Battling Bucs : Minors Review - Center Field

Top 5 Prospects
1. Gregory Polanco: I only got to see a handful of games last year from Polanco but I came away very impressed with him. The guy is simply dripping with talent and while that doesn’t always translate to future success it was enough that I actually got upset hearing his names in any trade rumors last year. Simply put the guy has what it takes to be a truly special player, now whether he puts it altogether remains to be seen. Polanco was originally signed by the Pirates back in 2009 and at 17 was a year older than most international prospects. He had a modestly successful pro debut in the DSL in 2009 but then struggled in 2010 when he moved to the states and fared just a bit better when repeating rookie ball in 2011. Then 2012 happened and Polanco broke out in a big way becoming one of the top prospects in all of baseball. He followed up his 2012 campaign with a very good year in A+ and AA in 2013. Without even considering his hitting ability Polanco possess plus speed, great defense and a very good arm. On the offensive side of the ledger Polanco has great plate discipline which is highly uncommon for a player of his age, skill set and background. The only negatives about Polanco tend to be questions about will his power ever develop beyond the average level and I’ve seen some knock his defense a little saying he has trouble reading the ball off the bat. With all this wonderful stuff I’m saying about Polanco it bears mentioning he still has some issues to work through and is in no way guaranteed to be with the Pirates by mid-season but the possibility of him doing just that and entrenching himself as the everyday right fielder is certainly there.
2. Austin Meadows: The Pirates drafted Meadows with the 9^th overall pick in this past draft. Early on in the process he was among the short list of candidates to go number one overall but his stock slipped a little as he was ranked by BA as “only” the 5^th best player in the draft. Meadows has a huge upside rivaling that of Polanco’s but he is much farther away from the major league level making him a bigger risk. A lot of scouts doubt his ability to stick as a center fielder long term but he has the offensive potential to be an outstanding corner outfielder and the Pirates appear to have more than enough center fielder options. Meadows pro career got started this past season in the GCL and for the first few games he appeared to be adjusting to the competition but after that early adjustment period he took off and hit very well showing good power. He was promoted to short season ball near the end of the season and in very limited at bats crushed there as well. Meadows has the potential for very good power and is already a disciplined hitter. Defensively he has an average arm and his speed is a plus right now but most think it will become close to average as he fills out. He will undoubtedly start the year at the A ball level where despite other strong candidates he’ll serve as the everyday center fielder.
3. Harold Ramirez: Ramirez is one of those other strong candidates I mentioned for the A ball center fielder job. The Pirates signed Ramirez during the 2011 signing period for a bonus of over one million dollars making him the Pirates second highest paid international player ever. The Pirates thought so highly of Ramirez that instead of sending him to the DSL for his pro debut that brought him state side and started him off in rookie ball. His 2012 debut didn’t end up that strong as a leg infection kept him off the field for the first month and then despite a strong start he slumped near the end of the year finishing with a .259/.310/.333 batting line. The Pirates pushed Ramirez up to short season ball in 2013 and at 18 years old he was one of the youngest players in the league facing competition that was usually around 3 years older than him. Through the first part of the season he was one of the league’s best hitters but then he once again tailed off some in August. Ramirez has great speed though he doesn’t seem to have mastered the art of base stealing yet as despite the good speed he is caught stealing about a third of the time. On defense he can probably stick at center field though some question his arm. Ramirez doesn’t project to hit for a lot of power but he should wind up about average there and the rest of his offensive game seems to be solid as his plate discipline improved quite a bit between his two seasons. Ramirez is a long ways off and is somewhat raw but at 19 years old he has plenty of time to develop and his ceiling is quite high. For the 2014 season meadows will likely force Ramirez to one of the corner outfield spots at the A ball level.
4. Barrett Barnes: After his injury filled 2013 campaign everyone seems to be forgetting about Barnes. Barnes was drafted by the Pirates 45^th overall in the 2012 draft with the supplemental pick they received for Ryan Doumit. Barnes signed for slightly under slot and was sent to short season ball to begin his pro career. There he got off to a slow start before heating up with a strong July. Unfortunately a stress fracture in his leg caused him to miss the rest of the season. Usually the Pirates opt to send advanced college players like Barnes to A+ for their first full season of professional ball but possibly due to the injury the Pirates placed him on a more conservative path starting him out in A ball. In the end it probably didn’t matter as Barnes battled injuries all year finishing with just 183 AB, near the end of the year when he was on his longest healthy stretch he was really hitting well. Some scouts question whether Barnes will stick in center field long term but he projects to hit for good power so ideally it shouldn’t be an issue. Also Barnes isn’t likely to be a good average hitter but he knows how to work a count and will take some walks which should help balance that out. Right now Barnes is a very solid prospect who’s biggest question is health related. The Pirates will likely move Barnes up to A+ for 2014 where he will hopefully health permitted serve as the regular center fielder.
