Pitching notes: Bubba Chandler bounce-back not surprising, Khristian Curtis pitching deeper, Johan Oviedo

Chandler tosses another strong outing, plus more notes on pitching in the system

Photo Credit: WTM

To say it’s been an eventful season for Bubba Chandler may be a bit of an overstatement. He’s emerged as one of the top pitching prospects in baseball, and remains knocking on the door of the majors, awaiting his opportunity.

There’s no doubting the stuff, as he is as electric a pitcher as there is in baseball, regardless of level.

You won’t find too many players in the minors capable of putting a card together like this. Still, Chandler struggled in June, walking more than he struck out and posting an 8.53 ERA.

Chandler tossed another strong outing for the Pirates, allowing two runs on four hits and two walks, striking out seven over 5.2 innings pitched.

He picked up 13 whiffs in total, 10 off the fastball, hitting triple digits multiple times.

With the trade deadline approaching, there should be at least one rotation spot opening up through Andrew Heaney, who is on an expiring deal.

Despite the struggles in June, I felt that Bubba had always been ready for the next level. It wasn’t a matter of stuff, but control and trying to be more efficient. It did seem like he was trying to overthrow a bit.

His fastball was missing bats at an elite rate at 98 mph, but he was dialing it up farther than he usually does, and the walks were mounting.

Chandler is one of the most exciting players in the minors, and it shouldn’t be too much longer before he finally makes his debut.

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There were multiple pitchers dealing in the Pirates system on Thursday, with one of them potentially creating an interesting situation when it comes to Chandler.

Johan Oviedo made another rehab start for the Altoona Curve, tossing five innings of one-run ball, striking out five.

He’s progressing quite nicely, and the next step is for him to join Chandler in Triple-A to continue his rehab.

Trading Heaney will create one rotation spot. Could Oviedo get the nod over Chandler? There are a lot of trade rumors involving Mitch Keller, but they don’t need to move him at the deadline.

On a team that’s 19 games under .500, this may be one of the more interesting storylines to follow the rest of the season. They will probably monitor Oviedo’s pitch count the rest of the year, but it is encouraging he’s built up to five innings so quickly.

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Mark one down for good timing, dropping an article on Khristian Curtis the same day he pitches and has another solid outing for the Greensboro Grasshoppers.

He picked up the win after allowing a run on four hits and two walks while striking out five over 5.2 innings pitched.

One standout in my conversation with Curtis was his talking about how he wants to be the guy that the Pirates can rely on to go five-plus innings each time he’s on the mound, while acknowledging he hasn’t been that guy at times.

That being said, he’s completed at least five innings in four of his last five starts, getting the win each time he’s done so.

While wins and losses don’t mean as much in the minors, it only highlights his point further.

If he’s throwing five or more innings, it probably means he’s sticking it in the zone, and if that’s happening, he’s incredibly confident that success is going to follow due to the stuff.

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