North Shore Nine

The Pirates fell to 0-3 in Spring Training today, falling to the Blue Jays 8-4.

Roansy Contreras started the game, pitching two innings and allowing two runs. However, his fastball velocity was up from when we last saw him, averaging 95.2 mph in today’s outing. Braxton Ashcraft, one of the Pirates top pitching prospects, followed Contreras with a scoreless inning. Ashcraft’s stuff looked very good, reaching 98.2 mph on his fastball and 92.5 mph on his slider while mixing in a few curveballs.

Offensively, top hitting prospect Termarr Johnson flashed his sky-high potential, going 2-2 with two monstrous home runs. In the 7th inning, Johnson crushed a two run, 392-foot home run to right field. Then, in the 9th inning he homered again, this being a 402-foot solo shot. Jared Triolo went 2-2 with a double. Tsung-Che Cheng, Billy McKinney, and Sergio Alcantara also tallied hits.

Tomorrow, the Pirates return to LECOM Park to take on the Braves. Marco Gonzales is scheduled to be the Pirates’ starter.