. The Pirates claimed him off waivers and quickly lost him to the Diamondbacks in the minor league phase of the 2022 Rule 5 draft. FanGraphs Prospects. Its a pretty big lost year of reps for a multi-sport player looking to get traction with the bat in pro ball. Jones spent 2022, his second full pro season, at High-A Greensboro, where he sat 94-98 mph across 122.2 innings and posted a 26.7% K% and 9.6% BB%. Still, his tendency to roll his wrists over early in his swing, breaking up his attack angle, resulted in a groundball rate above 50%. Hayden Wesneski is a 25-year-old starting pitcher in the Chicago Cubs system. Juan Jerez, 3B Cubs prospect Hayden Wesneski proving he belongs in the big leagues In most cases, corner-only outfielders who play consistent big league roles have better actualized their raw power in games. The older brother of Ohio State wide receiver phenom Jaxson Smith-Njigba, Canaan is another of the many prospects acquired from the Yankees for Jameson Taillon. As a high schooler, his ultra-low spin splitter seemed like the more promising pitch, but his feel for it has regressed. document.addEventListener("DOMContentLoaded", function () { He pitched five innings of relief over two games in early May for the Pirates without allowing a run. For the second straight year, he allowed a high rate of home runs, which inflated his ERA. While prospect list ultimately isn't what makes a player great, it is . Some of his early-career success seems to have stemmed from his physical maturity. Hes an arm strength reclamation project with a shot to pitch in Pittsburghs bullpen. The depth-drive approach has extended to the amateur side of things, where the Pirates tend to spread out their bonus pool to at least a couple of over-slot prospects every year. Fangraphs Reveals Their Updated Top Pirates Prospects List His delivery also creates an odd angle on a mid-80s cutter/slider, which Solometo commands to his glove side. Ke'Bryan Hayes, Oneil Cruz, Mitch Keller, Travis Swaggerty, Tahnaj Thomas and. His breaking ball has inconsistent length and he has a relief-only mechanical look, but hes throwing quite hard. Don't Count Quinn Priester Out Due to Low Strikeouts Hard-Throwers Lopez swings exceptionally hard and makes some mechanical compromises to do so, but not in a way that has impacted his performance yet. His footwork on throws to second is clunky and variable, which often impacts his throw times and accuracy, but the pure arm strength is in there. Hes on track to debut in 2025 as a starter if those issues improve and as a reliever if they do not. His delivery evokes Madison Bumgarners long, slingin lefty arm stroke, and Solometos east/west feel for location is Bum-ish, but dont mistake this for a true comp, as Bumgarner had already made 24 big league starts at Solometos age. Davis plate crowding helps enable his pull-heavy approach. Defensively, Nunez has transitioned from full-time third baseman to mostly first base, with a handful of innings in the other corner of the infield still mixed in. That puts pressure on his plate discipline to improve, since right now Lopez is a little too proactive at the plate and might be exposed at the upper levels. He can play a fine shortstop. Aspects of the offensive profile that made him exciting in the first place are still here, led by Pegueros compact but authoritative swing, which is especially good at punishing pitches at the very top of the strike zone. In his time at Bradenton, Chandler struck out 33 batters over 26 innings, and while his walk rate was an unacceptably high 15.8%, thats actually down a notch from what he was allowing over a larger sample on the complex. During a full season at Double-A in 2022, he saw time at third base, shortstop, and center field, and in 2023 hell start seeing more time at second base. Hes already taken a sizable step in the breaking ball department in just two pros seasons. The Pirates got a deal done for a cool million, nearly twice the slot amount in the fourth round. Pre-draft rumors pegged Kennedy as a tough sign given a strong commitment to LSU. But at other times, he had difficulty maintaining the velocity as the innings wore on, which was compounded by his ongoing command inconsistency. His swing may look different in 2023 and prompt a re-evaluation. His overall pitch recognition, especially against breaking balls, has become a more noticeable issue. His arm action is very long, and he bends at his torso as he lunges toward the plate, allowing for more extension during his release, but also creating an uncomfy angle that adds stress to his shoulder. Might the changeup develop over time into a plus pitch? Here's a link to the Top 25.. Link to the Top 50.. Link to the Top 75.. His slot also helps generate two-plane