Pittsburgh Pirates: Top Five Relief Pitching Prospects

Jose Soriano

Jose Soriano was acquired by the Pittsburgh Pirates with the top pick in December’s Rule 5 Draft. Like many of the other names we’ve talked about today he’ll eventually make the transition to the bullpen after undergoing the dreaded Tommy John surgery.

A former Los Angeles Angles’ prospect, the Dominican Republic product has shown talent throughout the minors but has yet to put it all together. Through 238 innings of work, Soriano has put up a 2.76 ERA, 3.75 FIP and 1.30 WHIP. Soriano has shown a good ability of limiting home runs allowing just 10 while putting up healthy ground ball rates. However, walks have been an issue for the right hander, but he has struggled with control with a 13.4% walk rate.

Soriano did have a lower walk rate through his first few professional seasons with a 10.6% in his 109.1 innings of work. He’s also seen his strikeout rate rise. While he had a sub-20% rate from 2016-2018, the hard throwing right hander saw that rise to 26.6% in 2019.

Soriano’s fastball is his best pitch, which is seen as a 55 current fastball but could become a 60 grade pitch in the future. MLB Pipeline even sees it as a 70-grade pitch. He only averages 2250 RPM, but can crank the pitch up into the triple digits. He also has an above average curveball that has a future grade of 55. However, his change up is seen as a below average pitch.

If Soriano can get his control even to an average level, he could be a very effective relief pitcher. His stuff would also play up in the pen if he focuses on his two best pitches, that being a fastball and curveball.