Pirates Reliever Falters in First Minor League Game
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PITTSBURGH — A Pittsburgh Pirates relief pitcher struggled in their first outing of the minor leagues.
Right-handed reliever Kyle Nicolas made his first appearance of the season for the Indianapolis Indians at Triple-A in their Opening Day road contest vs. the St. Paul Saints, the Triple-A affiliate of the Minnesota Twins.
Nicolas came in relief in the bottom of the sixth inning, with Indianapolis down 5-0. He struck out St. Paul designated hitter Luke Keaschall, but then walked center fielder Emmanuel Rodriguez and allowed a single to third baseman Armando Alvarez, moving Rodriguez to second base.
He did get first baseman Mike Ford to pop out to third base for the second out, but then allowed a double to catcher Jair Camargo, scoring both Rodriguez and Alvarez, extending the St. Paul league to 7-0.
Nicolas also allowed a single from right fielder Yunior Severino, which would score Camargo, making it 8-0.
He struckout second baseman Jeferson Morales to end the inning, but still allowed three runs in his first appearance, giving him an ERA of 27.00.
Nicolas didn't make the Opening Day roster after spending most of the 2024 season with the Pirates.
The Pirates instead placed right-handed relievers in David Bednar, Colin Holderman, Dennis Santana and Justin Lawrence, plus left handed relievers in Ryan Borucki, Caleb Ferguson, Tim Mayza and Joey Wentz on their Opening Day roster.
Nicolas started the 2024 season with Indianapolis. He made nine apperances and had a 0.84 ERA in 10 2/3 innings with an opposing batting average of .061.
The Pirates called him up on April 26 and he spent most of the season with the team. He had a 2-2 record in 51 games, a 3.95 ERA in 54.2 innings pitched, 55 strikeouts to 31 walks and a .249 opposing batting average.
He suffered a left oblique strain on Sept. 16 and the Pirates put him on the 15-day injured list. Nicolas didn't pitch again last season following the injury.
Pittsburgh acquired Nicolas in a trade with the Miami Marlins on Nov. 29, 2021, as they sent catcher Jacob Stallings in exchange for pitcher Zach Thompson, outfielder Connor Scott and Nicolas.
Nicolas spent all of 2022 at Double-A Altoona, starting 22 of 24 games he appeared in. He finished with a 2-4 record and 3.97 ERA in 90 2/3 innings while putting up 101 strikeouts to 47 walks and a .216 batting average.
He started the 2023 season with Altoona. In 12 starts there, he logged a 3-5 record and 4.36 ERA in 53 2/3 innings with 63 strikeouts to 23 walks and a .267 opposing batting average.
Nicolas then moved up to Indianapolis on June 16, but spent most his time coming out of the bullpen. He started six of his 23 appearances, a 1-2 record, a 6.20 ERA in 45.0 innings pitched, 64 strikeouts to 29 walks and an opposing batting average of .243.
The Pirates selected Nicolas' contract to the 40-man roster on Sept. 19. He struggled at the MLB level, with an 11.81 ERA in four games and 5.1 innings pitched.
Nicolas hails from Massilion, Ohio and played for Jackson High School, winning state titles in baseball and basketball as a senior in 2017. He earned Federal League Co-Player of the Year honors after posting an 8-0 record and a 0.50 ERA, while also hitting .349 with 24 RBIs.
He played college baseball for Ball State for three seasons, before entering the 2020 MLB Draft, where the Marlins selected him No. 61 overall.
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.