With the addition of Glasnow as just the latest starting pitching prospect to make his major league debut this season, how will the Pittsburgh Pirates rotation stack up against history?
After news broke yesterday from Buster Olney that the Pittsburgh Pirates would be sending top prospect (eight overall in baseball) Tyler Glasnow to the mound today, the Pirates seem to be testing the waters with what projects to be a dream rotation, as early as this season.
Already this season, the Pirates have promoted five starters from the Indianapolis Indians to make their major league debuts. Wilfredo Boscan and Steven Brault have already returned after very brief stints with the big league club. Jameson Taillon has been placed on the disabled list for shoulder fatigue, and Chad Kuhl has been effective despite not performing up to his potential yet. As for Glasnow, the projected future ace finally gets his chance after being passed over by pitchers further along in their development, much to the chagrin of the fan base.
However, this group of young starting pitching prospects is the first wave in what could be a young and dominant rotation for the greater part of a decade, although we don’t have to wait that long to start making comparisons to just how historic this young group could be.
According to Pirates’ broadcaster Joe Block via the Elias Sports Bureau, the four major league debuts by starting pitchers is the most for the organization in a single season since 1903.
Tyler Glasnow 4th #Pirates starter to make #MLB debut in 2016, most Bucco starting pitcher MLB debuts since 1903
(via @EliasSports)
— Joe Block (@joe_block) July 7, 2016
En route to winning the National League pennant that year, before losing to the Boston Americans in the World Series, eight pitchers made their major league debuts for the Pirates. Not a single one was playing for the Pirates six years later when the Pirates beat the Tigers in game seven of the 1909 World Series. The Pirates will certainly be hoping to keep this group together long enough to bring home another banner to fly over the shores of the Allegheny, although the dream rotation isn’t always successful.
In 1986 Greg Maddux made his debut for the Cubs. A year later Tom Glavine arrived with the Braves, and the year after that, John Smoltz joined Glavine. Not a single one posted an ERA under 5.00 their rookie year.
After the Braves lost in the World Series in back-to-back seasons, signing Maddux, the previous season’s Cy Young award winner, to a five year, $28 million contract was supposed to be the difference, but it wasn’t right away. They lost in the NLCS in 1993. Although with Dwight Gooden and Sid Fernandez, the rotation went down in history as one of the best of all-time. The trio brought three National League pennants back to Atlanta and just a lone title.
The Mets were expected to have one of the best rotations as well, but injuries have derailed the consistency of their dream rotation. In 2015, the Mets finally had Zack Wheeler, Noah Syndergaard, Matt Harvey, Steven Matz, and Jacob deGrom all together on the same team. Their rotation put together a near-historic season, but they lost in five games to the Royals in last year’s World Series.
The Mets rotation will be together for at least a minimum of another two seasons, but their window could fade quickly in the highly-competitive National League if they are unable to capture that elusive title before they have to pick and choose which pitchers they try to retain.
For the Pirates, the picture looks a bit more promising. Gerrit Cole won’t hit free agency until 2020. Francisco Liriano could actually be in an addition by subtraction scenario as soon as later this season, but he is unlikely to be with the team on Opening Day of 2018. Next season, that pair could form around a trio of spots filled by Taillon, Kuhl, Brault, and Glasnow.
Beyond them, the Pirates still have Nick Kingham, Trevor Williams, and Wilfredo Boscan, not to mention Justin Masterson trying to discover the secret to bouncing back. Moving past the Triple-A level, the Pirates still have Brandon Waddell, Tyler Eppler, Clay Holmes, Mitch Keller, Logan Sendelbach and numerous others, which you can read about in our weekly minor league reports, expected to make an impact in a major league rotation or bullpen, whether with the Pirates or somewhere else within the next few years.
The Pirates not only have a dream rotation, but they will have solid pieces to fill in as necessary in the event of an injury or use as trade bait for years to come. Given that all eight regular starters are under team control for at least the next two years and several highly-regarded prospects poised to be ready to replace them, the Pirates could finally be starting to look at a completed puzzle to capturing that elusive sixth title.
Featured Image Credit – Flickr Creative Commons
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