When a major league team is rolling like the Pirates are right now the minor leagues become a little less important in the eyes of most fans. This is especially true of the lowest levels as these players are probably at least 3 years away from helping their parent club. I'm no exception to that rule but I care pretty deeply about the minors so even when my care level drops it is still pretty high. Anyway it’s been a while since I took a look down on the farm so I invite all of you to join me.
DSL
Outfielder Michael De La Cruz, who was one of the Pirates big international splashes in 2012, is having himself quote a season down in the Dominican Summer League. He isn't flashing much power but he is showing off good hitting skills and good plate discipline. Overall he has a .891 OPS which is mainly driven by his .473 OBP. De La Cruz is only 17 years old so this goes without saying he is having an excellent season and I would be surprised if he didn't get promoted to the states next year.
Tito Polo caught my eye last year with a very strong performance in the DSL. I had thought the Pirates might consider bringing him to the states but he is still very young so it is no surprise they left him in the DSL for another year. He isn't having quite as good a season as he did last year but he is still putting up a solid campaign showing both speed (20 SB) and plate discipline (.364 OBP). Like most players down in the DSL the power isn't there yet but he could develop it as he matures.
Third baseman Julio De La Cruz, the other big international signing in 2012, isn't having as good a season as Michael. Unlike most players down at this level he is showing some power with 4 HR and a .156 ISO but that is really all he has flashed. He has struck out more than 3 times as often as he has walked and is only hitting .208 on the season. The thought going into the year was he was a little bit farther along than Michael but right now that doesn't appear to be the case.
Catcher Yoel Gonzalez and shortstop Johan De Jesus were two other prominent signings from the 2012 class and both of them are really struggling this year. It bears repeating that for the most part the better prospects in this league (who are the ones I am focusing on) are usually between 16 and 18 years of age so these are very young ball players who are still learning the game.
On the pitching side of the ledger Richard Mitchell is probably the most interesting player the Pirates have in the DSL and he is having a solid season. Neither his 3.95 ERA nor his 17:17 strike out to walk ratio back that claim up but he is holding opponents to a .198 batting average. At 18 years of age Mitchell will likely get promoted to the states next year so he can play there during his age 19 season.
It is tough to get a feel for just what pitchers may be true prospects down here. It is always best to start with looking at younger players but beyond that the only other thing we have to go is playing time. Despite all this one pitcher who has stood out to me is Omar Basulto. He is still only 17 years old and this is his second season in the league. He had a solid 2012 campaign pitching mainly out of relief and the Pirates moved him to a starter this year meaning he will get more playing time. So he fits the two criteria of age and playing time and he also has put up very solid numbers striking out 43 batters in 49 innings this year and only walking 10. His numbers aren't quite as good as last year but they are comparable and that says a lot considering he is being asked to pitch more this year.
GCL
The two big names down in the GCL are obviously the Pirates two first round draft picks, Austin Meadows and Reese McGuire. McGuire got off to a hot start in his pro career but has since cooled off. Meadows took the opposite path starting out slow but heating up now. The two are having similar overall success but McGuire is showing off a good hitting ability and solid defense plus a little bit of speed as he has 3 stolen bases. Meanwhile Meadows is showing off some impressive power with a .247 ISO. Most of that power is coming from gap power instead of home run power but it still nice to see.
Beyond those two the top two hitters coming up from the DSL are having polar opposite seasons. Ulises Montilla, who admitted at 21 is a bit old for the level, is having a strong campaign whereas Maximo Rivera who is a year younger at 20 is having a rough go of it. Even with the age difference Montilla is probably the better prospect here as he is far more advanced and has superior tools. Montilla is listed as a 3B but has also played a lot of OF in the past. He is going to have to make up some time so I expect the Pirates to give him an aggressive push to full season A ball next year. Rivera on the other hand still has some developing to do so he may remain at the GCL level.
The other interesting hitters at this level are draft prospects from later rounds in the 2013 draft. Trae Arbet, Adam Landecker, Justin Maffei and Nick Buckner were all drafted by the Pirates this year and all 4 are struggling to adjust to pro ball. Again keep in mind these players are very young and have plenty of time to develop.
Looking at the pitchers the most interesting name is Blake Taylor the Pirates 2nd round draft pick this season. He has been superb so far this year but the Pirates are being very cautious with him as he only has thrown 8 innings over 3 appearances. Neil Kozikowski is the other interesting pitcher at this level from this year's draft and he has thrown even less than Taylor.
For the most part the international crop of pitchers making their debuts this year has been unimpressive. Looking at traditional markets first (Latin America) Miguel Rosario, Mervin Del Rosario, Cesilio Pimentel and Adrian Grullon have all have ERAs of at least 4.5 and with the exception of Pimentel all have them have poor peripherals as well. Pimentel is having a better year than his 5.12 ERA would indicated as he has struck 3 times the amount of batters he has walked and has a nice 1.19 WHIP.
