With a couple of Pirates games rained out maybe now is the
time to look at the minors a bit more.
It is starting to get a little worrisome looking at the majors. Any team that consistently is starting at
least 2 players who hit below .200 will not win many games. However, you can also think that those
players are due for warming up with the weather, so it kind of depends on
whether it is half full or half empty.
Let’s start with Indy and AAA. The prospects here are doing fine, if not
great. Gregory Polanco has an OPS of
1.089. He is ready for the majors as he
does not seem to have too much trouble at the corner outfield spot he will be
playing in the majors. As soon as super
two is not a worry, I expect to see Polanco starting in Pittsburgh for the rest
of the year. The other outfielder to
care about is Andrew Lambo. And yes he
has been moved back to the outfield now that Ike Davis is at first. His OPS is just barely under 1. He has not had the power one hopes for, but
he did hit a homer the other night. His
slow start is over and now he is looking like a guy who could be useful in the
big leagues if he is needed.
Pitcher here has also been fine with the exception of Phil
Irwin, who is just coming off surgery so it is understandable. Jeff Locke’s stats aren’t that great and he
has a problem with the long ball, but he has a 16/4 k/BB rate. Sadler and Crumpton look good. Jerod Hughes looks ready to be a spot reliever
too. Duke Welker is walking a few too
many, but he could also be used if needed.
AA and Altoona is almost the opposite. Hitting the prospects are disappointing. Allie is up to .260 and 6 dingers, and so
there is something to be excited about.
He has 12 walks, which might be a bigger reason to get excited. He is always going to be a high strike out
guy. What he needs is to be able to draw
walks and get his average up a bit. A
.260 average with his power might be okay at the big league level, but it is
too low for AA. Sadly Hanson is not
hitting either. I also do not understand
why they keep him at SS. His 8 errors
already this year show a need to move him.
I understand he loses value as a second baseman, but how much longer
does he need to show he can’t play SS. . Mel Rojas is repeating the level, and his
walk rate is improving so perhaps that is good news. If you are looking for a bright side it is
perhaps Drew Maggi. He is playing 3B
now, but is hitting .316. No power, but
he might project as a utility back up man, like a Josh Harrison.
Pitching is a little different. Joely Rodreguiz is not pitching well. Nick Kingham has had a bad outing or two, but
still looks good. 20/12 K/BB rate is not
awful especially noting that he has yet to allow a homer. The big surprise has been Adrian
Sampson. Sampson has a 23/8 rate with a
1.05 WHIP. Sampson is putting his name
into the prospect list.
High A at Bradenton is not exactly loaded with
prospects. Josh Bell is the one everyone
is watching. He had a mini slump this
season, but seems to be out of it now.
He is hitting .287 and leading the team with 2 homers. This production all year without injury would
be a success, although a little more power would make me happier. Osuna’s .280 with one homer and 5 doubles is
not awful, but perhaps a little disappointing.
The other prospects (Crumlich, Wood, Moroff) are a bit disappointing. I have always enjoyed Jonathan Schwind, who
was drafted as a catcher, but is in the outfield now. He is looking fine in this league. He is hitting .324. He is old for the league, but it might be
worth a call up just to see if there is any hope here of something.
Pitching at this level has a bit more success. It is hard to say any of the starters have
been awful. Castro is succeeding. Creasy looks fine, and even John Kuchino is
not horrible. Tyler Glasnow, who is the
big prospect, has just pitched twice.
The first was brilliant, the second a nightmare, so stay tuned for this
one. It is the bullpen that has been
just awful. Ryan Hafner is a bust, and I
had liked him out of the bullpen, but it is not working. Robbie Rowland is not getting it done. They have thrown Walter Grouley, an
infielder, multiple times.
At A ball in West Virginia is where the real fun is. It would be even more fun if everyone was not
injured. The outfield was supposed to
feature Austin Meadows and Barrett Barnes and Harold Rameriz. All three have been injured. Meadows has yet to make an appearance and
Barnes and Rameriz played 4 games a piece.
That was okay because they still had speedy outfielder Candon Myles, and
they moved Danny Collins out there to help because they had new sensation Edwin
Espinal to play first. Well, things have
continued to get worse and now they have activated last year’s breakout
possible, who now is left off most lists of players to watch, Elvis
Escobar. He has only played in two games
and went 0 for 6. Reece McGuire also has
gotten hurt, but before the minor injury he was hitting a scant .222. The team has resisted the urge to put Wyatt
Mathieson back behind the plate allowing him to continue to learn 3B. He is hitting .259 while picking up his new
position. Erich Weiss, who is learning
another infield spot is hitting a cool .333, and JaCoby Jones is over .300 as
well. Although his 7 errors give me the
same sort of pause I have always had with Alen Hanson.
Pitching features mainly Heredia, who went down with a sore
arm and Cody Dickenson, who has been so-so.
This is the level where they are focusing on throwing fastballs for
strikes and learning changes, and not really trying to pitch as they would at
higher levels, so things like hits allowed are bit misleading. Dickenson is not missing very many bats
giving up 31 hits in 24 innings. But he
does have 18 K’s, and hopefully will get stronger as the year goes on.
All in all, it is a hard year to evaluate the Pirates minor
leagues because so many are out hurt. But
right now it looks like the big names are doing okay, but there are no real
surprises to get excited about with the lone exception of Edwin Espinal. Adrian Sampson might be one, but he needs
more time.
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