Pittsburgh Pirates 6-10 Prospects: Final Season Stat Lines

Two days ago we took a look at the Pittsburgh Pirates top 5 minor league prospects season stat lines.  Now, let’s take a look at prospects 6-10.

6. Ke’Bryan Hayes

Like Will Craig, Hayes played the full 2017 season at High-A Bradenton.  The 20-year-old hit for a slash line of .278/.345/.363.  Obviously, based on his slugging percentage, Hayes did not produce a ton of extra base hits, only hitting two home runs and 16 doubles.  Although, what he lacked in power, he made up for in speed by collecting seven triples and swiping 27 bases in 32 attempts.  The third baseman also showed plus plate discipline by only striking out 76 times and walking 41 times.

7. Nick Kingham

The former top 100 prospect has put himself back in the conversation as a future member of the Pittsburgh Pirates rotation after a strong 2017 season in Triple-A Indianapolis.  Kingham had a record of 9-6 in his 20 appearances this season, and he compiled 113.1 innings for the Indians.  His ERA was not overly impressive, sitting at 4.13, but it was inflated due to giving up 12 runs over his final two starts.  Before those two outings, Kingham had a very dominant July and August, only giving up a total of six runs in six starts. Furthermore, he only struck out 93 batters in the 113.1 inning,  which is a little lower than one would hope, but he also only yielded 29 free passes.

8. Cole Tucker

Cole Tucker played at High-A and Double-A this past season.  At High-A Tucker started to show why the Pittsburgh Pirates invested a first round pick into him.  He had a batting line of .285/.364/.426.  Tucker showed a little more power than Hayes, hitting 15 doubles, six triples and four homers in just 68 games.  However, like Hayes, Tucker brought a lot of speed to the Marauders.  The shortstop swiped 36 bags and led the Florida State League at the time of his promotion.

Tucker transitioned to Double-A for the final 42 games of his season.  He had a very slow start, but he ended up with a slash line of .257/.349/.377.  He had two home runs, five triples, and four doubles.  In addition to his 36 steals at High-A, he also swiped another 11 bags for the Curve.  The biggest concern for Tucker in 2017 was that he did strike out 70 times in his 68 High-A games.  However, he did do a better job at Double-A by only striking out 31 times.

9. Steven Brault

The Triple-A left-handed pitcher had one of the most impressive minor league seasons out of any of the Pittsburgh Pirates prospects.  For Indianapolis, he hurled 120.2 innings in 21 games.  He posted an ERA of 1.94 while maintaining a record of 10-5.  Brault struck out 109 batters and walked 44.  These strong stats allowed for Brault to get a call to the major leagues twice this year.  He has not been able to translate his success thus far.

Next: Prospects 1-5

10. Taylor Hearn

The second piece of the Mark Melancon trade, Hearn pitched exclusively for High-A Bradenton this year.  The big left hander had a record of 4-6 with a 4.12 ERA in 18 games.  While Hearn’s ERA looks a little high, he did have a lot of success where he is expected to, the strikeout department.  The 23-year-old punched out 106 batters in 87.1 innings, and kept his walk rate relatively under control with 37 free passes.  Unfortunately, Hearn’s season was cut short by a DL trip in early July.  He is now rehabbing in the GCL and could make it back for the minor league playoffs.

*All numbers are courtesy of Baseball Reference