OnlyBucs

About a year ago the Pirates, along with most other MLB teams, purged dozens of players from their minor league systems. Now, as I try to predict the rosters of our remaining minor league affiliates, I find myself making wild guesses about who will provide infield depth .



Altoona is the best example. Mason Martin starts at 1st, but I have no idea who might back him up. Rodolfo Castro and Nick Gonzalez will probably take turns starting at 2nd and SS, and Dylan Busby appears to be the only choice at 3rd. But who might provide depth? Robbie Glendinning is hurt. Steven Alemais is listed on the roster but he’s age 26 and I think he’ll end up in AAA, where depth is also needed. There’s nobody left from the 2019 High-A team that would logically promote players to AA.



So I’m going to reach back to 2019 Full Season A ball and take some of the oldest infielders. We’re talking Conner Kaiser, Zach Kone, and Andres Alvarez, who will all be age 24 as the 2021 season begins. Kaiser is barely a prospect, and Kone and Alvarez are among the few remaining organizational infielders in the system.



Greensboro, our new High-A team having swapped levels with Bradenton, is even murkier. Liover Peguero and Ji-Hwan Bae will probably take turns at 2nd and SS, as slightly younger versions of Castro and Gonzalez at AA. Jason Triolo will probably man 3rd, ready or not. There are no obvious candidates at 1st so I will guess Justin Harrer, age 24, who has, at least, played the position.



Borrowing from Wilbur Miller’s wisdom, Cory Wood, age 23, and Ethan Paul, age 24, are good bets to reach this level in 2021. I’m also putting Claudio Finol, minor league Rule 5 guy and a relative youngster at 21, into the mix.



From what I’ve read, there will be 30-man rosters at the Single A level. Without the track record that 2020 would have provided for these players, I’ve never found it more difficult to complete my own Pirates system depth chart.

644E457542545458370 wrote: About a year ago the Pirates, along with most other MLB teams, purged dozens of players from their minor league systems. Now, as I try to predict the rosters of our remaining minor league affiliates, I find myself making wild guesses about who will provide infield depth .



Altoona is the best example. Mason Martin starts at 1st, but I have no idea who might back him up. Rodolfo Castro and Nick Gonzalez will probably take turns starting at 2nd and SS, and Dylan Busby appears to be the only choice at 3rd.  But who might provide depth? Robbie Glendinning is hurt. Steven Alemais is listed on the roster but he’s age 26 and I think he’ll end up in AAA, where depth is also needed. There’s nobody left from the 2019 High-A team that would logically promote players to AA.



So I’m going to reach back to 2019 Full Season A ball and take some of the oldest  infielders. We’re talking Conner Kaiser, Zach Kone, and Andres Alvarez, who will all be age 24 as the 2021 season begins. Kaiser is barely a prospect, and Kone and Alvarez are among the few remaining organizational infielders in the system.



Greensboro, our new High-A team having swapped levels with Bradenton, is even murkier.  Liover Peguero and Ji-Hwan Bae will probably take turns at 2nd and SS, as slightly younger versions of Castro and Gonzalez at AA. Jason Triolo will probably man 3rd, ready or not. There are no obvious candidates at 1st so I will guess Justin Harrer, age 24, who has, at least, played the position.



Borrowing from Wilbur Miller’s wisdom, Cory Wood, age 23, and Ethan Paul, age 24, are good bets to reach this level in 2021. I’m also putting Claudio Finol, minor league Rule 5 guy and a relative youngster at 21, into the mix.



From what I’ve read, there will be 30-man rosters at the Single A level. Without the track record that 2020 would have provided for these players, I’ve never found it more difficult to complete my own Pirates system depth chart.


I must say that you are one dedicated individual. Most of these guys I have never heard of them

537972427563636F000 wrote: About a year ago the Pirates, along with most other MLB teams, purged dozens of players from their minor league systems. Now, as I try to predict the rosters of our remaining minor league affiliates, I find myself making wild guesses about who will provide infield depth .



Altoona is the best example. Mason Martin starts at 1st, but I have no idea who might back him up. Rodolfo Castro and Nick Gonzalez will probably take turns starting at 2nd and SS, and Dylan Busby appears to be the only choice at 3rd.  But who might provide depth? Robbie Glendinning is hurt. Steven Alemais is listed on the roster but he’s age 26 and I think he’ll end up in AAA, where depth is also needed. There’s nobody left from the 2019 High-A team that would logically promote players to AA.



So I’m going to reach back to 2019 Full Season A ball and take some of the oldest  infielders. We’re talking Conner Kaiser, Zach Kone, and Andres Alvarez, who will all be age 24 as the 2021 season begins. Kaiser is barely a prospect, and Kone and Alvarez are among the few remaining organizational infielders in the system.



Greensboro, our new High-A team having swapped levels with Bradenton, is even murkier.  Liover Peguero and Ji-Hwan Bae will probably take turns at 2nd and SS, as slightly younger versions of Castro and Gonzalez at AA. Jason Triolo will probably man 3rd, ready or not. There are no obvious candidates at 1st so I will guess Justin Harrer, age 24, who has, at least, played the position.



Borrowing from Wilbur Miller’s wisdom, Cory Wood, age 23, and Ethan Paul, age 24, are good bets to reach this level in 2021. I’m also putting Claudio Finol, minor league Rule 5 guy and a relative youngster at 21, into the mix.



From what I’ve read, there will be 30-man rosters at the Single A level. Without the track record that 2020 would have provided for these players, I’ve never found it more difficult to complete my own Pirates system depth chart.




good job, and who knows, we've been getting players cut from other teams to try out for the Pirates, so there could be minor league cuts that fill out the minor league rosters too.

I think I heard something about this SyrBucco guy as a potential reserve infielder for Altoona. Apparently Nutting was excited when he learned that he was willing to play for no salary, provided the team paid for sushi dinners twice a week.

715D5552597E495F4F3C0 wrote: I think I heard something about this SyrBucco guy as a potential reserve infielder for Altoona.  Apparently Nutting was excited when he learned that he was willing to play for no salary, provided the team paid for sushi dinners twice a week.



   


good points, doesn't he pitch in a pinch too?

I've done some scouting of a few of these guys at Morgantown. Glendenning seems to be the best of the bunch. I scouted Kone, Kaiser, Wood, and Busby.

Busby and Kaiser were 3rd round picks by NH in 2017 & 2018 respectively. Neither was anything to write home about.

Thanks for the replies, guys! Obviously I have too much time on my hands as a retired guy who messed his leg up a month ago in a skiing accident, and haven't been able to walk much.



But I'm getting better, and it seems that the Bucs are too, if you can give any weight to Spring Training.



One guy I feel sorry for, because he was once a top prospect and now he looks completely lost: Kevin Kramer. Almost as lost? Will Craig, who blew the no-hitter today by missing an easy fly ball in RF.



But the pitching is looking surprisingly good. Dare we hope for 70 wins?

My hope is that the team is competitive and that there is a reason to keep the game on the TV after the early innings.



If the starting pitching collapses and the game is 7-1 (or perhaps more likely 7-0) heading into the 4th inning too many games in a row, it is a mild form of torture to watch the team night-after-night. Further, this outcome would result in the pen melting down and pitchers regularly being asked to take one for the team.



I can't foresee this team getting close to the 70 game victory mark, but then again, I've been wrong about so many things.