Pittsburgh Pirates Spring: A Lot of Prospects Set To Play Today

The Pittsburgh Pirates are having a split-squad day at spring training today.  This means there will be plenty of players in action.

One of the most unique things about spring training is that there are certain days that teams have split-squad games.  On these days, the Pittsburgh Pirates have two games scheduled against two different opponents.  This allows the team to get more players involved in game action.  Well, the Pittsburgh Pirates are having a split-squad day today.

Today, the Pittsburgh Pirates will have two teams playing.  The first team will take on the Philadelphia Phillies.  Former top 10 prospect Nick Kingham will head to the mound against the Philadelphia Phillies.  In the other game, new Pittsburgh Pirates major league ready prospect Rookie Davis will make his Pittsburgh Pirates début against the Blue Jays.  One of the more intriguing parts of today’s games are the number of prospects that are going to get a chance to play.

In the game against the Phillies, the Pittsburgh Pirates will have three prospects in their lineup with at least eight more substituting in during the game.  Former first-round pick and projected Triple-A first baseman Will Craig will be batting eighth.  Kevin Kramer will be getting the start at second base and batting seventh.  The last prospect is one that many would not really consider being one at this point in Kevin Newman.  Nonetheless, Newman still has prospect status and will be batting sixth and starting at shortstop.

As mentioned above, the Pittsburgh Pirates will have plenty of other prospects making their way into the lineup at some point.  The most notable one will be Ke’Bryan Hayes, who will make his way in for Jung Ho Kang mid game.  The team is also giving 18-year-old infield prospect and top international signing Ji-Hwan Bae some time in the game.  Other prospects will include Logan Hill, Bligh Madris, Lolo Sanchez, Arden Pabst, Jerrick Suiter, and 2018 draft pick Zack Kone.

The second team taking on the Blue Jays will have five prospects in the starting lineup.  They are all notable players too.  Outfielder Bryan Reynolds is starting in center field and batting fifth.  Early spring training standout Jason Martin finds his way back into the lineup in the six spot and is playing in left field.  Two of the team’s top shortstop prospects are also playing, with Cole Tucker batting seventh at short and Stephen Alemais batting ninth and playing second base.  The only other prospect in the lineup is catcher Christian Kelley batting eighth.

The team also will see two of their top prospects come off the bench.  The Bucs 2018 first round pick Travis Swaggerty will eventually replace Bryan Reynolds in centerfield.  Meanwhile, fast-rising prospect Oneil Cruz will take the place of Cole Tucker.  The other most intriguing prospect will be a 2017 second round pick, outfielder Cal Mitchel, who will replace Jason Martin.  Other prospects that will play are Mason Martin, Rodolfo Castro, Jason Delay, and Randolph Gassaway.

It is a big day for the Pittsburgh Pirates at spring training.  The team has two different games on and will get a chance to see a lot of their young prospects get a chance to play.  However, beyond the prospects, pitchers Nick Kingham and Rookie Davis will both get a chance to help impress and progress toward the number five spot in this year’s rotation.