The Pittsburgh Pirates confirmed Wednesday that four clubs received invitations to remain affiliated with them amid MLB’s minor-league contraction to reduce the number of teams from 160 to 120.
The Indianapolis Indians (Triple-A), Altoona Curve (Double-A), Greensboro Grasshoppers (High-A) and Bradenton Marauders (Low-A) were invited to continue serving as the Pirates’ affiliates. Altoona has served as a Pirates affiliate for the past 22 years, Indianapolis for 16 and Bradenton for 11. Greensboro became an affiliate in 2019.
“We are excited and proud to present the opportunity to continue our long-standing partnerships with the Indianapolis Indians, Altoona Curve, and, of course, the City of Bradenton with the Marauders. We are equally excited to have the chance to continue to build upon our relationship with our newest affiliate the Greensboro Grasshoppers,” Pirates president Travis Williams said in a statement. “The player development system is always going to be critical to our future success at the Major League level. It is more important than ever that we partner with affiliate organizations that share in this commitment to our players and facilities.”
Where the moves have Indianapolis and Altoona maintain the roles as the Pirates’ highest-level affiliates, Greensboro and Bradenton would swap spots. Greensboro was a member of the low-A South Atlantic League while Bradenton was in the Florida State League, which is switching from high-A to low-A.
Two former affiliates, the short-season West Virginia Black Bears and rookie league Bristol (Va.) Pirates, already accepted offers to reclassify. West Virginia is a founding member of the MLB Draft League for draft-eligible rising college seniors, while Bristol remains in the wooden-bat Appalachian League for rising college freshmen and sophomores.
One of the full-season clubs that was not invited to join the minors in 2021, according to a Baseball America report, is the Charleston-based West Virginia Power, a Pirates affiliate from 2009-18 before being replaced by Greensboro.
