Underrated Pittsburgh Pirates draft picks from the 2024 class

The 2024 MLB Draft came to a close on Tuesday, July 16. The Pittsburgh Pirates took 21 players in the 20 total rounds. Some names like Konnor Griffin, Levi Sterling, and Josh Hartle are getting a good amount of attention. They were three of the Pirates’ noteworthy early-round picks. Beyond that trio, there are some other names from the Pirates’ draft class that fans should know about. They’re underrated and could prove to be good selections.

3 underrated selections from 2024 Pirates MLB Draft class

Gavin Adams

Gavin Adams has a chance to be one of the Pirates’ best mid-round draft picks in their recent history. The Pirates took the right-hander out of Florida State in the eighth round of the draft. While they are rolling the dice on Adams, there’s a ton of potential here, given his eventual ceiling as a shutdown late-inning arm.

Adams transferred from JUCO ball to FSU but missed the entirety of the 2024 season because of Tommy John surgery. When healthy, Adams was firing off high-90s heat while topping out at 101. This pitch has a ton of arm-side sinking action to go along with its elite velocity. Adams will also throw an upper-80s slider and changeup.

Like many young power arms, Adams struggles with command and control. He walked 19 batters in 26.1 innings last year. One positive takeaway is that the Pirates have become good at improving young flamethrowers’ command in recent years. Jared Jones came out of high school throwing hard with poor command, and Kyle Nicolas has looked a lot better this season compared to last year.

We shall see if Adams can improve his ability to control his high-octane stuff once he returns from surgery next season. Even if he can get his control to a fringy level, the right-hander could be a force to be reckoned with in the near future.