Reviewing the Minors: GCL Pirates

McCutchen clocked two today and Hughes made his debut, and the Pirates got the win, which went to Tony Watson for his one out in the top of the 8th.

The minors are done for the year and it is time to look at what we have before we come to the list of top prospects for the year. We will start at the bottom and work up.

The GCL Pirates, a Rookie League team, was actually very good and very interesting this year. They lost a one game playoff, but it is the individual success that was even more exciting than the team success.

Pitchers:
Luis Heredia - of course it starts with him. He did pretty well considering his young age. He had some control issues. He struck out 23 and walked 19 in 30.1 innings. He threw a lot of fastballs, so he had some long at bats because he was not allowed to throw the curve to get people out. This led to a lot of pitch totals being high and him coming out of the game. Nothing to worry about here, you expect a 16 year old to have some command issues. He throws mid-90's, so he has what it takes.

Orlando Castro - Wow. This guy looks like a major league bullpen guy for sure. He started here threw a 22:2 K:BB ration in 25 innings, and was on his way to the next level.

Logan Penvy - He looked okay. He is still a bit of a project and a long shot, but a 23:13 ratio is no reason to write him off. It is not great, but not bad either.

Dovydas Neverauskas - He too is still a big project, but occasionally looked good coming out of the pen. Not enough strike outs, but still has a projectable frame that might fix that problem as he goes forward.

Diomedes Mateo - He actually led the team in strike outs with 33 and only 16 walks. He got a late season look at State College, which is where he ought to end up next year.

Batters:
Rodarrick Jones - Clearly the big excitement on the team. He was drafted in the high rounds, tore up GCL and got promoted. Showed some signs of power.

Jonathan Schwind - He played well both offensively and defensively. His age says he ought to, but he played at a small college, so it is good to see him dominate. He tied for the team lead in doubles (14), and had on OPS over 1.000. He should go to full season ball next year.

Jose Osuna - The .331 average and the other with 14 doubles. He got a late season call up to SC. He looked like a bat with some promise in the OF.

Willy Garcia - He led the team with 5 dingers. The hint of power is enough to be exciting.

Yonathan Barrios - Decent defense at SS and an .815 of OPS.

Alen Hansen - He swipped 24 bags and hit 13 doubles. Not consistent hitting, but the skills are there. Throw in 7 triples and you begin to get an idea about the speed.

There were some disappointments here including Jared Lakind, Joey Schoenfeld Junior Sosa, and Jorge Bishop.

Candon Myles played just a few games and it is not enough to say much.

The number of good hitting prospects was exciting. Osuna, Hansen, and Jones are very exciting players. Most of these guys have plate discipline issue left to solve, but you expect that here. Not as much pitching, but enough to think it was not a bust. Castro in particular. A nice showing by a team that was mostly from the Latin American market.