Promising Pirates Prospect Struggles in Latest Outing

PITTSBURGH — Pittsburgh Pirates star pitching prospect Hunter Barco didn't have the performance he wanted in his latest outing.

Barco, pitching for Triple-A Indianapolis, faced off against the Nashville Sounds, the Triple-A affiliate of the Milwaukee Brewers, on the road on July 19.

He threw two scoreless innings, before giving up back-to-back doubles to shortstop Freddy Zamora and center fielder Drew Avans in the bottom of the third inning, as Nashville cut into Indianapolis' lead, 2-1.

Barco then had a slider go by Indianapolis catcher Brett Sullivan and hit right fielder Daz Cameron with a pitch, putting runners on the corners with no outs.

He got a groundout from designated hitter Jeferson Quero, moving Cameron to second base, then gave up a single to first baseman Tyler Black, scoring Avans and tying the game up for Nashville at 2-2.

Barco loaded the bases after walking third baseman Bobby Dalbec and after getting left fielder Jared Oliva to fly out, he allowed a two-out single to second baseman Oliver Dunn, scoring both Cameron and Black and putting Nashville ahead, 4-2.

Indianapolis right-handed pitcher Ryder Ryan came in for Barco, ending his night after 2.2 innings pitched, four hits, two walks and four earned runs allowed over 71 pitches.

Barco tied his season-high in earned runs allowed, doing so vs. the Memphis Redbirds, the Triple-A affiliate of the St. Louis Cardinals, on the road on June 6.

He had a better outing in his previous start, allowing three runs over 5.1 innings vs. the Gwinnett Stripers, the Triple-A affiliate of the Atlanta Braves, back at home on July 11.

Barco previously had back-to-back outings, where he threw six innings in each game and posted seven strikeouts in both contests. This came against the Omaha Storm Chasers, the Triple-A affiliate of the Kansas City Royals, on June 29, then against the Louisville Bats, the Triple-A affiliate of the Cincinnati Reds, on July 5.

He now has a 2-1 record over 11 starts, a 3.94 ERA over 45.2 innings pitched, 53 strikeouts to 27 walks, a .200 opposing batting average and a 1.31 WHIP.

Barco had a sensational start to his season with Double-A Altoona, with a 1-0 record in five starts while allowing no runs, nine hits, three hit batters and four walks, while posting 30 strikeouts and an opposing batting average of .132 in the month of April.

He dominated again in his last Double-A start on May 3 vs. the Akron Rubberducks, the Double-A affiliate of the Cleveland Guardians. He allowed just two hits, three walks and no runs, while posting five strikeouts over five innings.

Barco set a franchise record with the longest scoreless inning streak to start a season at 25.2 innings pitched.

He earned his promotion to Indianapolis after that start vs. Akron. He allowed two hits, six walks and one earned run in his first Triple-A start against the Columbus Clippers on May 9, the Triple-A affiliate of the Guardians.

Barco left early from his start against Louisville on May 15 after just 23 pitches, but avoided a serious injury, suffering a a mild muscle strain in his left shoulder.

MLB Pipeline ranks Barco as the No. 3 prospect in the Pirates system, just behind fellow Indianapolis pitcher in right-hander Bubba Chandler at No. 1 and High-A Greensboro shortstop Konnor Griffin at No. 2. They also rank him No. 78 amongst all prospects.

The Pirates took Barco in the second round of the 2022 MLB Draft out of Florida with the No. 44 overall pick.