The Pittsburgh Pirates have several key prospects participating in the 2023 Arizona Fall League. How are they doing so far?
Every year the Pittsburgh Pirates send a large group of prospects to participate in the annual Arizona Fall League. The Fall League started back in 1992 and is known for hosting some of the Baseball’ top prospects and potentially close to Major League Ready prospects.
This year the Pittsburgh Pirates have quite a few intriguing names playing out west. The group of hitters is led by 2021 first-overall pick Henry Davis. Also in the lineup is 2020 first-round pick, Nick Gonzales. Other hitters included are catcher Blake Sabol and first baseman, Jacob Gonzales.
Gonzales has been the hottest hitter of the bunch. So far he has played in 4 games and is hitting .429 with an OPS approaching 1.200. This is good for second on the team in batting average and first in OPS. Davis is only batting .250 but has been walked 3 times and has been hit-by-pitch already once. The other two hitters have yet to make an appearance.
The Pittsburgh Pirates sent 4 pitchers out west this year. The group is led by the Pittsburgh Pirates top pitching prospect Quinn Priester. Priester is carrying his 2022 season success into the Fall League. So far he has made two starts pitching 8 total innings. He has an ERA of 4.50 but has also struck out 8 hitters.
Left-handed pitching prospect Omar Cruz has also found his way onto the mound in Arizona. He has thrown just 3.2 innings but owns a 2.45 ERA. The other two relief prospects have not faired as well. Tahnaj Thomas, who had a resurgence as a prospect once he moved to the bullpen, has made two appearances and owns an ERA of 12. Colin Selby, who also had a nice year, has an ERA of 9 through his first two appearances.
Obviously, this is a small sample size for all the players involved. The big thing is that the Bucs top prospects are off to strong starts in the ultra-competitive league. Hopefully, Priester, Davis, and Gonzalez build on their strong starts to the 2022 Arizona Fall League.