Indians No. 10 prospect Hagadone off to a great start
After struggling with his mechanics last season, left-hand pitcher Nick Hagadone is having a great start to the 2011 season. In five games with the Double-A Akron Aeros, Hagadone has not allowed an earned run, walked just one with 14 strikeouts over 10.2 innings in relief. Although it’s a small sample size, Hagadone worked hard during the offseason to make the adjustments and so far, it’s paying off.
“I think basically all the hard work that I put in on the offseason, fixing what was wrong last year,” Hagadone said on what contributes to his success this season. “I started out in instructs making a lot of mechanical adjustments and then just repetition, just doing what was right.”
“As far as weights and running, I didn’t do anything different. I basically did the same thing that I’ve done ever since I was drafted. But as far as mechanically, I just did a lot more drills to try to get muscle memory on the right mechanics.”
Hagadone was ranked by Baseball America as the Cleveland Indians 10th best prospect this year. Drafted in the 1st round (55th overall) supplemental by the Boston Red Sox in 2007, he was referred to as having “electric stuff.” After missing almost the entire 2008 season with Tommy John Surgery, Hagadone was traded midseason to the Cleveland Indians in the Victor Martinez deal in 2009.
In his first full season with the Indians, Hagadone spent 2010 with both High-A Kinston and Double-A Akron were he had a combined 3.37 ERA in 29 appearances (17 starts). He logged a career high 85.2 innings but struggled with his command –averaging 6.6 walks per nine innings.
“I think the hitters are more selective and when you make mistakes they punish you more,” Hagadone said on the biggest challenging between the levels. “In High-A you can get away with making bad pitches sometimes but in Double-A, they usually take advantage of you right away.”
The 25-year-old throws a fastball, slider and a changeup, “Mostly fastball and slider and then I mix in changeups whenever I feel it’s really necessary to do. But mostly I stick to fastball and slider.”
His fastball sits in the low to mid 90′s and although it’s dropped a few mph since surgery, he still has pretty good arm.
The Aeros currently lead the Eastern League Western Division by one game (over the Bowie Baysox) and have a lot of talented arms this season. Hagadone is one of five prospects in the Indians organization’s Top 25 (by Baseball America) in Double-A to start the year.
Hagadone has started the season from the ‘bullpen, a role that many scouts believe is the best fit for him. The lefty said he feels really good and is healthy this season.
“Just to improve the whole year,” Hagadone said on his goals for 2011. “To keep on getting better basically and just to be consistent.”
*Photo credit: minor.mlblogs.com, ESPN Go.
Wood claimed from Angels; Rodriguez DFA; Ciriaco recalled
- The Pirates claimed infielder Brandon Wood off waivers from the Los Angeles Angels on Friday. Wood was designated for assignment earlier this week after batting .143 in six games this season.
The 26-year-old was a first round pick (23rd overall) by the Angeles in the 2003 draft. Once a highly touted prospect, Wood was ranked the 3rd best prospect in baseball by Baseball America in 2006, 8th in 2007.
Since making his debut with the Angles in 2007, Wood has a .168 career average in the majors.
Wood hit .146 with 14 RBIs and four homers in 81 games last year. He is out of options and is arbitration eligible for the first time after the 2011 season.
Manager Clint Hurdle appeared on MLB Network radio this afternoon where he discussed Brandon Wood. He told Jim Bowden, that he will play the entire infield: some third base, shortstop, first base and second base.
- In order to make room for Wood on the roster, infielder Josh Rodriguez was designated for assignment. The Pirates selected Rodriguez from the Indians in the rule-5 draft.
Rodriguez collected his first hit during Thursday night’s 9-5 loss to the Florida Marlins in Miami, Fla. It was the lone hit by Rodriguez in 12 at-bats.
If Rodriguez is not claimed off waivers or traded, the Pirates must offer him back for $25,000. The Bucs can also attempt to work out a trade with the Indians to place him in the minor league system.
