Around the Curve | Big Tuna of the Week - July 1-6
July is here and the All-Star break is quickly approaching! As of the conclusion of the Harrisburg Senators series, Altoona has won four games in a row to win their first series in July. This week, we saw Tsung-Che Cheng and Thomas Harrington rise above the rest and help the
July is here and the All-Star break is quickly approaching! As of the conclusion of the Harrisburg Senators series, Altoona has won four games in a row to win their first series in July. This week, we saw Tsung-Che Cheng and Thomas Harrington rise above the rest and help the Curve move up the Eastern League in the standings. Let's look back at what they did to deserve the honor of being our next recipients of Big Tuna of the Week.
Despite the team not having a designated travel day on Monday, Cheng showed no sign of decline when it came to production on the field. Throughout the six games he appeared in, Cheng was able to bounce around the lineup and play both second base and shortstop. Within his 12 at-bats, he hit .368 and collected 12 total bases with one RBI and a home run, his team-leading eighth of the season. Cheng followed his early-week home run with a two-double performance on the Fourth of July in front of a sellout crowd at PNG Field. Cheng is seen by MLB Pipeline as the No. 9 Pirates prospect this season.
Moving on to our Pitcher of the Week, right-handed pitcher Harrington matched his career-long with 7.0 scoreless innings on July 4 against the Harrisburg Senators. Since June 16 (four starts) he’s gone 1-1 with a 1.57 ERA in 23 innings pitched along with 20 strikeouts. Harrington has also allowed two earned runs or fewer in 8-of-10 outings with Altoona this year. The right-hander is seen as the No 4 prospect in the Pirates system.
The Pittsburgh pitching pipeline continues to dominate 🔒
— MLB Pipeline (@MLBPipeline) July 5, 2024
Thomas Harrington (@Pirates No. 4 prospect) K's six batters over seven scoreless frames for the Double-A @AltoonaCurve. pic.twitter.com/4Zn3AWqQRV
Other notable performances in the series included Sammy Siani (.350, seven hits, nine total bases, and one triple,) Dustin Peterson (.333, four hits, nine total bases, and a home run,) and Yoyner Fajardo (.389, seven hits, three doubles with ten total bases along with four walks.) From a pitching standpoint, both Bubba Chandler and Po-Yu Chen had strong starts in the series. However, it was Cheng and Harrington who showed enough to be our second Big Tuna of the Week recepients!
The Curve kickback for two days before starting a six-game series at home against the Bowie Baysox, the Double-A Affiliate of the Baltimore Orioles, on Tuesday night. Stay tuned all season long for more exciting content on the Around the Curve Blog!