Juan Encarnacion tosses five scoreless innings in his best outing to start the season

Image courtesy of Kelly O’Connor / SittingStillSox on X

Greenville Drive right-hander Juan Daniel Encarnacion turned out his best start this season on Tuesday night to open this week’s series against the Greensboro Grasshoppers.

In his last outing, it was a mixed bag of results where Encarnacion tossed 3 2/3 innings, giving up just one hit and one earned run while walking five and striking out five.

Encarnacion was strong over five scoreless innings, only giving up three hits, striking out six batters, and didn’t issue a walk. He also earned his first win of the season.

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The hurler held Grasshoppers’ Termarr Johnson in check throughout his outing. Encarnacion struck out the former first-round pick in his first at-bat; he then forced him to fly out to the Drive’s third baseman, Tyler Miller, in the third to end the inning. Johnson is the No. 2 ranked prospect in the Pirates system, according to MLB Pipeline.

Encarnacion opened the game by setting the order down easily 1-2-3. He would allow the leadoff man to reach in each of the next three innings, but was able to strand the runners with no damage to the scoreboard. The righty would strand two base runners in his fifth and final inning of work.

Overall, Encarnacion threw 61 pitches, 47 of them for strikes.

Encarnacion is an under-the-radar prospect who is looking to put a poor 2023 season in the rearview mirror. The 21-year-old is currently unranked by SoxProspects.com’s top-60 prospects, after he was ranked No. 44 to begin the 2023 season.

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The native of San Pedro de Macoris, Dominican Republic, spent all of last year pitching for the Greenville Drive, making 21 starts and appearing in 24 games, where he had 101 strikeouts to 42 walks and posted a 1.52 WHIP and a 6.32 ERA over 99 2/3 innings.

According to his SoxProspects.com scouting report, the athletic 6-foot-2, 173-pounder throws from a low three-quarters arm slot and operates with a three-pitch mix that consists of an 88-92 mph fastball that tops out at 94 mph, a 76-78 mph curveball, and an 84-86 mph changeup.

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Encarnacion will not turn 24 until next March and should continue to appear with the Drive, but he could be in line to be promoted to Double-A Portland if he can limit his walks and have more consistent outings like he did on Tuesday night.