sweep on his breaking ball. Hes been able to maintain nearly average contact rates despite a pull-heavy approach to contact. To that point in the season, his mid-teens walk rate had inspired guarded optimism regarding an improved approach, though Nunez also may have become intentionally passive, as his raw swing% was a minuscule 40%. Ercolani, an 18-year-old righty from San Marino, had a velo spike during the winter and has been up to 97 mph in the bullpen recently. Major League and Minor League Baseball data provided by Major League Baseball. Maikol Escotto, 2B Ideally, Nicolas can develop an offering that has some arm-side movement, one better than his current changeup that can prevent hitters from sitting on those glove-side locations. This time around, the Top 100 has even more Moreno types, prospects who combine . Pittsburgh Pirates Top 61 Prospects | FanGraphs Baseball Righties get a nice long look at everything Solometo does, and he could be very platoon-vulnerable against big leaguers. Still 17 years old as of initial list publication, De Los Santos DSL barrel rate (its more a proxy for a barrel rate the exit velo and launch benchmarks arent exactly the same as Statcasts Barrels, but its the same idea) is so high that it actually breaks an age-adjusted 20-80 scale, grading out as an 83. Meanwhile, put on the tape, limited though it may be, and youll see an explosive young athlete with a prototypical baseball frame and premium bat speed, sizzling line drives all over the field. They all received. That pitch plays up against lefties for reasons that are probably obvious, but it isnt a nasty pitch in a vacuum. Triolo earned industry praise for his defensive aptitude and high marks for his baseball IQ and instincts. His range, footwork, ability to bend, and overall athleticism are all plus, and it made sense to try to develop him as a shortstop for as long as possible, but Peguero finally saw time at second base in 2022 and a permanent move there will hopefully help him throw more confidently and accurately. Jesus Castillo, SS Solometos fastball sits in the 88-92 mph range. He hit his stride in mid-August with back-to-back scoreless starts in which his four-seamer averaged over 96 across a combined nine innings a high water mark for the season and a true glimpse of his upside. His slider lacks nasty, biting movement, but his arm slot makes it tough on lefty hitters, and his command of it gives it back-foot utility against righties. Reports, tool grades, . However, Priester makes up for it with his preferred secondaries a huge, arcing curveball that Priester has had forever, and a more recently developed mid-80s slider both of which have garnered swing-and-miss rates well above the big league average. He was promoted to Bradenton and fell into a rhythm where each pitching appearance was buttressed by an off day before and after it, with the 19-year-old DHing in the intervening days. Poised to compete for a rotation spot when 2023 camp breaks, Ortiz is one of a few high-upside Pirates youngsters who look like theyd fit in a contenders rotation. It comes out of his hand from a high arm slot that looks like the kind optimized for data-friendly ride, but the pitchs downhill angle makes it less of a weapon at the letters and actually makes it very vulnerable within the strike zone. Selbys fastball sits 96-98 mph and he looks to blow it past hitters up in the zone. Whats more, theres a chance Triolo hits enough to simply be an everyday option at second (or if he turns out to be okay in center). A few months later, the Pirates emerged as the word-of-mouth favorite to sign him; he inked a deal for $750,000 in January. The powerfully built Kelly, 19, is a squat but loose righty who sits 93-95 mph and throws quality strikes with his fastball. You can see the power and athleticism in Davis lower half throughout other aspects of his game, and its an indication that he has the ability to polish this stuff up and control the running game. Pittsburgh Pirates: FanGraphs Add 2021 Draft Picks to Prospect Board Short but not small, his lack of length and size is actually an advantage for Johnsons swing, as he can enjoy a bat path geared for power and lift without it being too long. 4/5 starter. He has basically been the same guy since he entered pro ball, sitting 94-95 with ineffectual shape and a pretty good slider. His slider has a sweeping horizontal shape, but his inability to locate it has hampered its utility. As a wrap-up, the Pirates have. Now 24 and neither protected from nor claimed during the 2022 Rule 5 draft, its imperative for him to start throwing strikes more consistently in order to find his way to a big league bullpen. His chase rates were at or below league average across the board, further emphasizing the troubling command. He moved into a minor league relief role in 2022. This FV grade is commensurate with a mid-first round high school infield prospect. 