Manager Clint Hurdle told Jenifer Langosch of MLB.com, “He’s a young man that we would like to keep in our organization. We knew going in that it would be a challenge and a big jump, but we wanted to take the opportunity to try and get the best feel we could for him. I think one of the best things that will come out of this experience for him is that now he’s gotten to see the Major League level.”
- The Pirates also recalled infielder Pedro Ciriaco from Triple-A Indianapolis for the game on Friday. It’s assumed that Ciriaco will be with the Pirates until Wood joins the team.
There is no word as of yet on when Wood’s arrival time will be.
McDonald struggles, Pirates swept by Marlins
Coming off back-to-back shutouts, the Pirates were looking to end the final game on the road on a high note before heading back to Pittsburgh on Friday. The Bucs finally put some runs on the board, but right-hander James McDonald was chased from the game after just three innings in the 9-5 loss to the Florida Marlins at Sun Life Stadium on Thursday.
Pedro Alvarez, who didn’t have a RBI in the past 15 games, hit a bullet –estimated at 435 ft– into right field for a solo-home run off Chris Volstad in the 2nd inning. It was Alvarez’s first home run of the season. That one swing also ended the Pirates 23.2 consecutive scoreless inning streak.
Alvarez, who went 3-for-4, was just a triple short from the cycle.
Alvarez told Rob Biertempfel of the Tribune, It was just a matter of time before some balls fell in. I’ve been constantly working on my approach, working on my routine. There really haven’t been too many changes (to the swing). Just trying to see the ball better, basically.”
The Marlins got to McDonald early, scoring five runs in the bottom of the 2nd inning.
After allowing a lead-off walk to Gaby Sanchez, Greg Dobbs singled to center field. Mike Stanton drew a walk to load the bases with no outs. Scott Cousins hit a grand slam –his first major league career homer– to quickly give the Marlins a 4-1 lead.
McDonald told David Villavicencio of MLB.com, “It was basically right down the middle. I’m not saying he [Cousins] wouldn’t have done the same thing but if I would have thrown a quality pitch down and away I would have had a better shot of getting a ground ball and reducing damage than I would have by throwing a belt-high fastball down the middle.”
With one on and one out, McDonald hit Emilio Bonifacio by a pitch. Omar Infante singled to load the bases (for the second time in the inning). Hanley Ramirez grounded into a force out, but a run scored, giving the Marlins a 5-1 lead.
More trouble came for McDonald in the 3rd, after issuing a leadoff walk to Stanton, Cousins doubled and Bret Hayes hit a three-run homer for a 8-1 lead.
McDonald retired the next two batters to get out of the inning, but was replaced by Daniel McCutchen in the 4th.
McDonald allowed eight runs on six hits (including two home runs) with three walks and three strike outs over three innings.
Manager Clint Hurdle told David Villavicencio of MLB.com, “A swinging bat is a dangerous bat. And pitches, when they’re not located where they’re supposed to be, guys hit them. We had three first home runs of the year. We gave up eight out of nine runs on home runs.”
The Pirates rallied in the 6th inning. Lyle Overbay singled and Neil Walker and Garrett Jones drew back-to-back walks to load the bases. Pedro Alvarez and Chris Snyder each hit RBI singles and Josh Rodriguez was hit by a pitch to cut the lead, 9-5.
The Bucs had just one hit over the final three innings as they went on to lose 9-5.
With the 9-5 loss, the Pirates were swept for the first time this season. The Bucs drop to 8-11 on the season.
“It’s never good to lose three games in a row,” Alvarez said. “But the beauty of it is, tomorrow we get to go out again and try to win a ballgame.”
Pre-game News and Notes: Pirates @ Marlins 4/21
The Pittsburgh Pirates will face the Florida Marlins for the final of the three game series at Sun Life Stadium in Miami, Fla., at 7:10 PM ET.
Right-hander James McDonald (0-1, 7.47 ERA)will start for the Bucs against righty Chris Volstad (0-1, 5.59 ERA)
McDonald allowed six runs on nine hits with two strikeouts and two walks over 4.1 innings during his last start.
