Three Pittsburgh Pirates pitching prospects provided a perfect evening on Friday.
Khristian Curtis, Jake Shirk and Michael Walsh combined to throw a perfect game for High-A Greensboro in a 2-0 win over Aberdeen. It was the first nine-inning perfect game at any minor league level since 2017. New York Mets prospect Jonah Tong recorded all but one out of a Double-A perfect game in May, but the doubleheader contest was seven innings.
Curtis started the effort by amassing a career-high 10 strikeouts over six spotless innings. Pittsburgh’s No. 24 prospect, per MLB.com, has a 4.70 ERA in 16 starts for the Grasshoppers in 2025.
Before locking in for a dominant effort, Curtis nearly stumbled early. The 23-year-old fell behind 3-0 to the game’s first two batters, but the 2023 12th-round pick fought back each time.
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Shirk struck out four of six batters faced when relieving Curtis. Last year’s No. 534 overall selection has allowed two hits, two walks and one run in five innings since getting promoted to Greensboro late last month.
Finally, Walsh secured history with two strikeouts in a perfect ninth inning. The 24-year-old registered his fourth save, improving his ERA to 2.48 in 36 1/3 innings.
The game remained scoreless through four innings before outfielder Titus Dumitru hit a home run for Greensboro. The Grasshoppers improved to 55-23, the best overall record in the South Atlantic League.
Pittsburgh’s big-league club has never witnessed a perfect game, but John Wasdin pitched one in Triple-A on April 7, 2003.
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Featured image via Charles LeClaire/Imagn Images