Pittsburgh Pirates: Five Former Late Round Draft Picks to Watch

Pitcher Trey McGough

Another left-handed pitcher, Trey McGough, a Johnstown, PA, native, could be in the Majors as soon as early next season. McGough was a 24th round pick. He might not be a highly touted pitching prospect like Quinn Priester or Roansy Contreras, but to get even a back-of-the-rotation arm or solid swingman from a 24th round selection is a win.

Last season McGough spent most of his season at Double-A Altoona. He pitched very solid as well. In 95 innings, the southpaw had a 3.41 ERA, 3.55 FIP, and 1.15 WHIP. He wasn’t a big strikeout pitcher, getting only 19.7% of batters to go down on strike three. But he limited walks at a 5.4% rate. Plus he surrendered just 7 home runs for a 0.66 HR/9.

McGough wasn’t just good at limiting walks, but he was also good at keeping the ball on the ground. The southpaw got batters to hit a ground ball 46.8% of the time while having a phenomenal 14.2% line drive rate. That helped to keep the ball in the yard.

McGough mainly worked as a starting pitcher this year but worked solely as a reliever in 2019. As a reliever, he struck out 29.5% of batters faced, so maybe he can get his K% back into the 20-22% range now that he’s gotten used to starting full time. As you could probably tell, Trey isn’t a hard thrower. He only averages out in the low-90’s with his fastball. He also throws a curveball and slider.

McGough will probably start 2022 at Triple-A Indianapolis. His solid work at Double-A earned the promotion and it will also be his age-24 season. He could be called up early in the year if the team doesn’t want to promote another top prospect too early, or if injuries occur. He could also give the team a solid left-handed pitcher right now. Outside of Jose Quintana, the only LHPs currently on the 40-man roster are Howard, Banda, and Dillon Peters. It’s far from a guarantee that any of the three survive the offseason on the 40-man.