Pirates Minor League Report: Murf Gray Gets Weekly Honor, Flores Jr. Heating Up

Rafael Flores, Pittsburgh Pirates

Pittsburgh Pirates third base prospect Murf Gray was named the Florida State League Player of the Week after a strong showing with the Bradenton Marauders.

Gray, who was drafted by the Pirates in the second round of last year’s draft, slashed .455/.500/.864 with 10 hits, three doubles, eight RBI and seven runs scored. The 22-year-old ranks seventh among all full-season minor leaguers in batting (.375) and is tops in the FSL in hits (36) and total bases (60) and is tied for first with 26 RBI.

In 26 games with the Marauders this season, Gray is batting .375/.446/.625 with nine doubles, five home runs and 26 RBI.

Here are some other notable performers throughout the organization.

Triple-A Indianapolis

Catcher/first baseman Rafael Flores Jr. is starting to heat up with Indianapolis. The 25-year-old is hitting .318 (7 for 22) during a current six-game hitting streak and has a double, a home run and seven RBI during that span. It was a slow start to the season for Flores but he’s raised his season OPS to .710.

A pair of players who spent time with the Pirates in recent seasons are near the top of the leaderboards in batting average. Outfielder Ronny Simon ranks second among all Triple-A hitters with a .365 average and infielder Alika Williams tied for third in the International League at .347.

On the pitching side, Bethel Park-native Justin Meis has a 0.79 ERA (1er/11.1ip) and a .132 batting average against (5-for-38) in his last six appearances.

Double-A Altoona

Infield prospect Keiner Delgado is riding a nine-game hitting streak and is batting .345 (10 for 29) with two doubles, two home runs, 11 RBI and a 1.107 OPS during that span.

Outfielder Will Taylor leads the Eastern League with a .553 on-base percentage since April 19 and is fourth in batting (.364) and OPS (1.159) during that time.