Pirates think they’ve cracked hitter development, but have to prove it in MLB

To say that the Pittsburgh Pirates saw a number of individual success stories in their minor league pipeline in 2025 would be an understatement.

Konnor Griffin became the best prospect in baseball, practically overnight. Esmerlyn Valdez emerged as a legitimate power threat (a trend that continued when he hit eight homers in his first nine Arizona Fall League games). Termarr Johnson turned a developmental corner with a .326 average and .843 OPS from Aug. 1 through the end of the season. Edward Florentino produced a .948 OPS across two levels.

Callan Moss, acquired from Kansas City at the deadline, led the South Atlantic League in batting (.339), on-base percentage (.422), slugging (.571) and OPS (.933) after the trade. Tony Blanco Jr. broke out with Single-A Bradenton. Nick Cimillo led the Eastern League with 20 homers and 50 extra-base hits.

It goes without saying that these individual performances helped lift Pirates affiliates (396-319) to the third-highest winning percentage (.554) among all MLB organizations in 2025. But until those minor league box scores start reshaping the big-league lineup, the Pirates are just farming hope – not building a contender.

Pirates' minor league success stories mean nothing until they produce major league results

Therein lies the hard truth that Pirates fans know all too well. The organization’s 2025 minor league success is a positive sign, but it’s meaningless in practical terms until it translates into major league wins. The Pirates have been here before – thriving in the minors, selling hope, and then stalling when the lights are brightest.

Player development isn’t judged by standings in Greensboro or Altoona; it’s judged by impact in Pittsburgh. The entire purpose of the system is to feed the big club with talent that moves the needle, and that simply hasn’t happened under Ben Cherington. The Pirates are developing hitters better than before – that’s real. But until that improvement reaches Pittsburgh in the form of reliable, everyday contributors, it’s merely an illusion of progress.

The team’s recent “success stories” – Henry Davis, Jack Suwinski, Liover Peguero and others – all crushed minor league pitching at various points. Yet, the Pirates’ major league offense remains one of baseball’s least productive. Until these next wave of hitters (Griffin, Valdez, etc.) change that reality, their stats are just paper optimism.

Pittsburgh's farm system clearly develops raw talent; the Pirates have drafted well enough to stock their affiliates with hitters who win batting titles and league MVPs. But the issue is finishing the job. Top prospects too often plateau in Triple-A or reach the majors unprepared for MLB-level sequencing, velocity and defensive intensity. Until the player development model is fully integrated – hitting philosophy, swing design, approach reinforcement – the Pirates are just building future trade assets, not foundational hitters.

Cherington’s first four drafts invested more than $25 million in position players, yet only two (Davis and Gonzales) reached the majors by 2025. So when fans see new names like Griffin and Valdez lighting up minor league leaderboards, the response isn’t “Finally!” – it’s “We’ve seen this movie before.”

Prospect hype only matters when the front office shows it can develop, graduate and retain impact hitters – something Pittsburgh hasn’t done consistently since Andrew McCutchen’s first stint with the organization.

In 2025, the Pirates finished near the bottom of MLB again in runs, OPS, and slugging despite all this supposed developmental progress. That disconnect – productive minors, punchless majors – is what invalidates these organizational success stories.

If the system is really producing better hitters, why is Davis regressing? Why did Ke’Bryan Hayes plateau? Why is Oneil Cruz a 20/35 player with a sub-.300 on-base percentage? Until the talent pipeline actually improves the lineup, the minor league winning percentage is trivia, not progress.

It’s easy to tout a 396–319 organizational record, but that success happens in developmental bubbles, not under the scrutiny, pressure and execution standards of MLB competition. Until the Pirates can sustain offensive pressure in a division race at the major league level, it’s just cosmetic success.