The Pirates have promoted one of their top prospects, pitcher Jameson Taillon, to Class AA Altoona. He will make his debut at the new level on Tuesday at Trenton.
↵Taillon posted a 3.82 ERA for Class A+ Bradenton, striking out 98 batters and walking 37 in 125 innings. Those are reasonable numbers, but they aren't that impressive, particularly not for a top prospect. What's particularly strange about them is that Taillon had a great April, striking out seven times as many batters as he walked, then didn't do particularly well in May, June or July.
↵The Pirates probably feel, though, that the non-statistical aspects of Taillon's development -- his ability to locate his fastball within the strike zone, for example -- give them a more complete picture. They probably also want to prepare Taillon for next season, in that the minor-league season is about to come to an end, and Taillon will probably begin the 2012 campaign with Altoona.
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