2023 Offseason Tracker. But theres big arm speed here and big riding life to Shims fastball. Bolton was able to stay healthy for the entirety of 2022, which was an accomplishment in itself given that his professional career has been plagued by injury since it began. Shim is a big, physically mature righty with huge present arm strength, creeping into the upper 90s. All major league baseball data including pitch type, velocity, batted ball location, Neil Walker / 2B 5. Oliver Mateo, RHP If he does end up having relevant chase issues, he might track like a left-handed hitting Brendan Rodgers, but Johnsons makeup and personality are so universally lauded that its fair to expect him to make relevant adjustments and become a key cog on Pittsburghs next competitive team. That's nearly 30% of all their picks coming up as noteworthy prospects. D-backs Dodgers Giants Padres Rockies: Offseason Tools. But he was then shut down and had TJ, which ended his season early enough that he could be back in 2023. Tony Sanchez / C 6. Readers should note that taking an aggressive line with players like this has yielded predictably mixed results in the past (so far, so good: Kevin Alcantara, Marco Luciano, Alexander Canario, Jordy Vargas, etc. Hes not a great defender right now, and probably wont ever be better than a 40-grade glove, but Davis frames high strikes well and has plus raw arm strength. That creates backspin and carry on his fastball and big depth on his curve. March 3, 2023. He has a career .387 OBP but hasnt been able to actualize his plus raw power in games, driving the ball into the ground at a whopping 66% clip in 2021 and a 54% rate in 2022. He has an interesting long-term body projection and breaking ball combination. As FanGraphs sourced TrackMan/Hawkeye data from team personnel after the season, De Los Santos hard hit rate and peak exit velocities stood apart from most of his peers, especially when limiting the sample to the DSLs age-appropriate players. Hes still the contact-first, chop-and-spray hitter hes always been, an approach to hitting enabled and bolstered by his speed, which allows him to beat out infield singles. But the improvement on his slider means he could solidify a role as a middle reliever, especially if the converted infielder is able to re-establish the fastball velos he flirted with a few years ago. Luigi Hernandez, RHP. From 2017-21, Webbs strikeout rate more than doubled as a result of his uptick in arm strength. Drafted: 1st Round, 2022 from Mays HS (GA) (PIT), Signed: July 2nd Period, 2018 from Dominican Republic (NYM), Drafted: 1st Round, 2021 from Louisville (PIT), Signed: July 2nd Period, 2018 from Dominican Republic (PIT), Drafted: 1st Round, 2019 from Cary-Grove HS (IL) (PIT), Signed: July 2nd Period, 2017 from Dominican Republic (ARI), Drafted: 10th Round, 2018 from Waterford HS (CT) (PIT), Drafted: 3rd Round, 2021 from North Oconee HS (PIT), Drafted: 2nd Round, 2019 from Houston (PIT), Signed: July 2nd Period, 2017 from South Korea (PIT), Drafted: 2nd Round, 2020 from La Mirada HS (CA) (PIT), Signed: July 2nd Period, 2022 from Dominican Republic (PIT), Drafted: 1st Round, 2022 from Campbell (PIT), Drafted: 2nd Round, 2020 from Ball State (MIA), Drafted: 16th Round, 2018 from Randolph-Macon College (PIT), Drafted: 8th Round, 2019 from Seton Hall (ATL), Signed: July 2nd Period, 2018 from Venezuela (PIT), Signed: July 2nd Period, 2023 from South Korea (PIT), Drafted: 2nd Round, 2021 from Gloucester Catholic HS (PIT), Drafted: 2nd Round, 2022 from Florida (PIT), Signed: July 2nd Period, 2018 from Cuba (STL), Drafted: 1st Round, 2020 from New Mexico State (PIT), Signed: July 2nd Period, 2015 from Dominican Republic (LAD), Signed: July 2nd Period, 2019 from Pei-Ke High School (Taiwan) (PIT), Drafted: 4th Round, 2022 from Troy HS (NY) (PIT), Drafted: 2nd Round, 2021 from Malvern Prep HS (PIT), Drafted: 1st Round, 2020 from South Carolina (PIT), Drafted: 15th Round, 2021 from South Alabama (PIT), Drafted: 1st Round, 2018 from South Alabama (PIT), Signed: July 2nd Period, 2016 from Venezuela (PHI), Drafted: 3rd Round, 2022 from Notre Dame (PIT), Signed: July 2nd Period, 2019 from Taiwan (PIT), Signed: July 2nd Period, 2016 from Bahamas (CLE), Drafted: 4th Round, 2019 from Florida State (PIT), Drafted: 11th Round, 2016 from Valley View HS (PA) (PIT), Drafted: 4th Round, 2017 from Rockwall Heath HS (TX) (NYY), Drafted: 34th Round, 2016 from Lees Summit HS (MO) (KCR), Drafted: 6th Round, 2017 from Tracy HS (CA) (PIT), Drafted: 4th Round, 2021 from U-32 HS (PIT).
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