PITTSBURGH — The Pittsburgh Pirates received encouraging injury news regarding one of their top prospects.
Left-handed pitcher Hunter Barco took the mound for Triple-A Indianapolis on May 15 in a game against the Louisville Bats, the Cincinnati Reds’ Triple-A team.
Barco threw 23 pitches, but after delivering a breaking ball, he experienced some discomfort and eventually exited the game.
Pirates senior director of sports medicine Todd Tomczyk said Hunter Barco has a mild muscle strain in his left shoulder and has resumed throwing, per Greg McAfee of DK Pittsburgh Sports. Barco is currently throwing up to 120 feet and is considered day-to-day. The team is monitoring his progress on flat ground before he returns to the mound.
Barco began the 2024 season with Double-A Altoona and was dominant in April. Over five starts, he posted a 1-0 record, didn’t allow a run, and held opposing hitters to a .132 batting average. He struck out 30 batters while walking four and giving up just nine hits. In his final Double-A start on May 3 against Akron, he pitched five scoreless innings with five strikeouts.
He set a franchise record by opening the season with 25.2 consecutive scoreless innings, which led to his promotion to Triple-A Indianapolis. In his debut there on May 9, he allowed one run over several innings against Columbus.
Barco is rising quickly as a prospect, recently entering MLB Pipeline’s Top 100 at No. 93 and ranking fifth in the Pirates’ system. Originally from Jacksonville, Florida, Barco starred at The Bolles School and later pitched three seasons at the University of Florida, where he had a 17-5 record and a 3.18 ERA. The Pirates selected him in the second round of the 2022 MLB Draft and signed him for $1.5 million. After debuting in 2023 at the lower levels, he spent much of 2024 at High-A Greensboro before moving up to Altoona.
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