Pirates Pitching Prospect Heads to Injured List
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PITTSBURGH — The Pittsburgh Pirates will have one of their top prospects out for an extended period with an injury.
Double-A Altoona transferred left-handed pitcher Anthony Solometo from the 7-day Injured list to the 60-day Injured List with a left shoulder injury.
Solometo hails from Voorhees Township, N.J., 20 miles south east of Philadelphia. He originally played for Glouchester Catholic High School in in Glouchester City, N.J., committing to North Carolina prior to his freshman season and dominating as a sophomore in 2019 with a 5-2 record, a 1.59 ERA over 44 innings and 64 strikeouts.
He would transfer to Bishop Eustace Prepartory School in Pennsauken Township, N.J. before his junior year. He had a sensational senior season in 2021, with a 0.22 ERA over 32.1 innings pitched, while posting 65 strikeouts.
The Pirates selected Solometo with the No. 37 overall pick in the second round of the 2021 MLB Draft. Solometo would forgo his commitment to UNC and signed for $2.8 million with the Pirates.
He pitched with Single-A Bradenton in 2022, starting eight of 13 games, posting a 5-1 record, a 2.64 ERA over 47.2 innings pitched, 51 strikeouts to 19 walks, a 1.05 WHIP and a .188 opposing batting average.
Solometo earned his promotion to High-A Greensboro to start 2023, where he started 12 games, posting a 2-3 record over 58.2 innings pitched, 68 strikeouts to 25 walks, a 1.16 WHIP and an opposing batting average of .207.
He earned promotion to Altoona on June 15 and started 12 games, with a 2-4 record, a 4.35 ERA over 51.2 innings pitched, 50 strikeouts to 14 walks, a .247 opposing batting average and a 1.22 WHIP.
Solometo struggled with Altoona in 2024, with a 1-7 record in 17 starts and 20 appearances, a 5.98 ERA over 58.2 innings pitched, 46 strikeouts to 35 walks and a .269 opposing batting average.
He spent time on the developmental list and went back down to both Bradenton and the Florida Complex League Pirates, trying to get back to form.
Solometo had two strong starts this season, winning one of them and allowing just one run over 10.0 innings pitched for a 0.90 ERA, seven strikeouts to four walks and an opposing batting average of .067.
He ranks No. 14 amongst the top 30 Pirates prospects, according to MLB Pipeline. and the second highest left-handed pitcher behind Hunter Barco, who just earned promotion to Triple-A Indianapolis.
Dominic writes for Pittsburgh Pirates On SI, Pittsburgh Panthers Pn SI and also, Pittsburgh Steelers On SI. A Pittsburgh native, Dominic grew up watching Pittsburgh Sports and wrote for The Pitt News as an undergraduate at the University of Pittsburgh, covering Pitt Athletics. He would write for Pittsburgh Sports Now after college and has years of experience covering sports across Pittsburgh.