Pittsburgh Pirates: 3 Prospects Who Need to Rebound in 2022

Pittsburgh Pirates Outfielder, Hudson Head

Speaking of former prospect headliners in trade packages, outfielder Hudson Head is the last prospect on this list.  Head was acquired by the Pittsburgh Pirates from the San Diego Padres.  The Padres gave up Head in a three-team deal that sent right-handed pitcher Joe Musgrove to the Padres.  The Mets were also a part of the deal acquiring pitcher Joey Luchessi and sending catching prospect Endy Rodriguez to the Bucs.

Much like Yean and Malone, Head was described as the most intriguing piece coming from the Padres.  A former first-round talent, Head has the makings of a 5-Tool outfielder.  On top of that, he is a left-handed batter, making him very projectable for PNC Park.

Head has received high marks for his pure athleticism and his raw power.  FanGraphs gives him plus raw power at 55 and 60 speed.  The belief is that he has a Future Value of 60 for his hit tool, which projects him to be a pretty food all-around hitter.

So why does Head need to bounce back in 2022?  Well, Head much like the other two prospects mentioned, has gotten off to a slow start with his new Organization.  Head played the full season at Low-A Bradenton but saw a significant change in his offensive numbers from 2019.

Of course, Head also did not play in 2020 so that could have impacted his play in 2021.  Head saw his strikeout rate jump from a respectable 20% to over 30%.  He also saw his batting average and OPS drop over 50 points each compared to 2019.  Head only batted .212 this year and his slugging dipped below .400.  The one positive is that Head’s walk rate was an impressive 16.7%.  Hopefully, this was a product of him having so much time away from game action and Head can find some consistency in 2022.