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Below is an analysis of the prospects in the farm system of the Pittsburgh Pirates. Scouting reports were compiled with information provided by industry sources as well as our own observations.
This is the fourth year we’re delineating between two anticipated relief roles, the abbreviations for which you’ll see in the “position” column below: MIRP for multi-inning relief pitchers, and SIRP for single-inning relief pitchers. The ETAs listed generally correspond to the year a player has to be added to the 40-man roster to avoid being made eligible for the Rule 5 draft. Manual adjustments are made where they seem appropriate, but we use that as a rule of thumb.
A quick overview of what FV (Future Value) means can be found here. A much deeper overview can be found here.
All of the ranked prospects below also appear on The Board, a resource the site offers featuring sortable scouting information for every organization. It has more details (and updated TrackMan data from various sources) than this article and integrates every team’s list so readers can compare prospects across farm systems. It can be found here.
Other Prospects of Note
Grouped by type and listed in order of preference within each category.
Tweener Outfielders
- Tres Gonzalez, OF
- Matt Gorski, OF
- Jase Bowen, OF
- Charles McAdoo, OF
- Enmanuel Terrero, OF
- Solomon Maguire, OF
Most of this group is comprised of power-over-hit types who we don’t think will make enough contact to sustain big league-level offense. Gorski, Bowen, McAdoo and Maguire all fall into this bucket. Even Gonzalez, who didn’t strike out a ton at Georgia Tech, has had elevated strikeout rates in pro ball. In our estimation, he has a better chance of staying in center field than the rest.
Catchers
- Garret Forrester, C
- Abrahan Gutierrez, C
- Carter Bins, C
- Axiel Plaz, C
Forrester was a fixture in the heart of Oregon State’s lineup as a first baseman, but he’s attempting a conversion to catcher in pro ball. This is still in the very early stages and, as you can imagine, Forrester is very rough around the edges as a defender. But he’s the most complete all-around hitter in this cluster of players and easily has the biggest ceiling if it turns out he can do it. Currently on the IL, the 24-year-old Gutierrez was one of the players who was declared a free agent in the fallout of the Braves’ John Coppolella bonus packaging scandal. He signed with the Phillies and, after three seasons, was sent west on I-76 to Pittsburgh for lefty Braeden Ogle. He’s maintained above-average contact performance through Double-A, but his lack of arm strength is an issue. Bins is an athletic power-over-hit catcher from Fresno State whose strikeout issues have become extreme as he’s climbed the minors. Plaz is a squat Venezuelan catcher who has reached full-season ball at age 18. He doesn’t have prototypical size or big tools, but he’s very advanced for his age.
Sleeper Arms
- Khristian Curtis, RHP
- Reinold Navarro, LHP
- Antwone Kelly, RHP
Curtis had a botched TJ at Texas A&M and then transferred to Arizona State, where he showed plus velo. The 6-foot-5 righty has been sitting 94-97 pretty consistently in pro ball, albeit with a few too many walks. We think he could end up being a pretty nasty fastball/cutter reliever if the Pirates shift his role. For now it makes sense to see if he can start, as the previous A&M and current ASU regimes aren’t very good at developing pitchers. Navarro is a pretty physical vert slot lefty in the DSL whose heater has begun to creep into the mid-90s. He has a pretty natural riding fastball/downer curveball combo and is a plus athlete. Kelly is a stocky 20-year-old from Aruba who touches 98. He regularly mixes in an average cutter and changeup.
Slide Guys
- Ryan Harbin, RHP
- Carlson Reed, RHP
- Drake Fellows, RHP
Harbin is a sinker/slider guy who sits 96 mph but really struggles to throw strikes with his fastball. Even though hitters can sit on his slider when he needs to throw a strike, it’s still been a dominant pitch. Reed (2023 fourth rounder, West Virginia) and Fellows (part of the Joe Musgrove deal) also have great sliders but don’t throw nearly as hard as Harbin.
Low-Level Middle Infielders
- Jesus Castillo, SS
- Javier Rivas, SS
- Roinny Aguiar, SS
Castillo, currently on the 60-day IL, is a contact-oriented switch-hitting shortstop who is repeating Low-A. His skill foundation is such that if he ever gets stronger, he could break out. Rivas is a strapping 6-foot-6 infielder with uncommon grace for an athlete his size, but he still lacks feel for his levers and has struggled to make contact. Aguiar is a little switch-hitting middle infielder on the FCL roster who is looking to find his footing on the complex after hitting his way out of the DSL in his second season there.
System Overview
The top portion of the Pirates system is pitching dominant, with the major league starting rotation already reaping the benefits of the organization’s top two overall prospects, Paul Skenes and Jared Jones, and yet more young pitching on the horizon in Bubba Chandler and others. There are also several exciting young arms at the lower levels, like Zander Mueth and David Matoma, who carry significant bullpen risk, but who stand a chance to be elite relievers even if they can’t develop as starters.
Ironically, it’s position player talent that the Pirates need. Henry Davis hasn’t hit the ground running, Endy Rodriguez got injured at a very inopportune time, and Jack Suwinski has regressed. Oneil Cruz appears to be shaking off the rust, but he hasn’t yet fully realized his prospect potential. And while Rowdy Tellez and Nick Gonzales are showing signs of life, the success of both feels tenuous.
The Pirates’ pro scouting staff seems to be targeting upside when they make trades, as exemplified in Keiner Delgado, Estuar Suero and Jhonny Severino. But these guys, as well as the toolsy guys the Pirates signed themselves, are still young and raw, not imminent contributors. Pittsburgh may be a candidate to make a neutral-postured trade based on fit, where the team sends pitching somewhere and gets a bat in return.
The top eight prospects in this system were all drafted by the Bucs’ amateur scouting department. The international department, meanwhile, has produced many of the previously mentioned high-risk/high-reward types who are currently playing at the complexes in the Dominican and Florida. Overall, this is an average, top-heavy system with the best two guys having major success on the big league roster. The rest of the farm is grounded in high-variance, high-risk types.
Loaded with pitching for the foreseeable future, the front office might need to get creative in pursuit of everyday hitters since they seem unlikely to come to Pittsburgh via free agency.
