As Director of Pro Scouting, I lead a talented group of evaluators as we break down future stars. You can find me at random California League games throughout the season!
The Pirates have made many strides in their minor-league setup; that tends to happen when you routinely draft high because you have an owner unwilling to spend on meaningful big-league pieces. These high draft picks have resulted in two of their top five. This is a sound system because they do well outside of drafting in the first round, where they grabbed their number one prospect, Bubba Chandler, in the third round. Chandler is a hipster’s choice as the best pitching prospect in the game, thanks to a solid four-pitch mix and impressive athleticism. The Pirates may very well rectify the mistake of not having Skenes break camp with the team with Chandler, as, on pure stuff, he might be the second or third-best pitcher in the entire Pirates organization. There are hopes in the coming years that the international group will start to produce more in the way of quality prospects for the Pirates, but right now, the Pirates are building a steady stream of cost-controlled pitchers that will hopefully help the Pirates to some relevancy outside of the Paul Skenes and Jared Jones starts.
About Our Top 20 Lists
Prospects Live, led by its evaluating team & Director of Scouting Rhys White, is proud to begin rolling out its annual offseason system reports. The team combines industry feedback, our live looks, film, and available data to compile each org. We believe this effort has enabled us to present you, the reader, with our best possible view of the prospects in the organization.
We have constructed this list using the Overall Future Potential (OFP) scale. There is no perfect equation for ranking prospects or assigning value to them, but we believe this method is the best possible approach. Every prospect on this list has been graded based on the tried and true 20-80 scouting scale. An 80 is the highest tool and OFP grade on the scale, reserved for MVP-caliber players or tools. Conversely, a 20 is reserved for non-prospects (NPs). A 50 OFP falls in the middle, indicating our evaluators deem this player a future average major league player. Below the 50 OFP tier are the 45s and 40s, comprising a large majority of players on each list. These are specific-role players, such as platoon hitters, utility players, or low-leverage relievers. Above the 50 OFP tier are the 55s and 60s. A 55 represents a future above-average player, and a 60 OFP designation is reserved for future All-Star caliber players.
In addition to the tool grades and OFP, we will also include a 'Risk' associated with each prospect. We use this to better communicate to you, the reader, whether a grade is more aggressive or conservative in nature. The evaluation team has worked hard to apply both the grades and risk components to better illustrate how each individual prospect stacks up in their respective system and in the baseball ecosystem.
The Pirates have become one of the best organizations at developing arms, and turning Bubba Chandler into a full-time pitcher is a massive win because he has become among the best pitching prospects in the game. Bubba Chandler is one of the more athletic arms on the mound; his fastball explodes out of his hand. There aren't many moving parts to his delivery; he lifts his leg up and drives towards the mound. His has a lower release point, which helps the fastball "rise." His fastball plays well both up and out of the zone and in the zone where he dots the fastball to get whiffs all over. Hitters have a tough time with the fastball, and that sets up the offerings. You could argue that he doesn't utilize his fastball enough, but when you have three other above-average offerings themes, the breaks. The best secondary is a hard gyro slider with good velocity and shape. Right-handed batters especially struggle with it, and then he can mix in a slower, less tight curveball that plays well off the slider and fastball. The changeup is his primary secondary offering against opposite-handed batters, where its fade makes it challenging for left-handers to barrel up. The command can come and go during his starts, but for the most part, he spots all four of his pitches well all over the zone. Chandler could very well break camp with the Pirates, which is akin to what Jared Jones did last year, but Chandler is a much better version of Jared Jones with a similarly high-octane heater and better secondary stuff. Chandler could be the Pirates' number 3 starter and be a nice Rookie of the Year selection. - Rhys White
Dynasty Outlook
Chandler has top-of-the-line stuff and the athleticism and bulldog mentality to be reaching for SP1 in fantasy but will most likely settle in as an SP2 due to the command lagging at times. He hopes to take another step in that direction as he continues developing as a pitcher. The sky's the limit for Chandler, and he is in the conversation for the best pitching prospect not named Sasaki. With the Pirates losing out on a compensatory pick last year for not starting Skenes in the majors, they may break camp with Chandler, hoping he can net them one. The betting man would say he'll follow the same track as Skenes and be up around May. - Ryan Epperson
As Director of Pro Scouting, I lead a talented group of evaluators as we break down future stars. You can find me at random California League games throughout the season!
As Director of Pro Scouting, I lead a talented group of evaluators as we break down future stars. You can find me at random California League games throughout the season!
As Director of Pro Scouting, I lead a talented group of evaluators as we break down future stars. You can find me at random California League games throughout the season!
A Giants fan living in San Diego, been playing fantasy baseball since 2005 and dynasty since 2021. Started the Dynasty Baseball Pickups podcast in June 2023 and joined Prospects Live in March of 2024.
