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The Pirates have called right-handed pitching prospect up to the majors and sent right-hander to Triple-A, manager Don Kelly told reporters (including ). No further transaction was required Ben Braymer Jersey since Ashcraft has been on the Bucs 40-man roster since November 2023. reported yesterday that Ashcraft would be traveling with the Pirates on their current road trip to Arizona, though it wasnt clear if Ashcraft would be officially activated or if he would just be part of the teams taxi squad. As it turns out, Ashcraft will indeed get his first taste of Major League action, and hell also be operating in a new role. Ashcraft has started 69 of his 71 career games in the minors, but Kelly said that Ashcraft will for now work as a long reliever or bulk pitcher on Pittsburghs staff. This would seem to indicate that will remain as the Pirates fifth starter behind the stable top four of , , , and . Burrows was only just called up within the last week to replace , who struggled over nine starts. Pittsburgh fans may continue to raise eyebrows over the fact that has yet to be recalled for his MLB debut, as the Bucs have thus far turned to Burrows (whose lone career big league game came in 2024), plus two other pitchers ( and now Ashcraft) who hadnt yet appeared in the Show. While Chandler is one of the sports best overall prospects, the pitching-rich Pirates seem more willing for now to give looks to some of their other well-regarded young arms. Ashcraft has been waiting a while for the call to the majors, as he was a second-round pick for the Pirates back in the 2018 draft. Multiple injuries (including a Tommy John surgery in 2021) slowed his progre s, and Ashcraft has logged only 283 1/3 innings over parts of six pro seasons. The Bucs still felt confident enough in his potential to add Ashcraft to their 40-man roster in advance of the 2023 Rule 5 Draft, and he went on to post good numbers acro s two levels in 2024, even with forearm inflammation again limiting his time on the mound. Over 48 1/3 innings at Triple-A this season, Ashcraft has a 5.03 ERA, though a .361 BABIP has contributed to that inflated number. Ashcrafts 51.1% grounder rate, 25.6% strikeout rate, and 8.7% walk rate paint a better picture of his performance, even if his control has dipped a bit in comparison to his last couple of post-surgery seasons. Baseball America ranks the righty as the fourth-best minor leaguer in the Pirates farm system, while MLB Pipeline has him seventh on their Bucs top 30 list. Both scouting reports wonder if Ashcraft may be best suited to relief pitching, given both his injury history his lack of a strong or consistent changeup. Ashcraft has a plus fastball in the 95-98mph range, and his slider and curveball are also intriguing enough to make the right-hander a potential three-pitch threat. Since Pittsburghs rotation is fairly full at the moment and Chandlers debut is looming, Ashcrafts bullpen role will allow him to get his foot in the door at the MLB level, and perhaps also hint at his eventual future. Obviously the Pirates will still give Ashcraft some looks as a starter down the road before committing one way or the other to his future deployment, and for now, Ashcraft will get the opportunity to help out the Pirates inconsistent pen. Yadiel Hernandez Jersey |
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发表于 2026-3-24 18:27:47