Volstad allowed five earned runs on eight hits with two walks and three strikeouts over 4.2 innings during his last outing.
News and Notes:
- Manager Clint Hurdle told Root Sports, “We’ve played 18 games. We struck out 180 times. If you’re any kind of math opportunist, that means we have six and a half games of nothing but strikeouts. That’s challenging. It’s not going to get us where we want to go.”
- Andrew McCutchen is back in the lineup tonight after missing the game yesterday due to personal reasons. McCutchen was visiting his father who was hospitalized.
McCutchen told Root Sports on the importance of his parents “They both made a lot of sacrifices for me growing up. They are the reason I’m here now. It’s good that they’re there. They’ve always been supportive of me. The least I could do is be there at least for a day, to show him that I’m here…It was good just to be able to see him. He’s going to be good as new in a few days.”
McCutchen told Rob Biertempfel of the Tribune, “It’s been on my mind a little bit. I’ve been thinking about him. I thought it would be better for me to see him physically to make him feel a little better, and I was able to do that.”
“He kicked me out, basically,” McCutchen said, grinning. “He was excited to see me. When my mom asked if I’d be there for a while, my dad looked and shook his head and told me, ‘Leave.’ It’s good to be back.”
Pirates:
Andrew McCutchen Cf, Jose Tabata CF, Lyle Overbay 1B, Neil Walker 2B, Garrett Jones RF, Pedro Alvarez 3B, Chris Snyder C, Josh Rodriguez SS, James McDonald RHP
Marlins:
Emilio Bonifacio LF, Omar Infante 2B, Hanley Ramirez SS, Gaby Sanchez 3B, Greg Dobbs LF, Mike Stanton RF, Scott Cousins CF, Brett Hayes C, Chris Volstad RHP
Morton struggles, Bucs shutout 6-0 again
The Florida Marlins shutout the Pirates, 6-0 for the second straight night at Sun Life Stadium in Miami, Fla. On Wednesday. It marked the first time this season the Pirates have lost two in a row on the road.
The Bucs combined for just five hits and have not scored in 18 innings.
Manager Clint Hurdle told David Villavicencio of MLB.com, “You’ve got to do things to put yourself in a position to have success. We haven’t scored a run in 18 innings, and they’ve gotten on top of us early in both games.”
Coming off a compete game five hitter against the Cincinnati Reds, Right-hander Charlie Morton struggled over five innings of work (91 pitches). He allowed six runs on 10 hits with three walks and six strikeouts.
With two outs in the 2nd inning, Morton allowed back-to-back singles to John Buck and Emilio Bonifacio and a four pitch walk to pitcher Ricky Nolasco to load the bases.
Chris Coghlan hit a slow grounder to second baseman Neil Walker but double-clutched, not knowing who was covering the bag. By the time he threw to first, Coghlan was safe and two-runs scored.
Neil Walker told Rob Biertempfel of the Tribune, “It was a mayhem-type play. It’s a shame because it was not hard-hit. Just some miscommunication. I should’ve just thrown the ball and assumed someone was going to catch it.”
Hurdle told David Villavicencio of MLB.com, “That put us in a bad situation, and the play that followed is the one that got us. That really dug the hole deeper.”
Jose Tabata, who was playing in center field in place of Andrew McCutchen, booted the ball hit by Omar Infante, allowing Nolasco to score.
Hanley Ramirez singled to right field to tack on another run and take a 4-0 lead.
Things didn’t get better for Morton in the 3rd inning. With Gregg Dobbs and Mike Stanton (who drew a walk) on second and third, Bonifacio hit a RBI single. Coghlan singled to right, giving the Marlins a 6-0 lead.
Morton told David Villavicencio of MLB.com, “They were just hitting my sinker. It wasn’t sinking. It wasn’t as effective as it has been and I didn’t make the adjustment. Instead of maybe mixing it up more I tried to force the issue and just throw sinkers.”
