Pittsburgh Pirates: Prospects That Could Be On The Opening Day Roster

The Pittsburgh Pirates have a handful of prospects who should reach the majors in 2024, including these three who could push for an Opening Day roster spot

The Pittsburgh Pirates have a handful of prospects who could earn an extended look in the Major Leagues next season. Some could get promoted to the big leagues as early as May. But some could head North with the team after Spring Training and start their 2024 campaign in the Major Leagues.

Now, I don't expect any of the Pirates' big-time top prospects to head to Pittsburgh from Bradenton once Spring Training ends. It would be fun if Paul Skenes and Jared Jones both started the year in the Pirates' starting rotation, but there are plenty of other reasons besides service time that the Pirates will keep them down, at least for the first month of the year. But some could open the year on the team's Opening Day roster.

Kyle Nicolas

Kyle Nicolas was acquired from the Miami Marlins in the Jacob Stallings trade. The hard-throwing righty was moved to the bullpen in the second half of the 2023 season. Although it took him a while for him to get used to his new role, he proved to be a talented reliever and one that could slot into the bullpen as soon as next season.

Now, Nicolas' season did not pitch well for a good portion of the season. His first 83.1 innings yielded a 5.92 ERA, 1.65 WHIP, and 5.15 FIP. While he struck out 26.5% of the batters he faced, he also walked a ton of batters with an 11.8% walk rate and gave up a handful of home runs, working to a 1.61 HR/9. But he caught on a hot streak after these struggles.

Nicolas' final 15 innings of the season saw him work to a 1.20 ERA, 2.64 WHIP, and 0.80 WHIP. His strikeout rate rose significantly to 41.4%, while his HR/9 also fell off a cliff to just 0.60. His walk rate was still poor, but his 10.3% rate was a slight improvement from his first handful of innings.

This strong hot streak helped him get to the big leagues, but his first game was abysmal. He allowed six earned runs while only making one out. After that, he would pitch five more frames but only allowed one ER, struck out seven, walked two, and allowed two to reach base via a walk. Nicolas' stuff in the bigs looked great, as he sat 97 MPH with a ton of carry through the zone. His slider also had above-average movement. He only used his curveball eight times, but it was an effective offering with a ton of drop.

Nicolas definitely deserves an extended look in the bigs next year. His stuff in his short MLB look was outstanding. He has closer potential but will likely open his MLB career as a middle reliever. But I would not be surprised if he ended the year as one of the Pirates' top set-up options.

Jackson Wolf

The Pirates acquired Jackson Wolf from the San Diego Padres in the Rich Hill/Ji-Man Choi swap. Although Wolf has just one game played above Double-A, which happened to be his big league debut with the Padres, the side-arm southpaw could find himself as part of the Pirates' Opening Day pitching staff.

Before getting traded, Wolf had a solid 4.08 ERA, 3.86 FIP, and 1.09 WHIP for the Padre Double-A affiliate. Wolf had an outstanding 29.3% strikeout rate and a walk rate of just 6.3%. His 1.22 HR/9 rate was slightly worse than the league average, but with a 12.5% HR/FB ratio, he could see that go down in the future.

Wolf then made eight starts for Altoona. The first four were very good. He pitched 18 innings, only allowing five earned runs, striking out 19, walking six, and giving up one home run. Through this point of the season, Wolf had pitched 106.1 innings at Double-A with a 3.81 ERA, 3.73 FIP, and 1.05 WHIP. He was striking out just a shade under 30% of opponents (29.2%) with a 6.6% walk rate and 1.1 HR/9. He had an elite 4.43 K:BB ratio.

But Wolf would have a poor end to the 2023 campaign. His last four starts to 2023 were rough. Throughout his final 18 innings, he allowed 12 earned runs, struck out just 11, and allowed four home runs. He still only walked four batters, which was a positive. Still, it was only four outings and 18 innings. That doesn't eliminate the 105+ frames where he had good numbers.

Wolf doesn't throw very hard, as his four-seam fastball only averaged 88-90 MPH in his MLB debut. But because of its high active spin, it has well above average movement. He also displayed a solid slider and changeup. Of course, it was only one game, but stuff+ loved Wolf's game at 117.

Wolf is already on the 40-man roster and could compete for an Opening Day roster spot. Wolf could even be an option for a starting rotation spot. But with the Pirates having few left-handed options in the bullpen, he could end up as a long reliever/spot starter hybrid to start the year. Wolf turns 25 in late April, too.