The story from the international ranks however has been someone from a bit of an untraditional market, Taiwan. Wei-Chung Wang is the pitcher and he was known to be fairly talented. The Pirates originally agreed to give Wang a sizeable signing bonus back in 2011 but he failed the physical due to an arm injury and the signing bonus was of course drastically reduced and Wang missed the entire 2012 season. This year he made his pro debut and he has been impressive. His 3.58 ERA doesn't look special but he struck out 23 batters while walking only 1 and is holding opponents to a .202 average meaning his WHIP is a microscopic 0.80. No doubt he has been impressive but he is 21 years of age so he is old for the level.
The other interesting pitcher in the GCL is Jonathan Sandfort. The Pirates thought highly enough of Sandfort to make him their 3rd round pick in 2012. He didn't pitch much last year throwing only 15 innings in the GCL so the Pirates had him repeat the level. His numbers this year look fairly similar to last year's on the surface but he is showing much improved command and missing bats this time. Last year he only struck out 7 hitters in 15 innings this year he has already struck out 20 in 20 innings. He has also cut his walks from 10 last year to only 5 so far this year. Sandfort has definitely shown marked improvement.
A-
The top hitting prospects at this level coming into the season were the two big international signing in 2011. Both Harold Ramirez and Elvis Escobar started their pro careers off in the states receiving an aggressive push from the Pirates. Both players were promoted to the New York Penn League this year a league dominated by college players. Ramirez and Escobar are still only 18 years of age. Escobar had the slightly better season last year but Ramirez was considered the better prospect and this year he is showing why. Escobar has struggled this year meanwhile Ramirez has shown both speed (15 SB) and some power (2 HR, .131. ISO). The speed and developing power combination is what makes Ramirez the solid prospect he is. Escobar has these same traits as well but is far less polished and was actually struggling to receive playing time with the team before injuries eventually settled him back into a starting role.
The other highly regard prospect at this level (who was in the system before the draft) is Jin-De Jhang. Jhang is another player from the nontraditional place of Taiwan. He had a nice season last year in rookie ball but due to the presence of Wyatt Mathisen wasn't sent to full season ball. Jhang is having another strong year this year and is starting to show a bit more power. His ISO is .143 which is up a good deal from his .093 ISO last year. He is also continuing to show good contact skills with only 8 strike outs in 105 at bats this year. Currently it is not clear what is going to happen with Jhang next year Mathisen doesn't look ready to move up to A+ next season and the Pirates will likely want to be aggressive with McGuire so that leaves 3 good catching prospect for the A level next year. Obviously that math doesn't work.
The other top hitting prospects were draft picks from this year's draft. JaCoby Jones, the Pirates 3rd round pick, is the most highly regarded of them. Jones really doesn't have a position as he is more of an athlete at this point, still he was off to a nice start playing mostly the OF before a knee injury ended his season. Also of interest are Adam Frazier and Michael Fransoso two middle infielders taken by the Pirates this year. Frazier was considered one of the best college shortstops in this year's draft which while being a compliment to him says more about how weak the draft was in that area. Fransoso was a later round pick who didn't garner much attention. Both players are off to very solid starts so far their pro careers though.
The other two interesting college players drafted by the Pirates this year at this level are Danny Collins and Erich Weiss. Collins is a 1B who came with no fan fare but he got off to a terrific start to his pro career and flashed some good power belting 6 HR on the year with a .214 ISO. He has cooled down some from his hot start but is still performing well. Weiss is a 3B/SS who the Pirates drafted in the 11th round. He came with a little more fan fare and the Pirates ended up giving him an over slot deal. What I liked best about was his name as Ehrich Weiss is the real name of Harry Houdini but Weiss has also been impressive at the plate. On the year he is batting .377 and slugging .541 and has been getting stronger as he went along. With Wood struggling in A ball Weiss is now probably in the conversation as the Pirates best 3B prospect.
The pitching side of things isn't too interesting at this level. Cody Dickson the Pirates 4th round pick is probably the most interesting name and he is having a solid pro debut. His 28:11 strike out to walk ratio is encouraging as is his 1.11 WHIP. Outside of 2nd round pick Blake Taylor and breakout player Joely Rodriguez, Dickson might be the Pirates best left handed pitching prospect. Shane Carle, Justin Topa and Chad Kuhl were all selected by the Pirates in this past draft and all are performing well but none are viewed as top prospects.
Jackson Lodge and Dovydas Neverauskas headline an uninspiring group of international pitching prospects at the level. Both are having good season but both are still pretty raw talents who have a lot of developing in front of them.