5. JaCoby Jones: To be honest I have no clue what the Pirates see Jones as. The Pirates drafted him in the third round of this past draft and at this point in his development Jones is more of an athlete than baseball player. In college Jones was used primarily as a middle infielder but more scouts than not thought he projected better long term as an outfielder and that is what the Pirates drafted him as. Jones pro career got off to a good start but a knee injury limited him to just 15 games at the short season level. The Pirates used him in center field for 10 games and at shortstop for another 5 games showing they are open to where he’ll play long term. As I mentioned before Jones is a terrific athlete who possess great speed and good raw power. Considering Jones profile and the knee injury it seems a safe bet the Pirates will have him play the 2014 season in A ball but the question is where he will play. Jones could take the last outfield spot along side Meadows and Ramirez or he could play SS or he could even potentially see time at 2B or 3B. I think one big deciding factor will be how healthy he really is from his knee injury.
Next Up
6. Michael de la Cruz: It is a bit amazing to me that a player like de la Cruz doesn’t crack my top 5 list. The Pirates signed de la Cruz during the 2012 signing period for 700K . There was some speculation the Pirates might skip him over the DSL but they did opt to send him there. He had a terrific season at the level showing off his 5 tool potential and surpassing fellow 2012 signee, Julio de la Cruz, as the Pirates top international prospect. As is usual of 5 tool players the one tool he was a little light on during his age 17 season was power but the rest were definitely there as he flashed speed, defense, arm and hitting. You can add to that good plate discipline. He was recently names by Baseball America as one of the top 10 international break out candidates for 2014. It is important to remember that de la Cruz will only be 18 years old this upcoming season so he still is quite raw but the upside is certainly there. Michael de la Cruz will likely start the 2014 season as the starting center fielder in rookie ball and with a good performance could see time at the new advanced rookie level or short season ball.
Upper Level Depth
Mel Rojas Jr: The Pirates drafted Rojas in the 3^rd round of the 2010 draft. Scouts seemed to have widely different views on him disagreeing on everything from his ability to stick in CF, to his hitting ability and even as to his speed. For what it is worth Rojas comes with a bit of a baseball pedigree as his father was a major league relief pitcher. Rojas has had a bit of an interesting pro career to date. In 2010 during his pro debut in short season ball he struggled and didn’t hit the ball well and struck out a quarter of the time. The next two seasons were kind of more of the same in A and A+ respectively but each season it was noticeable that he was progressing albeit at a very slow rate. His hitting showed only modest improvements but his base stealing got significantly better and he was playing a sound defensive center field. In 2013 Rojas played his season at the AA level and he had the best year of his career. It wasn’t strong enough to put him on the prospect map but it was a season of real significant growth enough so that whether the Pirates should protect him or not from the Rule V draft was actually discussed. At this point the general consensus about Rojas appears to be that he has the tools to become a good 4^th outfielder in the major leagues. He is a switch hitter than can play a passable center field and he has some power although not enough for a corner spot. In the end he is a solid depth player. It appears the Pirates might have too large of a crowd for Rojas to get a shot at AAA so he might be back in AA but hopefully he gets a chance to prove himself and start moving up the depth ladder.
Low Level Projects
Elvis Escobar: There are quite a few similarities between Harold Ramirez and Escobar. The two of them were the Pirates two biggest splashes in the 2011 signing period and oddly enough both were born on the same day. Both were signed as center fielders and the Pirates thought enough of both to bring them state side for their first pro season. However this is where their similarities end. Despite being the more developed player Escobar signed with the Pirates for just slightly more than half of what Ramirez did. The reason for this was because Ramirez was perceived as having the better tools and higher ceiling. Given these pedigrees it isn’t too surprising things developed as they did. With Ramirez’s injury problems Escobar started the 2012 season as the regular center fielder in rookie ball and posted a very nice season raising his prospect stock. This past season winded up being a bit strange for Escobar as despite the aggressive placement and fairly big signing bonus the Pirates had him play very infrequently at the short season level. His numbers with the exception of a drop in walks were largely the same as the year before but the Pirates just choose to have him not play much now maybe there was an injury or something that wasn’t talked about but it does seem a bit strange. Regardless Escobar does have a chance to start the year in A ball but with how last season went I have to assume the Pirates will give him another year in short season ball.
Nick Buckner: Buckner was the other high school center fielder the Pirates took this past draft. The Pirates selected him in the 14^th round and went 35K over slot to get him to sign with them. He comes in far less heralded and with a lot more questions than Meadows but nonetheless he still has an upside that makes him worth watching. Long term he profiles best as a corner outfielder as his speed and arm are considered just average tools. As for his hitting scouts tend to question his swing thinking it will need to be adjusted as he starts to face higher level pitching. Buckner made his pro debut last season in rookie ball and fared ok albeit with a rather high strike out rate. He figures to be a project going forward and the Pirates will surely keep him in the lower levels quite possibly sending him to their new advanced rookie team in Bristol.