Battling Bucs : Minors Review - Right Handed Starters Part I

Low Level Right Handed Starters
Top 3 Prospects
1. Jonathan Sandfort: Sandfort like 99% of all other pitchers at his level is all about projectability. Originally drafted by the Pirates in the 3^rd round of the 2012 draft Sandfort was not a pick made with the intentions of saving money for Appel as he signed for the full slot amount. Sandfort throws a low 90s fastball, a curve and is working on a changeup. At 6’ 6” Sandfort has a big frame and will hopefully add a few mph on to his fastball as he fills out. After signing the Pirates placed Sandfort in rookie ball and he made 8 starts totaling just 15 IP. Sandfort’s numbers don’t look terrible but he walked a lot of batters and missed very few bats. Sensing he wasn’t ready to move up the Pirates assigned Sandfort back to rookie ball in 2013. This time around his numbers ended up slightly worse but he showed much improved control and missed a fair number of bats. Sandfort made definite progress in 2013 and still comes with a lot of upside. The Pirates will likely push him to the short season league and see how he fares against age appropriate competition.
2. Neil Kozikowski: The Pirates drafted Kozikowski in the 8^th round of this past draft. Kozikowski really flew under the radar not appearing on any of Baseball America’s rankings and also not even having a write up at first. The Pirates evidently seen something they liked though as they gave him a 425K signing bonus well over the 155,400 slot amount. Like most others here above Kozikowski is a projectable right handed pitcher that currently throws in the high 80s with a decent curve but no real change up. Also in his arsenal making him a little different is a cutter. Upon signing the Pirates sent him to get a taste of rookie ball and he performed well showing great command even without striking out a lot of hitters. The Pirates seem to like Kozikowski a good bit so I expect he’ll get a push to short season ball but the new team in Bristol is also a possibility.
3. Billy Roth: The Pirates drafted Roth in the 16^th round of this past draft. He was a strong two way prospect as he showed good power from the right hand side but most scouts and apparently the Pirates felt he projected best long term as a pitcher. The consensus seemed to be that Roth would likely honor his commitment to Arizona but the Pirates managed to sign him away for 190K. Currently Roth is a project as his fastball sits in the high 80s and his secondary pitches need some refinement. He is a classic projectable high school right hander that Huntington loves to draft so the hope is he will add muscle and improve upon his velocity. Roth got into a few games at the end of last season and pitched decently though he didn’t miss many bats. The Pirates will likely either send Roth to short season ball or the new advanced rookie team.
More Projects
Colten Brewer: Brewer has been around a little bit longer than most of the rest on this list having been drafted in 4^th round of the 2011 draft. Like the top 3 pitchers on this list he is a projectable right handed pitcher the Pirates are hoping adds velocity as he fills out. As should be evident by now the Pirates have a ton of these guys and are hoping at least a handful work out. Brewer has actually pitched rather decently the little he has pitched but his problem has been staying healthy. Brewer wasn’t able to pitch in 2011 after signing, missed a good chunk of 2012 and then made only 3 starts in 2013. If Brewer manages to remain healthy he’ll likely pitch in 2014 in short season ball.
Adrian Grullon: Grullon is a little on the old side for this list and for once doesn’t quite fit the profile as he was signed out of the Dominican Republic. Grullon signed late at age 18 putting him almost two years behind most Latin American players. Grullon is 6’ &’ tall but only weighs 197 lbs meaning there is plenty of room for him to grow into his frame. His arsenal includes a fastball that sits around 90 and a developing curve and changeup. The Pirates gave him a taste of pro ball in 2011 but his first real extended playing time came the following year in the DSL where he performed respectably. Grullon came to the states last year and in rookie ball posted a good K rate and decent walk rate but got hit hard at times. Given his age I expect the Pirates to push Grullon up to at least the new Bristol ream if not short season ball.
Hayden Hurst: The Pirates drafted Hurst in the 17^th round of the 2012 draft and gave him 400K to sign once it became apparent Appel wasn’t signing. At 6’5 Hurst fits the profile of the projectable right handed pitcher but unlike the rest he had previously shown good velocity having touched 95 on occasion and usually sitting in the low 90s. The Pirates opted not to put him into any games in 2012 and instead had him start his pro career in 2013 in rookie ball. In 2013 he made one appearance and it went about as bad as possible. Hurst saw 5 batters walked them all and uncorked two wild pitches. The opposition made an out on the base paths so he did manage to record 0.1 IP. The Pirates clearly see some upside in him but he has to actually pitch for that to manifest itself. Hurst in 2014 seems like the perfect candidate for the advanced rookie league team.
Jenn-Lei Liao: Liao was just signed this January making him one of the newest prospects in the system. Liao comes from one of the Pirates new favorite areas Taiwan. At 6’ 6”, 264 lbs Liao is a big dude but he only throws in the low 90s currently. He is 20 years old so he is most likely just a project but his size gives him a chance to develop into something. The Pirates will likely have Liao play rookie ball this season.
Dovydas Neverauskas: Having signed way back in 2009 Neverauskas has been with the organization much longer than any other pitcher listed here. He signed with the Pirates as a 16 year old out of Lithuania so really there is no blue print for how he is supposed to develop. As he has gotten older he has added velocity going from the upper 80s to now where he at times consistently pitches in the mid 90s (other times lower 90s). He has spent the last 4 seasons between rookie ball and short season ball. For the most part his results were promising and his control seems to be improving steadily as time goes by. Neverauskas will likely begin the 2014 season in A ball and at just 21 years old is a good age for the level. He is a project right now but he has been holding himself quite well considering his strange background of coming from Lithuania.
Isaac Sanchez: Sanchez has a bit of an odd background as well having been born in the Bronx but signed out of the Dominican Republic in 2010. Sanchez’s career got off to a great start in 2010 in the DSL but it was cut short with an injury. The Pirates then had him pitch one game in the DSL in 2011 before moving him to the states. A move to the states during the season is a very rare occurrence. Over the last three seasons he has pitched in rookie ball and short season ball. He has pitched fairly well each year but has shown some small control problems which haven’t really shown much improvement. At 6’ 0” Sanchez is a little different than the rest on this list as he doesn’t have as much projection but he already throws in the low 90s occasionally touching 94 so he doesn’t really need to add much there. The Pirates used him in the rotation last season which probably likely means they see him as a legit prospect so Sanchez will likely get a shot at A ball this upcoming season.