Pirates Call Up Former Top Red Sox Infield Prospect For Major League Debut

Former Red Sox first-round draft pick Nick Yorke will make his Major League debut with the Pittsburgh Pirates after being called up from Triple-A Indianapolis on Monday, the team announced.

The 22-year-old infielder will get the start at second base and bat seventh in the lineup when the Pirates face the St. Louis Cardinals at Busch Stadium.

The Red Sox dealt Yorke to the Pirates at the trade deadline in exchange for pitcher Quinn Priester. Pittsburgh's No.6 prospect, according to MLB Pipeline, began the 2024 campaign with Double-A Portland before being moved up to Triple-A Worcester on June 5. In Triple-A, Yorke batted .310 with six homers and 19 RBIs during the seven weeks he played for the WooSox.

Boston selected Yorke with the 17th overall pick in the 2020 MLB Draft, and the youngster showed promise within the organization. A logjam at his position certainly didn't help Yorke's prospects of breaking into the big leagues with the Red Sox. Boston already has Ceddane Rafaela platooning between the infield and outfield and other prospects like Vaughn Grissom, Marcelo Mayer, Yoeilin Cespedes and Nazzan Zanetello behind him working their way up through the organization.

Since joining the Pirates organization, Yorke has been on a tear, slashing .355/.431/.507 with two home runs, 17 doubles, 26 RBIs and four stole bases across 40 games with the Triple-A Indians.

Even though the Pirates had an open spot on the 40-man roster, the club optioned infielder Alika Williams to the Triple-A Indians. Williams had 18 hits and five RBIs in 37 games across three stints with Pittsburgh this season. He walked twice and struck out 22 times in 96 plate appearances. Willaims has two triples and nine doubles, 13 RBIs and two stolen bases in 36 Triple-A games this season.