Pittsburgh Pirates Minor League Minute – October 5th

In this edition of the Pittsburgh Pirates Minor League Minute, we will give you a look at a few postseason awards that were handed out since the end of the Minor League seasons.

First, the Pittsburgh Pirates announced Max Moroff as the Minor League Player of the Year and Yeudy Garcia as the Minor League Pitcher of the Year.

Max Moroff may come as a surprise for many of you. I must say, I didn’t expect it. However, he has performed well for the Altoona Curve this season. Max led the team in Games Played with 136, At Bats with 523, Runs with 79, Hits with 153, Total Bases with 214, Doubles with 28 and Walks with 70. He was tied with Josh Bell for the team lead in triples with six. His slash line from this season was .293/.374/.409 and an OPS of .783. The rest of his numbers were 7 home runs, 51 RBIs, 70 Walks, 111 Strikeouts, and 17 Stolen Bases.

Yeudy Garcia was also somewhat of a surprise. Our system seems to be loaded with pitching talent at all levels. Quite honestly, I was expecting someone from the Indianapolis Indians or Altoona Curve to take the award, not the West Virginia Power. However, Yeudy did have an impressive season. Garcia started twenty-one games this season and saw action in thirty games. He finished with a 12-5 record and a 2.10 ERA. He had 124.1 Innings Pitched, gave up ninety-two hits, thirty-six runs, four home runs and walked forty-one. He struck out 112 batters and ended the season with a 1.07 WHIP. Opponents only hit for a .204 batting average against Yeudy this season.

More from Pirates Prospects

Secondly, Baseball America named their top twenty prospects for several of the minor league divisions.

The Pirates were represented in the Eastern League Top Twenty by RHP Tyler Glasnow and 1B Josh Bell.  Glasnow placed fourth and Bell placed twentieth on the top twenty by Baseball America.

The Pirates were represented in the Florida State League Top Twenty by OF Austin Meadows, C Reese McGuire and OF Harold Ramirez. Meadows placed third, McGuire placed eleventh and Ramirez placed twelfth on the top twenty by Baseball America. JaCoby Jones, whom the Pirates traded for Joakim Soria, was also listed as the number twenty prospect.

The Pirates were represented in the South Atlantic League Top Twenty by RHP Yeudy Garcia and SS Cole Tucker. Yeudy Garcia placed ninth and Cole Tucker placed fifteenth on the top twenty by Baseball America.

The Pirates were represented in the New York-Penn League Top Twenty by Shortstop Kevin Newman. Kevin Newman placed seventh on the top twenty by Baseball America. Newman was drafted in the first round by the Pirates this year. He started the season with the West Virginia Black Bears and was promoted to the West Virginia Power in early August.

The Pirates were represented in the Appalachian League Top Twenty by First Baseman/Designated Hitter Carlos Munoz. Carlos Munoz placed twentieth on the top twenty by Baseball America. Carlos was named the Appalachian League Player of the Year as well. He played the majority of the season with the Bristol Pirates. Munoz was promoted to the West Virginia Black Bears in late August and was a big part of the Black Bears lineup during the playoffs.

The Pirates were represented in the Gulf Coast League Top Twenty by Third Baseman Ke’Bryan Hayes. Ke’Bryan Hayes placed ninth on the top twenty by Baseball America. Hayes played the majority of the season with the GCL Pirates. Hayes was promoted to the West Virginia Black Bears in late August and was the starting Third Baseman for the Black Bears championship run.

The Pirates were represented by a player in each league. Editor Jason Rollison and Assistant Editor Justin Frazee each had a chance to see each of these players play for the New York-Penn League Champion West Virginia Black Bears at one point of the season. Here is an early interview with Kevin Newman. Here is a prospect profile post on Ke’Bryan Hayes.

This has been the Minor League Minute for October 5th. Keep watching for these posts throughout the offseason for the Minor League affiliates.

Next: Pirates defeat Reds 4-0, secure home Wild Card Game

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