Pittsburgh Pirates: Three Prospects Pushing for Ratings Bump

The Pittsburgh Pirates have a loaded farm system, and although they already have plenty of other top 100 prospects, these three should reach that status soon.

Going into the 2022 season, the Pittsburgh Pirates had multiple consensus top 100 prospects. That included the likes of Henry Davis, Roansy Contreras, Oneil Cruz, Nick Gonzales, Liover Peguero, and Quinn Priester. Contreras already graduated from prospect status, and Cruz will likely follow very soon, but many more could join the prospects who are still in the top 100.

The Pirate system is one of the best in the sport, with FanGraphs recently ranking them as the 2nd best, right behind the Tampa Bay Rays. With many more prospects up and coming, the Pirates’ could start seeing more guys join top 100 lists around the web. Young players are performing well and are showing they deserve to be top 100 prospects.

Catcher/Utility Endy Rodriguez

Endy Rodriguez already saw his prospect stock rise significantly by the end of the 2021 campaign. He was among the top three Pirates minor leaguers in some of the most important offensive stats such as OPS, wOBA, and wRC+. The switch-hitting backstop was promoted to High-A Greensboro but could soon be looking at a promotion to Double-A Altoona based on what he has done lately.

Although Rodriguez had a rough April, he did a complete 180 and turned things around. Since May 1st, he has hit .288/.387/.511 with a .401 wOBA and 143 wRC+. A guy praised for his ability to prevent strikeouts and draw walks, Rodriguez has a strong 12% walk rate and solid 20.3% strikeout rate. Rodriguez is also hitting for some power, posting a .223 isolated slugging percentage. Even with his weak April, he still has a quality .829 OPS, .372 wOBA, and 125 wRC+ on the season.

Rodriguez plays multiple positions as well. A catcher by trade when the Pirates acquired him in the three-team swap with the New York Mets, Rodriguez saw plenty of time in left field and first base before coming to the Bucs. He still sees a decent amount of time at both positions but has played 88 innings at second base this year. Overall, he’s considered a quality defender behind the plate with an arm that can stick there as well.

Rodriguez is 22-years-old and has been on fire since May. He deserves the promotion to Double-A and the distinction of being a top-100 prospect. The only area he is weak in is speed and baserunning ability, but that’s pretty common for a catching prospect. All Rodriguez does is hit, and he’s become a notable prospect for it.