Pirates Send Rookie Back Down to Minors

PHILADELPHIA — The Pittsburgh Pirates will have a rookie head back down to the minor leagues amongst recent roster moves.

Pirates manager Don Kelly announced that they are activating first baseman Spencer Horwitz, who is currently with the team for their series vs. the Philadelphia Phillies at Citizens Bank Park. He also announced that they are optioning first baseman/outfielder Matt Gorski to Triple-A Indianapolis, creating a spot on the 26-man active roster for Horwitz.

He excelled early on with Triple-A Indianapolis this season, slashing .300/.325./.529 for an OPS of .853, with 21 hits, seven doubles, three home runs, 14 RBIs and four walks to 18 strikeouts.

Gorski then received his MLB call-up on April 24 and started at first base vs. the Los Angeles Angels at Angels Stadium that very same day, where he homered in his first at-bat. 

He played in 15 games, slashing .195/.214/.390 for an OPS of .604, with eight hits in 41 at-bats, a triple, two home runs, four RBIs and one walk to 16 strikeouts during his time in Pittsburgh.

Gorski started nine games at first base for the Pirates and in center field for the series opener vs. the Phillies on May 16, where he made a home run-robbing grab on a ball that Phillies designated hitter Kyle Schwarber hit. He also came off the bench or moved to the outfield three times, once in left field and twice in center.

Kelly praised Gorski for his time with the Pirates and hopes that he'll get more opportunities at Indianapolis, which will benefit him for the future.

“For sure. He did a good job and he hasn’t played much first base," Kelly said. "He’s getting better over there. We saw the play he made defensively. He had the big home run in New York. He moved the ball forward when we were at home and had two strikes and he continues to get better and looking forward to him getting consistent at-bats in Triple-A.”