Pittsburgh Pirates Draft: Three College Pitchers to Watch

LHP Bryce Hubbart

Florida State has two very good lefties in their rotation. Along with Parker Messick, Florida State will also have lefty Bryce Hubbart. Hubbart is another pitcher that could end up in the second round. Although he has a higher ceiling than Messick, he brings a bit more risk to the table.

Hubbart didn’t have the best of numbers in 2021. In 71 innings, the southpaw did have a significant 30.7% K-rate and 1.169 WHIP, but a so-so 3.80 ERA, 1.1 HR/9, and 9.5% walk rate. Although his 2021 numbers at college didn’t look great, he showed significant improvement at the Cape Cod League. There, he decreased his walk rate to 6.8%, upped his K-rate to 38.5%, and allowed just a single long ball in 31 innings of work. You couldn’t have asked for a better 2022 debut: 5 scoreless innings, 13 K’s, no walks, two hits. He was flat-out dominating batters in his first showing of the college season.

Hubbart throws in the low-90’s, but can crank it up to the upper-90’s when he needs to. Even when he’s working in the 90-93 MPH range, he has a high-quality pitch because of its high-spin rate. His curveball is another plus offering with sharp break. According to Pipeline, the southpaw added a slider that he has improved to make it a reliable third offering. Although it’s his least used pitch, his change-up is an offering he has a feel for and is usable for Hubbart.

The main issue everyone had with Hubbart was his command. But he showed leaps and bounds of improvement at the Cape Cod League. Now, the question is if he can keep showing that throughout this college season.