.
Down 2-0 in the bottom of the second, Yoyner Fajardo hit an RBI double. Sammy Siani’s third homer of the season tied the game in the third. Alexander Mojica gave the Marauders a 3-2 lead in the fourth with his fourth homer. Down 5-3 in the fifth, Ernny Ordonez brought home a run with a ground out. The scored remained 5-4 until the bottom of the ninth when Dariel Lopez tied the game with a single that scored Jase Bowen. Eli Wilson then brought home Jake Snider with the walk-off single. Bowen, Siani, Ordonez and Fajardo each had two hits. Bowen scored two runs. Wilson reached base three times on a single and two walks. He has a .364 average and a 1.086 OPS. Bradenton has a 22-12 record.
