Pirates call up Ngoepe from Triple-A

Pirates shortstop Gift Ngoepe is set to make history after the Pirates promoted him from Triple-A Indianapolis on Wednesday.
The 27-year-old infielder will become the first African-born player ever to play in the Major Leagues when he debuts with Pittsburgh. To clear room on the roster, the Pirates returned right-handed reliever Dovydas Neverauskas -- who on Monday became the first native of Lithuania to pitch in a big league game -- to its top affiliate.

"It doesn't matter where you come from. No matter where you are, who you are, you can still make it," Ngoepe told MLB.com. "It was a long road. It was a long journey. I kept with it. There were a few times I wanted to stop. It's the people that are behind you that keeps you going every single day. That kind of kept my fight. My ninth year, and I made it to the big leagues."
Ngoepe, batting .241 with a homer and four RBIs in 15 games this season, has certainly paid his dues in the Minors, appearing in 704 contests since 2009. He's a career .232 hitter and has 29 homers, 201 RBIs, 88 stolen bases and a .322 OBP in 2,390 at-bats. He's seen time at Triple-A in each of the past two seasons.
"It's going to be exceptionally rewarding to see Gift, with all the hard work that he's put in over the years, when he finally steps onto the field at PNC Park," Tom Gillespie, the Pirates' European scout, told MLB.com last year.

Born in Pietersburg, South Africa, the right-handed infielder signed with the Pirates as an international free agent in 2008 after growing up in Randburg, Gauteng, South Africa. He played for the South African team during the 2009 World Baseball Classic and enjoyed his most productive Minor League season in 2014, when he hit .238 with nine homers and 52 RBIs in 131 games for Double-A Altoona. Pittsburgh added him to its 40-man roster in November 2015.
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He owns a career .979 fielding percentage at second base and a .971 mark at shortstop.
Ngoepe's brother, Victor, signed with the Pirates as a free agent in January 2016 and hit .219 in 44 games in the Rookie-level Gulf Coast League last summer.