Pittsburgh Pirates: MLB Pipeline’s Top 100 Prospects for 2017

Finally, MLB Pipeline released their Top 100 Prospects in baseball list.  The Pittsburgh Pirates are well represented on the list once again for 2017.  The Bucs continue to own one of the best minor league systems in baseball.

Every year MLB Pipeline puts out their prospect lists.  So far this year, they have released their top 10 prospects for each position.  The Pittsburgh Pirates have multiple players on these lists including Tyler Glasnow, Josh Bell, Ke’Bryan Hayes, and Austin Meadows.  Also, prospects like Mitch Keller and Kevin Newman received honorable mentions at their respective positions.  Now, they have released their Top 100 prospects in all of baseball.  The main people who put the list together are Jim Callis and Jonathan Mayo.

What does Top 100 Tell Us?

All though the Top 100 prospect list is not the “be-all and end-all,” it is still interesting to see where the Pittsburgh Pirates rank.  This gives fans a good idea of the kind of future talent the organization has.  Players ranking in the top 50 are expected to be all-star caliber, while 50-100 are expected to solid everyday players.  Another thing people like to look at these lists is for trades.  Many fans who are building trades immediately jump to the list to figure out value exchanging hands.  For instance, when the Red Sox acquired Yoan Moncada and Michael Kopech, everyone valued it based on the 2016 top 100 list. So it is good for fans to get an idea of the amount of talent, or value, that their favorite teams might be acquiring.

Top Prospects for 2017

The Pittsburgh Pirates have had multiple players on the list over the last few years. Players such as Jameson Taillon, Gregory Polanco, and currently Josh Bell and Austin Meadows (who once again are on it).  So who do they have this year on the list? List will start from lowest ranked to highest (100-1)

# 48 Mitch Keller, Right-Handed Starting Pitcher

Mitch Keller was not ranked at this time last year on the preseason top 100 list.  However, after posting an impressive first half, Keller was rated number 72 overall on the midseason update.  Keller continued to dominate in the second half of the 2016 season, and earned himself a promotion to High-A for their playoff run.  During the playoffs, there are more scouts and media in attendance than usual.  Keller continued his dominance, and because of that, has really been put on the national prospect map. Keller was upgraded to number 48 overall for this year’s list.

2016

The 2014 second round pick showed just about the best command out of any minor league pitcher last year.  Keller struck out 147 hitters while only walking 24, giving him a 22 percent strikeout to walk percentage.  Keller finished up his dominant season by throwing eight shutout innings for High-A Bradenton during their Championship series.  This was great to see, as Keller continued his success against more advanced hitters, including one of the top teams at the level.  The opposing team was the Yankees High-A affiliate who featured number 47 overall prospect Jorge Mateo and number 3 overall prospect Gleyber Torres.

2017

Keller will start at High-A Bradenton this season.  The Pittsburgh Pirates typically move their high-end prospects quickly through High-A.  So it is very likely Keller will spend most of his season at Double-A this year.  If he continues his dominance, Keller very well could be in a Pittsburgh Pirates uniform by summer of 2018.  Looks like the Bucs are developing another high-end starting pitching prospect, something that has become a trend.

# 27, Josh Bell, First Baseman

Josh Bell ranked number 20 overall on MLB Pipelines midseason 2016 list.  This year he comes in at number 27 overall.  Bell, also has ranked as the number two overall first base prospect the last two seasons.  Bell, who is a career .309 hitter in the minor leagues, made his big league debut in 2016.  He became the team’s regular first baseman down the stretch run of the season, appearing in 45 games. Bell likely fell in the rankings mainly because he will be losing prospect status in just two at-bats. The other reason could be because he did not show much progress defensively last year.

2016

Bell hit over .300 most of the season at Triple-A, and was doing so leading up to his MLB debut.  However, he was sent down due to roster constraints and saw his average slip some to .295.  This is not unusual as most prospects struggle due to discouragement from being demoted, especially when they were performing at the big league level.  Regardless, Bell posted a slash line of .295/.382/.468 with 14 home runs in 114 games.  Then at the MLB level, he posted a respectable slash line of .273/.368/.406 with three homers, including a grand slam against the Cubs.

2017

Bell will be the everyday first baseman for the Pittsburgh Pirates from day one this year.  He likely will be the number four hitter that the Bucs have been without for the better part of the decade.  With that, the switch-hitter will hopefully make strides on the defensive side of things as well. If so, the Bucs very well could finally have a legitimate, everyday, impact first baseman for the near, and long term, future.

# 10, Austin Meadows, Outfielder

Austin Meadows ranked as the number nine overall prospect in baseball last year.  The 2013 number nine overall pick ranked as the number 2 overall outfield prospect by MLB Pipeline at the mid-season update.  This year, Meadows finds himself ranked number 10 on the list, and the number three overall outfield prospect.  Literally, Meadows and National’s outfield prospect Victor Robles flipped spots.  This is mainly because Meadows struggled with health last year.  He missed the beginning of the season with a fractured orbital bone.  Then, after being promoted to Triple-A, he started to have a nagging hamstring issue that caused him to play inconsistently.

