Pittsburgh Pirates Prospects: Checking in on Relief Pitchers in the Arizona Fall League

Three Pittsburgh Pirates relief pitching prospects are on the Arizona Fall League roster of the Salt River Rafters. How are they pitching thus far in the AFL?

Last week, we took a look at how Pittsburgh Pirates position player prospects are performing in the Arizona Fall League thus far. Today, we will move to taking a look at Pirate pitching prospects in the AFL.

Each Pirate pitching prospect in the AFL is a relief pitcher. How are these three relief pitchers performing for Salt River? Well, let's get into it. Before we start it should be noted that these stats are as of the start of play on November 1st.

Tyler Samaniego

Tyler Samaniego may have the highest ceiling of any Pirate pitching prospect in the AFL. The 24-year-old lefty entered the 2023 season as one of the more intriguing relief pitching prospects in the farm system. Even his overall numbers seemed poor, as you can read here Samaniego pitched better than his overall results and to some extent was victimized by bad luck.

Entering play on November 1st, Samaniego had pitched 6.1 innings out of the Rafter bullpen. In these 6.1 innings he had allowed 7 hits, no home runs, walked 5 batters, and struck out 8 on his way to posting a 4.26 ERA.

Samaniego has the stuff to be a good major league relief pitcher in a year or two. Hopefully, he can continue to improve throughout the rest of the AFL season to finish 2023 on a high note and propel him into a strong 2024.

J.C. Flowers

25-year-old J.C. Flowers has been a workhorse out of the Rafter bullpen. Flowers has responded positively to this, pitching well in the opportunities that he has been given. This has been a big step forward following his struggles in the regular season.

His 10.0 innings pitched are the second most among Rafter pitchers who are not full-time starters. Flowers has posted a 3.60 ERA, allowing just 1 home run, 6 hits, he's walked 10 batters, and struck out 9.

Flowers posted a 9.39 ERA in 46 innings pitched with Triple-A Indianapolis this season. So, it's safe to say that the first taste of Triple-A action for Flowers did not go well. Seeing Flowers pitch well in the AFL is an encouraging sign for the once-promising relief pitching prospect.