The Pittsburgh Pirates are in good position to capitalize early in a shallow first-year player draft in 2017 after a disappointing outcome to the 2016 season.
Ghosts of Past, Present, and Future:
In 2016, the MLB first-year player draft teams across the league restocked in one of the deepest drafts in recent memory. Local high school standout, Alex Kirilloff was drafted in the first round by the Minnesota Twins and got off to a strong start in his professional debut, while the Pirates took Will Craig who is still relatively removed from his potential.
Looking to the future, the Pirates, at least on paper, are poised to compete for years to come, but the curse of any small-market team is the need to continually acquire and develop young, affordable talent under control for at least a portion of their prime. One of the keys to any draft is evaluating what the team already has before calculating what the team still needs.
Fans have been treated to an uncharacteristic surge in young talent making their major league debuts, but in what state has the farm system been left?
The Model for All Future Draft Picks:
Just like in years past, the upper levels of the organization are dominated by pitching depth. Aside from Austin Meadows, who has gotten off to an abysmal start, is the only real offensive weapon remaining after an injury-plagued April forced the Pirates to utilize a bench consisting of much of the Indianapolis Indians’ starting lineup.
Pitching Depth and the Infield Behind Them:
While lacking in bullpen depth, the Pirates have the ever so important starting pitching depth lurking in the wings. Steven Brault and Drew Hutchison are the obvious choices in the event reinforcements are needed, yet good starts from Clay Holmes and Tyler Eppler are certainly encouraging for depth later in the season and years to come. Altoona has its own complement with Alex McRae, J.T. Brubaker, Austin Coley, and Tanner Anderson, who has flown under the radar this season.
Altoona is the first, and most notable, stop on the tour of the organization with position player talent in spades. Around the horn, the Curve have one of the best infields in the Eastern League with Wyatt Mathisen, Kevin Kramer, Kevin Newman, Edwin Espinal, and Connor Joe all contributing early. Kevin Kramer stands out most notably as he has reached base safely in all 22 games to start the season.
Transition Can be a Pain:
The Bradenton Marauders have a considerable number of high-upside prospects who previously starred or muddled with the West Virginia Power and/or Black Bears. Dario Agrazal and Mitch Keller continued to impress and rack up innings. Logan Sendelbach has made a relatively smooth early transition to the bullpen. Will Craig’s own transition across the diamond has dramatically cut back on his errors, a move likely inspired by the fall of Pedro Alvarez.
The Return to Bradenton:
[perfectpullquote align=”left” cite=”” link=”” color=”” class=”” size=””]Stephen Alemais could rival Kevin Newman as the heir apparent to Jordy Mercer at short some day in Pittsburgh.[/perfectpullquote]Knocking on the door behind them, Trae Arbet and Carlos Munoz, after all this time, are finally showing some promise as their contractual obligations to the Pirates’ organization near their ends. Cam Vieaux, Luis Escobar, and James Marvel are the main starting pitching prospects. The Power relievers have been exactly that as they regularly shut down opposing batters. Most importantly, Stephen Alemais could rival Kevin Newman as the heir apparent to Jordy Mercer at short some day in Pittsburgh, provided he can continue to exceed Newman’s defensive ability as he rises through the ranks and prove adept at the plate.
The Outlook:
The greatest outfield in baseball. That’s what the combination of Starling Marte, Andrew McCutchen, and Gregory Polanco were touted as entering the 2015 season. Due to suspension, injuries, and deficiencies, the dream team has yet to manifest itself, and now, the window is running out. Tito Polo was dealt for Ivan Nova. Harold Ramirez was dealt to get rid of Francisco Liriano. Austin Meadows will be mired in the minor leagues until an opening appears or he figures out his approach offensively at some point this season.
[perfectpullquote align=”right” cite=”” link=”” color=”” class=”” size=””]The outfield and backstop need to be the priorities entering the 2017 MLB draft.[/perfectpullquote]Immediately, the catcher situation in Pittsburgh has been written with pen to paper, if not chisel to stone. It took a foot injury to Francisco Cervelli to bring even the highly-touted Elias Diaz into the spotlight. Still, the injury serves as a reminder as to the frailty of the human body and the longevity of catchers in this business. Reports of life after Buster Posey behind the plate in the Giants’ organization. John Jaso, with his outfield defense rivaling his hair for one of the worst things to happen in the team’s resurgence, forced to find ways to continue playing the game he loves. The stories abound of how good catching, like good pitching can never be in short supply.
The Pirates will still need to continue to draft, sign, and develop pitchers and infielders, but the outfield and backstop need to be the priorities entering the 2017 MLB draft. Catchers and outfielders are exactly the type of players in short supply in a shallow draft filled with prep pitchers who project more as projects than as prospects. With six weeks to go until the draft, prospect rankings are likely to shift as teams begin the final push to analyze tools and prepare to determine the future of their franchises. For the Pirates, the stakes to make wise selections in the early rounds will be high; of course, they always have been.
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