2016

In his limited time at Triple-A, Austin Meadows slashed just .214/.297/.460/.757. However, his .335 wOBA and 113 wRC+ were both above league average. Meadows also flashed his great power potential. His .460 slugging percentage shows this, as does the .246 ISO he had at Triple-A last season.  This was after he completely crushed Double-A pitching.  In 45 games at Double-A, Meadows posted a slash line of .311/.365/.611 with 40 extra base hits. Furthermore, combined between Double-A and Triple-A, Austin Meadows hit 12 home runs in 335 plate appearances last season. This puts him on pace for about 25 home runs over a full season worth of plate appearances.  Meadows also posted plus defense at both levels, at least when healthy.  One thing though, is he has a below average arm and a big frame.  He will play a corner spot for the Bucs, as Starling Marte will move to center.

2017

Due to Super Two, Meadows, will not debut until mid-June at the soonest.  Hopefully, he is able to remain healthy and get plenty of experience at Triple-A.  This was one issue with Meadows last season at Triple-A.  He was trying to play through an injury, and was not able to produce at his full capability.  This year, look for him to return to the elite hitter he is at Triple-A.  In fact, Greg Amsinger and the MLB Pipeline guys, said Meadows was the most advanced left-handed hitter in the minors.  With that, his debut will likely depend on what happens to Andrew McCutchen.  If the Bucs decide to deal Cutch during the season, that is when it is most likely to see this star prospect.

# 9, Tyler Glasnow, Right-Handed Pitcher

Last year, Tyler Glasnow ranked as the number eighth overall prospect on MLB Pipeline’s midseason update.  He also was rated as the number three right-handed pitching prospect in baseball, behind, at the time, National’s prospect Lucas Giolito and Cardinal’s prospect Alex Reyes.  This year he jumped ahead of Giolito as the number two right handed pitching prospect, and is ranked as the number nine overall prospect in baseball.  This is after being awarded as the Pitcher of the Year in the minor leagues last season.

2016

Tyler Glasnow made his MLB debut last year, getting inconsistent opportunities to impress.  He was up and down through the end of the season, and also spent time on the disabled list as well.  During his MLB time, he made four starts and appeared in seven total games.  In those seven outings, Tyler Glasnow pitched 23 1/3 innings. In these 23 1/3 innings pitched, he posted a 9.26 K/9, 5.01 BB/9, 0.77 HR/9, and he had a WHIP of 1.50. This led to Glasnow posting a 4.24 ERA, 4.26 FIP, and a 4.57 xFIP.  Glasnow made 22 starts between Double-A and Triple-A last season.  In those starts, Glasnow went 8-3 with a 1.93 earned run average, with 144 strikeouts in 116.2 innings, and limited opposing hitters to a .176 batting average. All in all, he was very dominant in the minor leagues last season, but somewhat mediocre in his MLB debut.

2017

Now some feel Tyler Glasnow may never translate to the big leagues.  With his lack of command, this very well could happen.  However, the overall picture with Glasnow is one to love.  He is big, has a clean delivery, and has the pure stuff you look for in a future ace.  For now, Glasnow needs to continue to learn how to use that pure stuff at the major league level.

Depending on what the Bucs do going forward, Glasnow may or may not start the year in the majors.  If they do not acquire another starter, Glasnow will likely be on the opening day roster.  If the Bucs do acquire a starter, he could start the year in Triple-A, using he isn’t part of a trade.  For now, Glasnow is a Pittsburgh Pirate, and looks to have a ceiling of another big-time arm for the Bucs going forward.

Overview

The Pittsburgh Pirates have five prospects on MLB Pipeline’s Top 100 list.  This is a number that has dwindled over the last few seasons.  Five prospect is an impressive number to have, but this shows the Bucs are starting to graduate these prospects to the big league team.  Also, this number will be even smaller relatively quickly.  As mentioned earlier, Josh Bell will likely lose his prospect status after his first game this year, and definitely will after the first series.  Meanwhile, Tyler Glasnow will likely lose his prospect status by the end of April if he starts the year in the rotation.  With that, number nine overall third base prospect Ke’Bryan could slide into the back end of the top 100 once some of these prospects graduate from the list.

A Top Heavy System

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The list also shows how top heavy the current organization is.  Although they have a top five system in baseball, it is mainly because their top five prospects are all in the top 100, including three in the top 30.  The Pittsburgh Pirates system is likely to regress over the next year or two.  They have competed the last couple of years, and graduated a lot of their top prospects.  The Bucs simply have not had the top picks to acquire immediate top talent.

That will change this year.  As many fans know, Andrew McCutchen is likely to be dealt this calendar year, and he will likely grab at least two top 100 prospects, if not more, depending on how he rebounds this season.  Also, the Bucs have four draft picks in the top 72 picks in the 2017 draft.  The Bucs will also find themselves drafting at number 12 overall, which will allow them to grab a big time prospect.  Add that to the potential high-upside prep arms they took in the 2016 draft, and the Bucs could return to one of the more prominent systems rather quickly.

Next: Top 10 Outfield Prospects

Conclusion

The Pittsburgh Pirates have five total players on this list. This is the fifth most in the league.  Pirates General Manager Neal Huntington has invested in building through the farm system since he took over in September of 2007.  The GM has had a lot of success doing this, and it looks like they have a lot more impact prospects who will be helping this team in the near term future. Spring Training is almost here!