Pirates Prospects Deliver Victory Over Tigers
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PITTSBURGH — The Pittsburgh Pirates needed production from their best prospects and they got exactly that in their most recent Spring Training game.
The Pirates outlasted the Detroit Tigers in a 5-3 win at Publix Field at Joker Marchant Stadium in Lakeland, Fla., thanks to some important hits from their best young talent.
Pittsburgh finally ends their surprising three-game losing streak, as they lost both games in the split squad day on March 6, 9-2 to the Toronto Blue Jays at TD Ballpark in Dunedin and then 14-10 to the Philadelphia Philies at LECOM Park in Bradenton, plus a 3-2 defeat to the St. Louis Cardinals at home on March 5.
The Pirates improve to 10-5 in the Grapefruit League and the Tigers fall to 3-7, tied for the least wins.
How the Pirates Got the Victory
The Pirates got going in the top of the second inning, as left fielder Jhostynxon Garcia singled and then center fielder Dominic Fletcher got hit by a pitch, before right fielder Esmerlyn Valdez singled to score both runners and made it to second base on the error.
Designated hitter Termarr Johnson made it his second straight day with an RBI-single, scoring Valdez and putting the Pirates up 3-0.
Pirates left-handed pitcher Hunter Barco made his second Grapefruit League start and threw two scoreless innings before struggling in the third inning.
Barco loaded the bases and then gave up a ground-rule double and a ground out, scoring all three runners to tie the game up at 3-3.
Both teams struggled to score runs before the Pirates got things going in the top of the sixth inning, with catcher Henry Davis walking and then first baseman Enmanuel Valdez singling, putting runners on the corners.
Garcia grounded into a double play, but scored Davis and put Pittsburgh up 4-3 over Detroit.
The Pirates loaded the bases after this, but third baseman Duce Gorson popped out and they held onto their one-run game.
Mitch Jebb led off the top of the eighth inning with a triple and Yordanny De Los Santos would single soon after to bring him home and double the Pirates lead at 5-3.
De Los Santos, a minor leaguer, has had a great showing in the Grapefruit League for the Pirates, slashing .556/.600/1.667 and an OPS of 2.267 in six games, with a league-high eight RBI and also three home runs.
Pirates Get Good Pitching to Take Down the Tigers
Right-handed relief pitcher Michael Walsh, a ninth round pick out of Yale in 2022, threw a scoreless fourth inning and then fellow right-handed relief pitcher Justin Lawrence continued his solid spring with a scoreless fifth inning
The Pirates then went with right-handed pitcher Thomas Harrington in the sixth inning and he would put on his best showing of the Grapefruit League, throwing four scoreless innings to get the save.
Harrington hardly faced any trouble in his outing, with just two hits and a walk allowed, with two strikeouts, getting a number of groundballs and mixing up his vast arsenal of pitches.
This isn't the first time Harrington got a four-inning save, doing so last year in his PNC Park debut in an 8-4 victory. Harrington became the first Pirates pitcher that earned a four-inning save since Jason Christiansen did so in a 5-1 win over the Montreal Expos on July 17, 1998.
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.