4 former Pirates first-round pitchers who missed expectations in Pittsburgh

The Pittsburgh Pirates' greatest strength right now, without a doubt, is their pitching. Led by 2024 NL Rookie of the Year and Cy Young Award finalist Paul Skenes, their rotation is the best it’s been in recent memory. Jared Jones also had an impressive rookie season, and former All-Star Mitch Keller built upon another solid year. Skenes, Jones and Keller were all drafted and developed by the Pirates organization. Other notable prospects, such as Bubba Chandler and Thomas Harrington, hope to join them sooner rather than later.

This success wasn’t always the norm, to say the least. In the past two decades, there have been a number of highly touted arms that never worked out in Pittsburgh or thrived with other franchises. Here are four former Pirates first-round draft picks that failed to live up to expectations. 

4 Pirates first-round draft pick pitchers who missed expectations

Sean Burnett

Sean Burnett, the Pirates' first-round selection in 2000 (19th overall), had a long career primarily as a relief pitcher, but didn’t last long in Pittsburgh. He had a great start to his career, and was named the team’s Minor League Pitcher of the Year in ‘01 and ‘02. Burnett made his debut for the Pirates on May 30, 2004 against the Cubs, and delivered five innings of one-run ball in a no-decision. He made 12 more starts that season, to the tune of a 5.02 ERA in 71.2 innings pitched. His performance in Triple-A dipped that year, too, his numbers being closer to his time in Pittsburgh than his previous greatness in the minors. Unfortunately, like so many other pitchers, he missed time due to injury and, later, surgeries. For Burnett, this meant losing the entire 2005 season. When he returned to Indianapolis, the results were about the same; not terrible, but not incredible, either. He remained in Triple-A the next two years, and wouldn’t pitch for the Pirates again until 2008, where he worked exclusively as a reliever, to mixed results. 

He improved in 2009, but would later be traded to the Washington Nationals, alongside Nyjer Morgan, in exchange for Joel Hanrahan and Lastings Milledge. Burnett remained in the nation’s capital for the next three seasons and thrived in his new role. His best year as a National came in 2010. In 63 innings pitched in relief, Burnett had an elite 2.14 ERA and 1.143 WHIP, good for 2.0 bWAR. He later signed as a free agent with the Angels, where he was used sparingly across two seasons, mainly due to injury. Burnett returned to Washington for a brief stint in 2016, then toiled through the minors for several different teams over the next few years before announcing his retirement in 2019.

For his career, he put up a respectable 3.52 ERA and 5.9 WAR. Had they kept him, it’s unlikely a player like Burnett would have made a huge impact out of the Pirates bullpen, but his lost potential as a starting pitcher could have helped tremendously had he remained healthy and continued to dominate like he did in Hickory, Lynchburg and Altoona.

Bryan Bullington

Before there was Skenes and Gerrit Cole, there was Bryan Bullington, the first overall selection of the 2002 MLB Draft. Bullington, who had an incredible career at Ball State, seemed like a sure thing at the time. After his dominant junior season, with a record of 10-2 and ERA of 2.11, Bullington won the MAC Pitcher of the Year award for a second time and was a finalist for the Dicker Howser Trophy. In the 2001 draft, the Pirates had drafted his conference rival, John Van Benschoten, eighth overall out of Kent State. Bullington began his professional career in Single-A the following season and found success between Hickory and Lynchburg. In 2004, he made his way to Altoona and put up respectable numbers. He pitched a scoreless inning in that year’s All-Star Futures Game, and remained one of the Pirates' top prospects. Bullington continued his efforts in Indianapolis in ‘05, pitching to a 3.28 ERA, with nine wins in 104.1 innings pitched, before getting the call to the majors that September. He only made five appearances, starting three games, and struggled in this limited showing. Shortly thereafter, Bullington underwent surgery to repair the labrum in his throwing shoulder, and went on to miss the entire 2006 season.

The rest of Bullington’s Pirates tenure would be marked by inconsistency. While at times he had shown flashes in Triple-A, he never put it together at the major league level, and was eventually designated for assignment before the 2008 All-Star Break. He was later claimed by Cleveland and joined their Triple-A affiliate in Buffalo, eventually making his way back to the majors. Bullington was eventually DFA’d again, then claimed by the Blue Jays in the offseason, where he worked more as a reliever between the majors and minors.

He signed with Kansas City for 2010, primarily as a starter, and had his best season in years for Triple-A Omaha, with a 2.82 ERA and 1.118 WHIP in 102 innings pitched. Bullington would move on to Japan the following season where he realized his potential. He pitched four seasons for the Hiroshima Toyo Carp, was named an All-Star in 2011, and added one year for the Orix Buffalos. In total, Bryan Bullington went 45-45 with a 3.25 ERA and 521 strikeouts as a starter in the NPB. If not for the injuries, who knows how good he could have been for the Pirates?

Vic Black

Vic Black was the last selection of the supplemental first round in the 2009 draft, so he counts for this list. Of the four names included, he is the least prominent. Black was taken out of Dallas Baptist University, a small school now that’s now a baseball-only affiliate of Conference USA. The Pirates selected Tony Sánchez, a catcher out of Vanderbilt, fourth overall in that same draft. Sánchez, a more well-known bust, likely overshadowed Black in the minds of Pirates fans.

Black pitched well in his brief showing that year, which included seven starts for State College, but labored over the next few minor-league seasons. His breakout came in 2012 for the Altoona Curve. By then a full-time reliever, Black had a phenomenal 1.65 ERA in 60 innings pitched, notching 13 saves. You’ll notice that many former top pitching prospects successfully make the transition to the bullpen. He moved up to Indianapolis in ‘13, further developing his skills, and was named to theTriple-A All-Star Game for the International League team with teammates Josh Harrison, Kris Johnson and Sánchez.

Black later made his debut for the Pirates on July 25 against the Washington Nationals, closing out the eighth inning in an eventual 9-7 Pirates loss. He only made two more appearances for the Bucs before getting dealt to the Mets as the player to be named later in the Marlon Byrd acquisition. Byrd is best remembered for his performance in that year’s Wild Card Game. Black made 15 appearances out of the bullpen for the Mets in 2013. He had a solid 3.46 ERA in 13 innings. He became a regular for them the following season, improving in nearly every measurable statistic, though he missed some time due to a herniated disk in his neck. He spent all of 2015 rehabbing in the minors and was later released.

Black later spent time in the Giants organization in 2017, then pitched for the New Jersey Jackals of the former independent Canadian-American League. Most likely don’t know his connection to the 2013 squad and the infamous “Cueto” game. Had Byrd not been on the team and never hit his solo shot in the second inning, would the Pirates still have beaten the Reds that night? While expectations for someone like Black were relatively low compared to others like Bullington, it would have been interesting to see how his career turned out had he remained in Pittsburgh.