Pirates Add Prospect Hunter Barco; Late-Season Debut

The Pittsburgh Pirates selected the contract of 24-year-old left-hander Hunter Barco, their No. 4 prospect (No. 82 overall), and added him to the 40-man roster to protect him from the Rule 5 Draft. Barco has a combined 4-1 record with a 2.81 ERA, 116 strikeouts, a 1.20 WHIP and a .196 opponent batting average across 99.1 innings between Double-A Altoona and Triple-A Indianapolis. He returned from Tommy John surgery and has recently been used mostly in relief, so the club plans to ease him into the majors out of the bullpen. The Pirates created roster space for the move by optioning Evan Sisk and transferring Ronny Simon to the 60-day injured list. Barco is expected to make his MLB debut during the team’s late-season road trip beginning in Cincinnati as the club finishes the year in Cincinnati and Atlanta, and the organization views the stint as a chance for him to gain big-league experience before competing for rotation starts next season.