Pittsburgh Pirates: Projecting the Team’s First Four Picks

Pick Number 18: Quinn Priester, Right-Handed Starting Pitcher

All signs are pointing to the Pittsburgh Pirates taking Priester with their first overall pick.  Both Baseball America and MLB Pipeline had Priester mocked to the Bucs last week.  For them, both to think that, it must mean that there is talk about the Bucs and Priester.  However, this prospect would make sense for the Bucs.

Priester fits the Pittsburgh Pirates prototypical profile for a right-handed pitcher.  He stands at 6’3” and weighs 200 pounds.  The Illinois high school righty has a four pitch mix that includes a four-seam fastball, and two-seam fastball, a curveball, and a changeup.  Priester’s best pitch is his two-seam fastball, which is most likely why the Bucs have so much interest in him.  He throws it around 92-94 miles per hour, but his four-seam reaches up to 97 already.  Priester has a commitment to TCU.

Pick Number 37: Brady McConnell, Shortstop

If there has been one other thing that has been made clear, it’s that the Pittsburgh Pirates want to get a shortstop prospect in this draft.  Before Priester started getting mocked to the Bucs at number 18, it was a number of different shortstops.

With the team taking a high school pitcher who likely will receive a large signing bonus, the team could look to go the college route to try to save some money on their draft pool.  Also, the team was given this pick as compensation for failing to sign Gunnar Hoglund last year.  So if the team fails to sign the number 37 pick this year then they will lose it for good.

Taking a college shortstop could make the most sense for the Bucs at number 37.  McConnell is a very interesting player.  First and foremost, he plays at the University of Florida, a school that is known for developing solid major league prospects.  Also, he has the frame that is starting to become more common in today’s MLB.  The Gator shortstop stands at 6’3” and weighs 195 pounds.  He has a projectable bat and a chance to stick at shortstop. The right-handed hitter is hitting .344 with 15 home runs across 55 games this season.