Pittsburgh Pirates:Triple-A News and Notes for May

(Photo by Justin K. Aller/Getty Images)
(Photo by Justin K. Aller/Getty Images) /
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The Pittsburgh Pirates have an off day today as they prepare to take on the Texas Rangers.  Here are some news and notes from Triple-A.

The Pittsburgh Pirates got back on track this past weekend taking two games against the Oakland Athletics after getting blown out by them in game one.  The minor leagues were also in full swing this past week and are now a month into their season.

Triple-A Indianapolis has the best talent out of any of the minor league affiliates.  However, they are off to an average start with a record of just 15-14.  This is mainly because their roster has been under constant change.  There have been so many injuries at the big league level that the team has seen many of their prospects moved up, including Cole Tucker, Bryan Reynolds, Jason Martin, along with some relievers as well.  However, they have had some bright spots still.

Starting pitching prospect Dario Agrazal was named the International League Player of the Week.  Agrazal, a Top 30 prospect in the Pittsburgh Pirates system, was moved up to Triple-A a few weeks ago.  This past week he made two starts for the Indians, going 1-0 and throwing 13.2 innings.  He only gave up two runs giving him an ERA of 1.32 to go along with 13 strikeouts.  Agrazal could be rotation depth down the road for the Pittsburgh Pirates.

The team also will be getting some much-needed bullpen help.  The Pittsburgh Pirates have promoted hard-throwing reliever Jake Brentz to Triple-A.  Brentz is a lefty who throws in the upper 90s.  In the past, he has had command issues but got off to a good start this year in Double-A.  For the Curve, he threw 11.2 innings in nine appearances and owned a 0.77 ERA.  His strikeout to walk ratio was strong too, punching out 13 while only walking three.

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If Brentz truly has improved his command he could be a very intriguing prospect to pay to watch.  The Pittsburgh Pirates acquired Brentz a few years ago from the Seattle Mariners, being one of the two players in the Arquimedes Caminero trade in 2016.  The Bucs got Brentz along with right-handed starter Pedro Vasquez, but it is Brentz with the most intrigue at the present moment.