Pittsburgh Pirates Prospects: Liover Peguero Goes Deep & More

It was noteworthy night for the Altoona Curve, the Double-A affiliate of the Pittsburgh Pirates, on Friday night

Cody Bolton started fro Triple-A Indianapolis. Making his third appearance, second start, of the season Bolton allowed 3 runs on 3 hits, 2 walks and 4 strikeouts in 2.1 innings pitched. Lefty Blake Weiman got the final two outs of the 3rd inning, but allowed a run along the way. Osvaldo Bido also scuffled some allowing 2 runs on 3 hits in 3 innings pitched. Bido did strikeout 7 batters, however.

The Indians fell 6-4 on Friday night, dropping to 6-3 on the season. Oneil Cruz was 1-for-4 on the night, while outfield prospect Travis Swaggerty was 0-for-3 with a walk as the Indian leadoff man. Mason Martin was 1-for-4 with his 3rd triple of the season, while Canaan Smith-Njigba collected his 3rd double of the season and Jared Oliva had two doubles. They combined for 3 RBI.

Double-A Altoona picked up a 6-1 victory over the Richmond Flying Squirrels, improving to 3-4 on the season. Shortstop Liover Peguero led the way for the Curve offense, going 2-for-5 with a home run and 3 RBI out of the leadoff spot. This was Peguero’s 2nd home run of the season and he now owns a 1.014 OPS this season.

Outfielder Connor Scott continued his strong start to the season. The left-handed hitting Scott started in center field, going 2-for-4 with a double and a walk. His OPS on the season is now 1.384, the Marlins may end up looking foolish for giving up on the 13th overall pick in the 2018 draft as quickly as they did.

Mike Burrows started for the Curve and continued to shove. Burrows allowed 2 hits, did not walk a batter and struck out 6 in 4 scoreless innings pitched. On the season he has now struck out 10, while allowing just 4 hits and not issuing a walk in 8 scoreless innings pitched. Omar Cruz followed with 7 strikeouts in 4 scoreless innings pitched. Tahnaj Thomas pitched the 9th, allowing a solo home run while retiring the other three batters he faced.

High-A Greensboro suffered a tough 11-10 loss in extra innings, falling to 2-5 on the season. Leadoff hitter Sammy Siani was 1-for-4 with a pair of walks, a home run and 2 RBI. Center fielder Matt Gorski and second baseman Jackson Glenn each had 2 hits.

Endy Rodriguez started at catcher and went 3-for-4 with a walk and 3 RBI. This three-hit performance included the 1st home run of the season for Rodriguez.

Pitching wise it was a rough night for the Grasshoppers. Despite recording 9 strikeouts, Greensboro pitchers allowed 11 runs on 11 hits, 7 walks and a home run in 9.1 innings pitched. Definitely not a night to write home about for Greensboro pitching.

The Low-A Bradenton Marauders continued their hot start to the season with a 3-1 victory over the Lakeland Flying Tigers to improve to 5-2 on the season. Making a rehab appearance, lefty Sam Howard started for the Marauders. Howard walked a batter and saw a batter reach via an error, but with the help of two strikeouts he escaped the inning unscathed.

Righty Justin Meis followed Howard. Meis allowed 2 hits in 4 scoreless innings of work. While he walked 3 batters, he also struck out 3. This was a terrific bounce back outing from Meis who allowed 6 runs on 7 hits and a pair of home runs in his first start of the season.

Offensively, infielder Mike Jarvis led the way for the Marauders. The 2021 draft pick was 2-for-4 wit ha double and 2 RBI. Designated hitter Juan Jerez and first baseman Alexander Mojica each had a double as well. This was one of Jerez’s two hits, to go with a RBI, and one of three hits for Mojica.