Nolasco held the Pirates to just four hits –the lone extra-base hit coming off the bat of pitcher Charlie Morton– over seven innings with one walk and eight strikeouts.
The Pirates were shutout, 6-0, for the second straight game. It also marked the first time this season the Bucs lost back-to-back games on the road.
The Pirates have struck out 22 times in the past 18 innings and have not scored a run over that span.
Pre-game News and Notes: Pirates @ Marlins 4/21
The Pittsburgh Pirates (8-10) will face the Florida Marlins (10-6) for the second of a three game series at 7:10 PM/ET at Sun Life Stadium in Miami, Fla.
Right-hander Charlie Morton (2-0, 1.64 ERA) gets the nod for the Bucs against righty Ricky Nolasco (1-0, 4.05 ERA).
Morton was dominant against in his last start. He threw a complete game –the second of his career– and picked up his second win on the season. Morton limited the Reds to just five hits over the nine innings of work. Of Morton’s 110 pitches, 81 were for strikes.
Nolasco received a no-decision during his last outing against the Braves. He allowed five runs over five innings of work.
News and Notes:
- Andrew McCutchen is not in the lineup today due to personal matter. Jose Tabata will play in center field with Matt Diaz moving to left.
- Manager Clint Hurdle told David Villavicencio of MLB.com, “Andrew went home today to deal with a personal matter, and that’s really all we’re going to share right now. We’re respecting his privacy, and I’ll let you know more when I can tell you more.”
- The Pirates outrighted Garrett Olson to Triple-A Indianapolis on Wednesday. The lefty allowing one run over 4 1/3 innings this season with the Bucs.
- The Pirates signed right-handers Blaine Boyer and Brett Sinkbeil to minor league contracts today.
Boyer appeared in five games with the New York Mets this season. The 29-year-old had a 10.80 ERA over 6 2/3 innings before being designated for assignment.
Sinkbeil was released by the Marlins in spring training.
Pirates:
Jose Tabata CF, Matt Diaz LF, Lyle Overbay 1B, Neil Walker 2B, Garrett Jones RF, Pedro Alvarez 3B, Chris Snyder C, Ronny Cedeno SS, Charlie Morton RHP
Marlins:
Chris Coghlan CF, Omar Infante 2B, Hanley Ramirez SS, Gaby Sanchez 1B, Greg Dobbs LF, Mike Stanton RF, John Buck C, Emilio Bonifacio 3B, Ricky Nolasco RHP
Pirates finding success on the road
Despite losing 6-0 to the Marlins on Tuesday evening, the Pirates have been successful on the road this season. The Bucs are 7-4 away from PNC Park this year. A huge difference from 2010 when the Bucs went 17-64 on the road.
The Pirates have won all three of their road series (Cubs, Cardinals, Reds) –the first time they have three straight series wins on the road since April of 2002.
So what is the team doing differently this year?
Manager Clint Hurdle told David Villavicencio of MLB.com, “We’ve tried to simplify it. You throw first-pitch strikes, get the first batter of an inning out, and on offense you get the first hitter on base. When there are opportunities to score, you get them in. These are the baseball staples.
“I wasn’t here last year but I know these are some areas that we weren’t very good in. They’ve taken it to heart that for us to go where we want to go, we’ve got to become a much better ballclub on the road. We’ve gotten out of the blocks pretty clean so far. There are a lot of games left to play, but I’m pleased with the effort and the attitude on the road, and I anticipate it will turn around back home when we get there.”
Notes:
- Third baseman Pedro Alvarez was back in the lineup on Tuesday, after getting the day off on Monday. Alvarez was moved down the order, batting in the seventh spot –for the first time in his career.
Hurdle told David Villavicencio of MLB.com, “There is ownership to a lineup, and you give guys the opportunity to move, and when guys aren’t getting things done, you shuffle them around. I’m going to be proactive rather than reactive with it. Right now, Jones has earned five and Pedro has earned seven.”
