4-12-2025 – By Michael Castrignano – @412DoublePlay on X
In a southpaw showdown today, Andrew Heaney will face Andrew Abbott, who is making his 2025 debut. A left shoulder strain ended his 2024 campaign prematurely and delayed his start to this season as well but the 2021 2nd round pick is back and eager to pick up where he left off.
Abbott made 25 starts last season, posting a 10-10 record with a 3.72 ERA through 138 frames. He was slated to make his next start against the Pirates on August 23 before being shutdown for precautionary reasons, returning in spring training to make 2 starts where he pitched 7 innings and allowing just 2 earned runs, 4 hits, 1 walk and striking out 5.
The 25-year old lefty started the season on the IL, pitching two games for the Louisville Bats and posting a 3.60 ERA over 10 innings with 8 strikeouts but also 5 walks.
He doesn’t have overpowering velocity but works the sweeper/changeup/curve combination low in the zone to generate whiffs and weak contact. His hard hit rate of 33% was the 10th best among pitchers with at least 130 innings pitched in 2024.
Last season, he threw the fastball over 53% of the time and that is the pitch Pirates hitters should key in on. It resulted in a .254 opposing batting average and 92.8 MPH exit velocity, by far the highest result among his offerings. Additionally, 14 of his 25 home runs last season came off of his fastball – and the Great American Ball Park is notoriously a home run park.
Take walks and lay-off the breaking stuff down but look to drive the elevated off-speed or high heaters against Abbott.
Steel City Pirates 