Pirates Prospect Watch: Keiner Delgado Continues to Crush, Bae Has Huge Game

Pirates’ minor league affiliates picked up two wins on Thursday night, with Keiner Delgado hitting his third home run in four games since Pittsburgh acquired him from the New York Yankees via trade.

After struggling as a closer to start the year, the Indianapolis Indians tried Geronimo Franzua’s hand as an opener. He pitched three innings—allowing just one unearned run—to get things going in a 9-6 win over the Louisville Bats.

Double-A Altoona lost 7-4 to the Somerset Patriots. The bullpen hemorrhaged six runs across the seventh and eighth innings, erasing the advantage gained from six innings of one-run ball courtesy of Po-Yu Chen.

The Greensboro Grasshoppers dropped both games of their doubleheader, unable to keep pace with the Bowling Green Hot Rods in Game 1, a 6-3 loss, before their bullpen couldn’t secure a late lead in Game 2, eventually falling 8-7.

Single-A Bradenton hit four home runs on the way to an 8-3 win. Carlson Reed struck out seven batters in five innings, dropping his ERA to 1.75 on the season and powering the Marauders to their seventh consecutive victory.

Triple-A Indianapolis (17-16)

LHP Geronimo Franzua

• Game: 3 IP, 0 ER (1 unearned run allowed), 4 K’s.
• Season: 16.1 IP, 4.96 ERA, 21 K’s in 13 appearances (1 start).

2B Ji-hwan Bae

• Game: 2-for-5 with a homer and five RBIs
• Season: .375/.483/.542 with 3 doubles and 3 homers in 19 rehab assignment games.

Double-A Altoona (7-23)

RHP Po-Yu Chen

• Game: 6 IP, 1 ER, 3 K’s.
• Season: 26 IP, 5.19 ERA, 14 K’s in 6 appearances (5 starts).

LF Dustin Peterson

• Game: 2-for-4 with a double.
• Season: .184/.233/.211 with a double and in 11 games between Indianapolis and Altoona.

High-A Greensboro (16-13)

CF P.J. Hilson

• Day: 2-for-3 with a triple.
• Season: .164/.207/.327 with a double, a triple and 2 homers in 18 games between Bradenton and Greensboro.

1B Nick Cimillo

• Day: 2-for-4 with a double and a homer.
• Season: .367/.429/.633 with 2 doubles and 2 homers in 8 games.

Single-A Bradenton (12-18)

2B Keiner Delgado

• Game: 2-for-5 with a homer.
• Season: .278/.278/.778 with 3 homers in 4 games between rookie ball and Bradenton.

DH Solomon Maguire

• Game: 2-for-4 with a triple and a homer.
• Season: .270/.289/.459 with 2 triples and a homer in 12 games.