Young players ready for ‘breakout’
A night for prospects at LECOM Park
BRADENTON, Fla. — Although Jared Jones won’t participate, the surest sign yet that he’s firmly in competition for a major-league rotation spot, Thursday’s Spring Breakout game between the Pirates and Orioles will double as a showcase of Pittsburgh’s pitching prospects.
The biggest, of course, is both figurative and literal: Paul Skenes.
The Pirates have four pitching prospects ranked among MLB Pipeline’s top 100 (Skenes, Jones, Anthony Solometo and Bubba Chandler) and they’re the only organization with that distinction. Though there’s obviously more to the first-year event pitting the clubs’ top young players against one another, Skenes, Solometo and Chandler are surely focal points.
It’s not just them, either. Thomas Harrington and Braxton Ashcraft — ranked sixth and seventh by MLB Pipeline, respectively — are impressive arms. Both were slated to participate, although Harrington was removed from the Pirates roster on Tuesday.
Considered the third-best prospect throughout MLB, Skenes is the obvious headliner. His stay in majorleague spring training was short, just three innings, but they were electric, with the 6foot-6 right-hander topping out at 102 mph.
More than that, though, Skenes showed a diverse pitch mix that included a sinker, two breaking balls and an above- average changeup. It was impressive to observe his maturity and intent with everything.
At this point, Skenes doesn’t really need an introduction. He’s ... good. But it might be necessary to remind that Solometo and Chandler fit into that category, too.
Solometo had a 3.26 ERA in 24 starts between High-A Greensboro and Double-A Altoona last season. His 118 strikeouts were tied for the 12th most in MiLB among pitchers 20 or younger. Chandler, meanwhile, found his groove after ditching those two-way dreams. A former Clemson football commit, Chandler went 7-1 in his last nine starts with a 1.66 ERA, a .163 batting average against and51 strikeouts (against just 13 walks) in 48⅔ innings.
Harrington, who wass being evaluated on Wednesday, tied for the organization lead with 146 strikeouts in 2023 and was second among all Pirates minor leaguers with a 3.53 ERA. Ashcraft had a 2.39 ERA across 52⅔ innings and was regularly hitting 98 mph in spring training.
The hitting side
As exciting as Skenes and the other pitchers might be, fans tuning into SportsNet Pittsburgh or MLB Network will surely want to see Termarr Johnson, the Pirates’ No. 2 prospect and first-round draft pick from 2022. He has impressed thus far in spring training, hitting .389 with two home runs.
The energetic Atlanta native is ranked 44th throughout the sport, while Johnson’s also considered the best second-base prospect in MLB after finishing 2023 with 18 home runs, an .860 OPS and a 37-game on-base streak.
Three other infielders round out the Pirates’ top 10 participating in this event. Mitch Jebb has a funky swing but makes a lot of contact and can really run. Tsung-CheCheng — who like Ashcraft was added to the 40man roster this past offseason — has displayed a surprising amount of power in spring training.
Jack Brannigan has what Baseball America considers the best arm in Pittsburgh’s system among position players.
Around the horn
Let’s finish with a couple quick-hit notes on others participating:
• When it comes to the outfield, Lonnie White Jr. — a former Penn State football recruit — might be the best pure athlete in the system. He had an .883 OPS in 44 games at Low-A last season. Jase Bowen led all Pirates minor leaguers last year in home runs (23) and RBIs (95).
• Outfielder Shalin Polanco and shortstop Yordany De Los Santos are two of Pittsburgh’s top international prospects who are participating, though they’re hardly alone. Polanco started to find himself with 12 homers and 45 RBIs with the Marauders last season.
• Jhonny Severino (Carlos Santana) and Estuar Suero (Rich Hill/Ji-Man Choi) are recent trade pieces the Pirates got back. Severino has plenty of power from the right side. Suero (6-foot-5, 180 pounds) has an Oneil Cruz build in the outfield.
• Garrett Forrester is an advanced hitter who tore it up in college at Oregon State. He was hurt some after the 2023 MLB draft and doesn’t have a set position. But you could see him impact the baseball.
• An easy one to root for: Pitcher David Matoma became the third Ugandanborn player signed. In his first pro season, Matoma went 4-0 with 16⅔ scoreless innings in the Dominican Summer League.