Pittsburgh Pirates Prospects: Very Early Look at Potentially Exciting 2024 Risers

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These three Pittsburgh Pirates prospects could really begin to turn heads when they get a full minor league season under their belts in 2024

The 2023 season is far from over, but the Pittsburgh Pirates have had a lot to commend themselves on. They’ve stayed in a playoff race into mid-June, regardless of how good/bad the rest of the division has been, and there’s been a handful of highly talented prospects making names in the minor leagues.

Anthony Solometo is probably the biggest riser among the team’s top prospects. However, Jared Jones can’t be far behind him. Henry Davis looks healthy and nearly ready to contribute to the big league club. For Solometo and Davis, this is their first opportunity to play a full season.

But looking way down the road to next season, who are some “way too early” names we can start putting on the radar now? While 2024 might be their first full season, and still well down the line, these are names you should put on the back burner.

Jun-Seok Shim

In my unprofessional opinion, Jun-Seok Shim has the highest ceiling among all the Pirates' current pitching prospects. Shim’s professional debut is likely one he’ll remember, pitching four perfect innings at the Florida Complex League, striking out eight of the 12 batters he faced. Sure, while it was just one contest in the FCL, you can’t say he couldn’t have made a better first impression.

However, Shim was considered one of Korea’s top draft prospects before his impressive debut. There was a real argument he could have gone first overall in the Korean Baseball Organization’s (KBO) Draft. But, instead of heading into the draft, he decided to take his talents stateside. The Pirates landed the right-hander for $750,000 and was considered the best international pitching prospect at the time.

There’s a reason why he was so highly touted in Korea and why I believe he could become the Pirates’ next top pitching prospect. He’s already topping out in the triple-digits as a teenager. He typically sits around 94-96 MPH, which is still highly impressive for such a young arm. He also tosses an above-average 12-6 curveball with a slider and change-up that both look like they could be complementary offerings.

But the biggest reason why is because he’s not just a flamethrower with little command. He’s displayed solid command for his age and his velocity. Shim is athletic with a repeatable delivery, both of which are factors that could help him improve his ability to locate in the future.

Shim is currently at the Pirate Florida Complex League affiliate. He’s one step away from Bradenton, and playing a full season in 2024 could make him skyrocket through prospect rankings. He certainly has the potential to be one of baseball’s highest-touted prospects.

Hunter Barco

A lot of fans are still enamored with Termarr Johnson, and rightfully so. First-round competitive balance pick Thomas Harrington could potentially be a top 100 prospect by the end of the season, if not by the start of the 2024 campaign. But after the Pirates selected these two talents in the 2022 draft, they then selected Hunter Barco, who was their second-round pick.

Barco has yet to play pro ball because he underwent Tommy John surgery. Although his season was cut short because of the surgery, he pitched well for the University of Florida leading up to his injury. In 50.1 innings, Barco had a 2.50 ERA, 0.85 WHIP, and 6.27 K:BB ratio. Barco struck out over a third of his opponents with a 34.3% strikeout rate while keeping walks to a minimum. His free pass percentage was just 5.5%. His 1.07 HR/9 was his worst rate stat; it was still above average in the SEC.

Barco is not a hard-throwing pitcher, only sitting around the low-90s and topping out at 95 with his four-seamer. His best pitch is his sweeping slider, which generates a lot of movement and swings and misses. The third offering in his arsenal is a changeup. Barco uses his arm slot to add deception to his stuff as well.

The southpaw has also been able to command his stuff well. He’s able to back-foot his slider against right-handed batters, and his arm slot makes it tough on lefties to hit his primary breaking pitch. FanGraphs also states that he has more underlying pitch metrics that could help him rise above his current projected outlook.

The earliest Barco could come back is late this season. Depending on how late could determine if it’s even worth getting him on a professional mound. However, 2024 will be his first chance to take the mound regularly across a full season. Barco might not have the same sort of rise as Shim but it is a prospect with a lot to gain with a full 2024 campaign.

Tony Blanco Jr.

The 2021-2022 offseason saw the Pirates land two major international prospects. The highest ranked was Yordany De Los Santos. However, Tony Blanco Jr. was arguably the more intriguing player. Blanco Jr. has not played much yet, but based on potential alone; there’s a reason to be excited to see what he can do.

Blanco Jr.’s best tool and his power potential. The right-handed swinging outfielder already generates above-average raw power because he has the frame of some of baseball’s biggest players. Standing at 6’6”, 245 pounds, Blanco Jr. is listed as the same height and weight as 2017 MVP and New York Yankees slugger Giancarlo Stanton. The difference is Stanton is a 33-year-old man, and Blanco Jr. is still two years away from turning 20.

Because of his massive size, there are going to be some questions about his ability to keep strikeouts down. So far, it’s definitely been an issue, as he’s struck out 18 times in his first 45 plate appearances, coming out to a 40% rate. However, it is a small sample size, and he’s displayed strong pitch recognition, which will help him in the long run.

While the Pirates’ signed him as a corner outfielder, he has mostly played first base in 2023. He’s not fast, but he moves well for his size and has a strong arm, which plays in both outfield corners. But again, once he starts to age, his mobility could become a liability, and getting him work in at first base now will only help him in the long run.

Blanco Jr. might start the 2024 season out at the Florida Complex League, but it’s quite possible he will get called up to Bradenton for an extended look before the end of next season. This is a guy with 40 home run potential, but do keep in mind that he’s still years away from the big leagues, further off than Shim and especially Barco. But his immense potential makes him an exciting prospect.

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