- Right-hander Jeff Karstens will start for the Pirates on Friday against the Washington Nationals in D.C. Karstens will make his second spot start for Ross Ohlendorf (right shoulder posterior strain) who was placed on the disabled list (April 9th).
- Jose Ascanio (right elbow tightness) was scheduled to make a rehab appearance for Triple-A Indianapolis on Tuesday but the game was postponed due to weather
Johnson, Marlins shutout Pirates, 6-0
A great pitching performance by the Florida Marlins right-hander Josh Johnson limited the Bucs to just two hits over seven innings in the Pirates 6-0 loss at Sun Life Stadium on Tuesday.
Johnson, who had a no-hitter going against the Atlanta Braves through 7.1 inning during his last start, blanked the Pirates over seven shutout innings (98 pitches). The two lone hits came from Garrett Jones, a single to right in the 5th and John Bowker, a pinch hit single in the 6th inning.
The 27-year-old walked one and struck out nine.
Manager Clint Hurdle told Root Sports, “The fastball’s top shelf. If you want to start a franchise and pick a pitcher, you’re not going to go wrong picking him. When you can go high-90′s, down hill plane with a good finish, a combination of the slider. He threw a handful of curves, not many but that’s a pitch he’s working on –like he needs another one. The cutter and the changeup is just nasty…He shut down four teams to start with and unfortunately we were one of them. He’s good. He’s a legit ace.”
The Marlins bullpen, which consisted of lefty Michael Dunn and right-hander Brian Sanches in relief didn’t allow a hit or run over two innings of work, with three strikeouts.
Paul Maholm retired the first five batters he faced, but from there, Maholm just wasn’t sharp. After hitting Mike Stanton with a pitch, he allowed back-to-back singles to load the bases with two outs. Johnson hit a two-RBI single to give the Marlins a 2-0 lead.
Stanton leadoff the fourth when a double to left field that hit off the wall. John Buck followed with a RBI double to right. Emilio Bonifacio singled and Chris Coghlan walked to load the bases. Maholm walked in a run after throwing a five pitch walk to Hanley Ramirez.
Maholm was pulled with the bases loaded and two outs in the 4th. Rookie Mike Crotta allowed a two-run single by Gaby Sanchez to give the Marlins a 6-0 lead.
Maholm was charged with six runs on seven hits with three walks and four strikeouts (76 pitches) over 3.2 innings –his shortest outing this season and the shortest since September 15, 2010 against the New York Mets. His ERA jumped from 2.33 to 4.30 and he picked up his third loss of the year.
Maholm told Root Sports, “There’s a lot of different things. First inning was great and then, I just kind of fell out of rhythm, left pitches over the plate. If you don’t get ahead of some of those guys, they’re aggressive. They’re good hitters. It just comes down to me not pitching well.”
“It sucks. I didn’t give the team a chance at all to win. Facing Johnson, you got to be good and I wasn’t.”
The Pirates (8-9) will face the Marlins (9-6) for the second of a three game series tomorrow at 7:10 PM ET. Right-hander Charlie Morton will be on the mound for the Bucs against righty Ricky Nolasco.
Pre-game News and Notes: Pirates @ Marlins 4/19
The Pittsburgh Pirates (8-8) will open up a three-game series against the Florida Marlins (8-6) tonight at7:05 PM ET in Miami, Fla.
Left-hander Paul Maholm (0-2, 2.33 ERA) will face righty Josh Johnson (2-0, 1.35 ERA)
Maholm has had three strong starts for the Pirates, but has had little run support during his outings. Maholm has allowed just five runs over 19.1 innings this season. During his last start against the Brewers, Maholm allowed two runs to score in the first but then tossed six scoreless frames after. He allowed four hits with three walks and six strikeouts over seven innings. Maholm is 3-4 with a 4.89 ERA in seven career starts against the Marlins.
Johnson had a no-hitter going until giving up a hit to the Braves Freddie Freeman with one out in the 8th inning. He’s allowed just three earned runs in three starts this season (20 innings).
