The Pirates reportedly will call up Jordan Luplow (h/t to PiratesProspects.com).
Former Diamond 'Dog Jordan Luplow @J_Luppp will make his @Pirates debut on Friday night in San Diego! #GoDogs #BulldogBornBulldogBred pic.twitter.com/BFQx7S63ns
— FS Bulldog Baseball (@FresnoStateBSB) July 27, 2017
I’m not sure how much stock to put in this, as it’s a tweet from a college, it’s two days in advance, and the Pirates are notoriously secretive about planned player moves. There’s also the fact that Luplow has only 85 plate appearances in AAA and isn’t on the 40-man roster. The Pirates are generally loathe to add players to the 40-man before they have to and this front office has never called a player up without considerably more experience than Luplow’s in AAA.
Still, it makes a fair amount of sense. Luplow has hit the ground running with Indianapolis, posting a 324/407/568 line that’s even better than his 287/368/535 showing at Altoona. The Pirates desperately needed an offensive upgrade even before Gregory Polanco got hurt. Since then, John Jaso and Jose Osuna just aren’t working as starters in the outfield corner. The 40-man move is hardly a problem, as Danny Ortiz is currently taking up a spot. Luplow would have to be added after this season anyway to protect him from the Rule 5 draft. Presumably, a pitcher will go to AAA as the Pirates currently are carrying 13. The obvious candidates are Steve Brault and A.J. Schugel.