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
(7:05pm)
Starting Pitcher: Max Kranick 3 IP, 6 H, 5 ER, 1 BB, 1 K
Notable Performances:
Cole Tucker 1-4, 2B, HBP
Will Craig 2-3, 2B, 2 BB
Game Recap:
Max Kranick’s return to AAA didn’t go quite as well as his short stay in the majors, as Indianapolis (27-25) lost to Iowa, 9-7. He gave up a grand slam in the first and a fifth run before leaving after three. Matt Eckelman didn’t fare much better in relief, giving up three runs in three innings. Braeden Ogle gave up the last run, although he fanned four in two innings. For a while, the Indians matched Iowa, scoring four in the bottom of the first and another run in the third, which saved Kranick from a loss. Bligh Madris and Christian Bethancourt had RBI singles, and Hunter Owen a two-run double in the first. Owen tied the game again in the third with his seventh home run of the year. That was all Indy would get, though, until Madris drove in two more with a two-out single in the ninth. Madris, Owen and Will Craig each had two hits, and Madris and Owen each drove in three. Cole Tucker had a double.
ALTOONA
(4:05pm)
Starting Pitchers: Osvaldo Bido 1.1 IP, 3 H, 4 ER, 1 BB, 1 K and Omar Cruz 4.2 IP, 4 H, 2 ER, 1 BB, 4 K
Notable Performances:
Canaan Smith-Njigba 0-4
Rodolfo Castro 1-6, 2B
Mason Martin 3-6, 3 HR (12)
Brendt Citta 2-6
Cal Mitchell 1-6
Game Recap:
Altoona (29-22) got swept in a doubleheader by a very bad Hartford team. The Curve lost the first game, 7-5. The damage almost all came from Willie MacIver, a catching prospect just promoted to AA by the Rockies. He hit three home runs and drove in six. That upstaged Mason Martin, who hit a pair of longballs, his 10th and 11th. Osvaldo Bido got knocked out in the second inning after giving up back-to-back longballs, the first one a three-run shot. The Curve twice came back to make it a one-run game, but couldn’t catch up. Cam Alldred gave up a two-run homer to MacIver in three and two-thirds innings of relief, and Cristofer Melendez gave up the last homer in his one inning. Daniel Amaral hit his third home run for the Curve and Rodolfo Castro had a double. Amaral, Martin and Brendt Citta each had two hits.
In game two, the Curve lost by a 2-1 score. They got dominated by Matt Dennis, who came in having allowed 39 earned runs in 35.1 IP. Altoona got just one hit off him over five innings, that being Martin’s third home run of the day and 12th of the season. The longball ended up being Altoona’s only hit in the game. Omar Cruz went four and two-thirds, allowing two runs. The first one resulted from a blown call by the umpire, who’s no known relation to Rob Drake. A drive off Cruz obviously hit the wall, but the ump called it a home run. John O’Reilly threw a scoreless inning and a third.
GREENSBORO
(7:35pm)
Starting Pitcher: Carmen Mlodzinski 6 IP, 5 H, 5 ER, 1 BB, 5 K
Notable Performances:
Matt Fraizer 3-5, 2B, 3B
Nick Gonzales 1-4, BB
Liover Peguero 0-5
Fabricio Macias 1-5
Game Recap:
Carmen Mlodzinski ran into gopher ball problems but Greensboro (30-23) beat Bowling Green anyway by a 6-5 count. Mlodzinski gave up four runs in the bottom of the third, including a three-run homer, to blow an early 4-0 lead. He also gave up a solo shot in the fourth. He still finished six innings on 80 pitches. The Grasshoppers got two runs each in the second and third, one in each inning on an RBI single by Will Matthiessen. After Mlodzinski gave up the go-ahead run, Greensboro tied the game in the sixth after a single by Fabricio Macias. The throw back into the infield got away and Liover Peguero went for the plate, scoring when the throw hit the umpire. The winning run came in the eighth on Dylan Shockley’s first career home run. Matt Fraizer had three hits, including a double and triple. Matthiessen and Jared Triolo each had two. Peguero had a rough day, going 0-for-5 and stranding eight runners. Austin Roberts, Colin Selby and Oliver Garcia combined for three scoreless innings.
BRADENTON
(7:00pm)
Starting Pitcher: Adrian Florencio 6 IP, 4 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 5 K
Notable Performances:
Hudson Head 0-4
Endy Rodriguez 1-4
Maikol Escotto 1-4
Blake Sabol 1-4
Jase Bowen 0-4
Sammy Siani 1-3
Sergio Campana 1-3
Game Recap:
Bradenton (35-18) got another outstanding start from Adrian Florencio and beat Fort Myers, 1-0. Florencio allowed just six hits and a walk over six innings. Cam Junker followed with two perfect innings, fanning four. Enmanuel Mejia pitched the ninth, giving up one hit and getting the save. The game ended when Endy Rodriguez threw the potential tying run out trying to steal third, so the Pirates aren’t the only team teaching TOOTBLAN science. The game’s only run scored in the second when Sammy Siani beat out a bunt with two out and scored on a double by Yoyner Fajardo. That was the only extra-base hit among the Marauders’ six hits. They struck out 13 times.
FCL PIRATES BLACK
(10:00am)
Starting Pitcher: Luis Peralta 1.1 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 4 K
Notable Performances:
Game Recap:
The big grudge match between Pirates Black and Gold was suspended in the top of the second with no score. It’ll be resumed on July 9. The two starting pitchers, Luis Peralta for the Black and Valentin Linarez for the Gold, had interesting beginnings. They both struck out the side in the first. In Peralta’s case, that meant fanning three players — Jasiah Dixon, Claudio Finol and Jack Herman — with experience at full season levels. Peralta gave up a single to Rodolfo Nolasco and a walk in the second, and fanned the only other batter he faced, so play will resume with the Gold team having two on and one out.
FCL PIRATES GOLD
(10:00am)
Boxscore
Starting Pitcher: Valentin Linarez 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 3 K
Notable Performances:
Game Recap:
See above.
