What Happened to the Draft Pick the Pittsburgh Pirates Received for Bryan Morris?

In June, 2014, the Pittsburgh Pirates traded reliever Bryan Morris to the Miami Marlins in exchange for a pick in that month’s draft. What came of that pick?

On June 1, 2014, the Pittsburgh Pirates traded reliever Bryan Morris to the Miami Marlins. In exchange for Morris, the Pirates received a pick in the MLB Draft that took place later that month. That pick would prove to be the 39th overall pick in the draft.

Morris was a workhorse for the Pirates out of the bullpen in 2013. However, as we discussed on Monday, his peripherals that season were less than stellar. After posting even poorer peripherals to start the 2014 season, he was traded to Miami. So, whatever came of the draft pick the Pittsburgh Pirates received for Morris?

With the 39th overall pick in the 2014 draft the Pittsburgh Pirates selected Connor Joe. The right-handed hitting Joe was selected out of the University of San Diego, and appeared to be a hitter that could advance through the Pirates’ minor league system quickly.

Joe entered pro ball as an advanced hitter. He made his professional debut in 2015 with the West Virginia Power, slashing .245/.366/.303. Despite a lack of power, he walked 14.0% of the time leading to a slightly above league average 102 wRC+.

2016 saw Joe make the jump to full-season High-A Bradenton. With the Mauraders, he slashed .277/.351/.392. While his power improved, it remained below average, his strikeout rate jumped nearly 10% from a 9.5% strikeout rate in 2015 to 19.0% in 2016. Furthermore, his walk rate dropped nearly 4% to 10.2%.

In 2017, Joe made another jump. Moving up to Double-A Altoona, Joe’s strikeout rate dropped back down to 14.2% and his walk rate rose back up to 12.1%. However, he still lacked power slugging .380 with a .140 ISO.

Abruptly, Joe’s tenure as a Pittsburgh Pirates prospect ended on August 5, 2017. On that day, Joe was traded to the Atlanta Braves in exchange for super utility man Sean Rodriguez. This trade brought Rodriguez, who had spent 2015 and 2016 with the Pirates, back to the organization while sending Joe out.

A little over a month late, on September 25, Joe was traded to the Los Angeles Dodgers for international pool money. Joe split the 2018 season between the Double-A and Triple-A levels in the Dodger system. In 2018, he took a step forward as a hitter.

He slugged .554 at Double-A with a .250 ISO and a 169 wRC+. At Triple-A, he slugged .494 to go with a .200 ISO and a 131 wRC+.

His success at Triple-A led to Joe being selected by the Cincinnati Reds in the Rule 5 Draft at the 2018 MLB Winter Meetings. On March 21, 2019, the San Francisco Giants would acquire Joe from the Reds in a trade. This led to Joe making his MLB debut and accumulating 16 plate appearances with the Giants. But after collecting one hit, walking once and striking out five times, Joe was designated for assignment by the Giants.

After being DFA’d, Joe would return to the Dodgers. He would be sent back to the Triple-A level, where he slashed .300/.426/.503 with a 132 wRC+, to go with an outstanding 16.1% walk rate.

If there is a 2020 season, look for Joe to be a member of the Dodgers’ taxi squad that has been discussed. Due to his success at the Triple-A level, he will be in a position to float around and potentially help the Dodgers in 2020.