The Indianapolis Indians began their season yesterday—the first of the Pirates minor league affiliates to do so—dropping their Opening Day matchup with the Louisville Bats 9-8 after a pitching blow up in the middle innings.
2020 Pirates first round pick Nick Gonzales put Indianapolis ahead in the third inning with a two-run homer to the opposite field, and the Indians led 4-1 after four innings of one-run ball from starter Michael Plassmeyer. The wheels started to come off there, as Colin Holderman—making a rehab assignment as he continues to work his way back from a nasty bout of the flu—allowed three runs across two outs.
Louisville hit reliever Kade McClure even harder, tagging the veteran right-hander for five runs in .1 innings to take the lead for good. First baseman Jake Lamb homered in the ninth to pull Indianapolis within a run, but they couldn’t rally to tie the game. Here are some of the top performers from the back-and-forth road loss.
Triple-A Indianapolis (0-1)
- 2B Nick Gonzales: 2-for-5 with two RBI, a home run and a single.
- 3B Malcom Nuñez: 2-for-5 with two singles and an RBI.
The rest of the Pirates minor league clubs will begin their season on Friday, April 5.
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