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.
Altoona and Greensboro each got back-to-back home runs in the first inning of their games, and Mason Martin hit two longballs on the day.
INDIANAPOLIS
(7:30pm)
Starting Pitcher: Cody Ponce 7 IP, 6 H, 1 ER, 0 BB, 9 K
Notable Performances:
Anthony Alford 1-4, BB
Jared Oliva 1-5, SB
Will Craig 1-4, BB
Game Recap: Indianapolis (21-17) needed some help, but beat Memphis in 11 innings, 3-2. Cody Ponce gave up a home run to the game’s first batter, but went on to throw seven innings on 88 pitches, allowing no more runs and no walks, while striking out nine. The Indians tied the game in the fifth on an RBI single by Anthony Alford, but neither team scored again in regulation. Indy had a lot of trouble at the plate, fanning 17 times. Austin Davis and Jandel Gustave each threw a scoreless inning in relief of Ponce. In the top of the tenth, Tyler Bashlor nearly stranded the free runner, striking out the first two hitters, but he gave up an RBI single. Indy ended up with runners at the corners and two out in the bottom half. Jared Oliva grounded to second, but the second baseman booted it to tie the game. Kyle Keller kept the free runner from scoring in the eleventh. In the bottom half, Wilmer Difo singled with one out to end it. Indy had seven hits, all singles. T.J. Rivera was the only player with two.
ALTOONA
(7:05pm)
Starting Pitcher: Noe Toribio 3.2 IP, 5 H, 4 R, 3 ER, 3 BB, 1 K
Notable Performances:
Oneil Cruz 1-5, 3B, SB
Canaan Smith-Njigba 1-3, 2 BB, SB
Rodolfo Castro 1-5, HR (8)
Mason Martin 2-5, 2 HR (7)
Brendt Citta 0-5
Cal Mitchell 2-5, HR (4)
Shea Murray 1.2 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 2 BB, 2 K
Game Recap: Altoona (24-14) rode four dingers to an 8-7 win over Erie, but may have lost starter Noe Toribio in the process. The Curve got four runs in the first on home runs. Rodolfo Castro hit a three-run shot, his eighth homer of the year. Mason Martin followed with home run number 6. Toribio wasn’t sharp from the start, giving up two runs in the first and single runs in the third and fourth. He finally came out with two away in the fourth, apparently with some sort of arm injury. John O’Reilly got a strikeout to end the inning with the bases loaded.
Altoona had gotten a run in the third on an opposite field shot by Cal Mitchell, his fourth homer of the year, so the Curve led, 5-4, after four. O’Reilly, though, gave up three in the fifth to put Erie ahead, 7-5. The Curve got the runs back in the top of the sixth when Oneil Cruz tripled and scored on a single by Canaan Smith-Njigba. An out later, Martin hit his seventh home run to put the Curve up, 8-7. Cam Alldred and Shea Murray combined for four and a third scoreless innings to hold the lead. Murray got his third save. Mitchell and Jesus Valdez joined Martin with two hits apiece.
GREENSBORO
(7:00pm)
Starting Pitcher: Tahnaj Thomas 3 IP, 2 H, 2 R, 1 ER, 3 BB, 3 K
Notable Performances:
Matt Fraizer 1-5, HR (8)
Liover Peguero 1-4, HR (3)
Aaron Shackelford 0-4
Lolo Sanchez 1-3, HR (7), BB
Fabricio Macias 3-4, 2B, 3B
Game Recap: Greensboro (21-18) got home runs from the game’s first two hitters, Matt Fraizer and Liover Peguero. The blasts were Fraizer’s eighth of the year and Peguero’s third. Unfortunately, the Grasshoppers were able to get only one more run and lost to Winston-Salem, 5-3. Tahnaj Thomas struggled with his command, lasting only three innings. He gave up a two-run home run in the first, following an error, but managed to get through two more innings without allowing any more. In the top of the fourth, Lolo Sanchez put Greensboro ahead, 3-2, with his seventh homer of the year. Garrett Leonard, though, gave up a two-run homer in the fourth to put Winston-Salem in the lead. The Grasshoppers had chances to tie the game at least, but Jared Triolo twice failed to get runners in from third with one out. Fabricio Macias had three hits, including a double and a triple, but they didn’t lead to any runs. Steven Jennings threw two scoreless innings and Austin Roberts allowed an unearned run.
BRADENTON
(6:30pm)
Boxscore
Starting Pitcher: Logan Hofmann (3-0, 1.27, 21.1 IP, 33 K)
Notable Performances:
Game Recap: Bradenton’s game in Tampa was rained out. It’ll be made up as part of a doubleheader tomorrow.