News and Notes:
- Pirates closer Joel Hanrahan has not been comfortable throwing his slider this season, but despite that, he has still managed to pick up five saves.
Hanrahan told Kevin Goheen of MLB.com, “If something’s not working, you still have to figure out a way to get guys out. Sometimes you just make things up when you’re out there. Sometimes it works and sometimes it doesn’t, but for me, it comes back to believing in it and trusting in it.”
Hanrahan has allowed three runs on 11 hits with two walks and eight strikeouts over nine innings (eight appearances) this season.
- Kevin Correia’s complete game on Monday’s 9-3 win to the Cincinnati Reds was the second of his career. His other complete game came on September 25, 2009 against the Arizona Diamondbacks.
- It also marked the second complete game by a Bucs starter in the past four games (Charlie Morton, the other). The Pirates had just one complete game in 2010 (Paul Maholm). According to the Elias Sports Bureau, this is the first season for the Pirates to have more than one complete game win in April since 1992 –the last year the Pirates had a winning record.
- Seven different players (Jose Tabata, Matt Diaz, Steve Pearce, Chris Snyder, Neil Walker, Lyle Overbay and Ronny Cedeno) had at least two hits in last night’s 9-3 victory over the Reds.
- The Pirates took three of four from the Reds –the first series win in Cincinnati since 2008.
- They also have won three straight road series for the first time since April in 2002. The Bucs have won seven of 10 games on the road this season.
- Pedro Alvarez is back in the lineup tonight after given the day of on Monday. Alvarez is batting just .193 on the season. Known for his slow starts to the season, Alvarez has been working extensively with hitting coach Gregg Ritchie and Manager Clint Hurdle.
Manager Clint Hurdle told Kevin Goheen of MLB.com, “We’re just trying to help him find his way back to finding some consistency on offense. His recovery period hasn’t been what you would want at this level. Every hitter is going to go through some periods when they’re down and their stroke’s not right, but what creates separation at this level is the recovery time. You want it to be shorter than longer, and there’s been some length to this.”
Pirates:
Andrew McCutchen CF, Jose Tabata LF, Lyle Overbay 1B, Neil Walker 2B, Garrett Jones RF, Ryan Doumit C, Pedro Alvarez 3B, Ronny Cedeno SS, Paul Maholm LHP
Marlins:
Chris Coglan CF, Omar Infante 2B, Hanley Ramirez SS, Gaby Sanchez 1B, Logan Morrison LF, Mike Stanton RF, John Buck C, Emilio Bonifacio 3B, Josh Johnson RHP
Ohlendorf out until at least mid may
Right-hander Ross Ohlendorf, who was placed on the disabled list with right shoulder posterior strain, expects to be out until at least mid May.
Ohlendorf told Rob Biertempfel of the Tribune on Monday, “Hopefully, I’ll be back in about a month. But it’s still too early to really know for sure.”
Ohlendorf was pulled after throwing 2.2 innings on April 8th against the Colorado Rockies at PNC Park after feeling discomfort.
Sunday, Ohlendorf made 50 tosses from 60 feet on flat ground. He is scheduled to throw from 75 feet today.
Ohlendorf told Rob Biertempfel of the Tribune, I need to get up to 120 feet, and the plan for that is about two weeks from now.
Right-handers Jeff Karstens and Brad Lincoln (Triple-A Indianapolis) and lefty Brian Burres (Triple-A) are being considered to start in the rotation.
Karstens allowed five runs on eight hits with one walk and six strikeouts over 4.1 innings against the Reds. It was his first start of the season.
Lincoln allowed three runs on six hits with no walks and seven strikeouts over five innings against the Louisville bats on April 15th.
Burres is not on the 40-man roster, so if they Pirates went with the lefty, they would have remove someone off the roster. Burres threw a four hit shutout with no walks and eight strikeouts over seven innings against the Louisville Bats on April 17th.
Kristy Robinson
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