Pittsburgh Pirates: Projecting a Potential 2023 Starting Rotation

Quinn Priester

2023 Opening Day Age: 22

Right handed pitcher Quinn Priester was another top prep arm, and was selected by the Pittsburgh Pirates as the 18th pick in the 2019 draft. Currently, FanGraphs pins him as the team’s 7th best prospect, and the 135th best prospect in baseball. That just outranks the aforementioned Malone.

Priester is only 19, so it’ll be a few years until we see him in the majors, but it won’t be nearly as long until we might see him on some top 100 boards. Last year, Priester only pitched 36.2 professional innings, but was quite effective at Rookie Ball and Low-A. All told, he had a 3.19 ERA, 2.83 FIP and 1.22 WHIP. The most impressive part of Priester’s game was his ability to limit home runs. He only gave up 1 home run, and through 32.2 innings at Rookie Ball, had a 55.4% ground ball rate. In today’s game with everyone going for the home run, having a guy who can suppress those is really valuable.

Priester has three pitches, all of which are above average. His fastball has a 50 current and 60 future grade. In terms of velocity, it’s very similar to Bolton’s sitting in the 92-95 range, and maxing out in the higher-90’s. It just has less spin. Priester’s next best pitch is his curveball with a 55 future grade. His change up also has a 55 future grade.