PITTSBURGH (93.7 The Fan) – So what is next for first overall MLB draft pick Paul Skenes after throwing his first professional outing in a rookie-level league?
Pirates GM Ben Cherington confirmed on his show on 93.7 The Fan and the Pirates Radio Network he will pitch for Class A Bradenton this week with the opportunity to move up a level for his next start. Cherington said they will assess after each performance with an opportunity to move up after this week's outing.
Skenes threw one inning in his professional debut last week with a strikeout on 11 pitches (eight strikes). Cherington said he's very strong, in great shape and his delivery is in a great place. However, he will throw less than 20 innings the rest of this season.
"We are going to be very conservative with volume with Paul," Cherington said on 93.7 The Fan and the Pirates Radio Network. "He's pitched a full season in college. It was important that he got into competitive pitching situations, partly so he got used to that routine at the pro level and know what it's like before we get into next year. Partly for his sake, because he is such a competitor as long as we could include some pitching safely, we felt like it would be better for him than to just have seven weeks in Florida to train and not to get a chance to get out and pitch."
Ortiz improvement
Cherington said he watched Luis Ortiz, 24, throw five innings at AAA Indianapolis on Saturday giving up three hits, a run on a solo home run, three strikeouts and no walks. He hopes that outing is a positive trend for the right-hander. His pitches were in the strike zone more, along with being more consistent. Ortiz's delivery was in a better spot according to Cherington and he hit 97 mph.
Good signs with Contreras
Roansy Contreras is back in AAA, he started a game on Thursday giving up only one hit over three innings with no runs, two walks and two strikeouts. Cherington said he worked hard in Florida to get his delivery in the right spot, the 23-year-old's velocity is up and was throwing all of his pitches for strikes. They are working to get his pitch count back up to that of a typical starter.
"We know how talented he is," Cherington said Sunday. "We've all seen what he is capable of doing at the Major League level. He's such a hard worker. He wants it as much as anyone. We have to support him and hopefully he will stay on the right track."
