Pittsburgh Pirates Prospects: Big Day for Hitters in the AFL

Thursday’s Arizona Fall League play action saw a trio of Pittsburgh Pirates prospects have a big day at the plate in a Surprise Saguaros victory

The Surprise Saguaros now own a 16-10 record in Arizona Fall League play. This comes after defeating the Glendale Desert Dogs 12-4 on Thursday. In Thursday’s victory, a trio of Pittsburgh Pirates prospects had a big day at the plate for the Saguaros.

Leading the way was infield prospect Nick Gonzales. Starting at shortstop, the 7th overall pick in the 2020 MLB Draft was 1-for-4 with a pair of walks, a run scored and a RBI for the Saguaros. In 64 plate appearances in the AFL thus far Gonzales now owns a .779 OPS.

Catcher Henry Davis was also a run producer for the Saguaros. Davis went 1-for-3 with two walks, two runs scored, a RBI, and his 6th double of the AFL season. Davis now 61 PAs this fall, and has been one of Surprise’s best hitters with an .889 OPS.

First baseman/designated hitter Jacob Gonzalez has struggled this fall. However, he too had a good day at the plate on Thursday. Starting at first base, Gonzalez was 2-for-5 with a double, a RBI and a run scored. This outing raised his OPS to .512 in 28 PAs.

A pair of Pirate relief pitching prospects made an appearance for the Saguaros on Thursday as well.

The first of these two was righty Tahnaj Thomas. Thomas allowed a run on a hit, two walks, and two strikeouts in an inning of work. As he continues to attempt to bounce back from an outing that saw him allow 6 earned runs while recording just one out, Thomas now owns a 10.80 ERA to go with 10 strikeouts in 8.1 AFL innings pitched.

Lefty Omar Cruz also pitched out of the bullpen for the Saguaros. Cruz pitched the 8th inning, allowing a run on two hits. He did not walk a batter, nor did he strike a batter out. Cruz now owns a 5.73 ERA with nine walks and nine strikeouts in 11 innings pitched in the AFL.