Kevin Goldstein at BP recently penned his Pirates Top 11 list today. The Pirates were busy in 2010 and like Goldstein says, the Pirates are a ways away, but they have some nice pieces coming up the pipeline. The Pirates have two five star players and both were drafted in the 2010 draft. Jameson Taillon, the Pirates first pick in the 2010 draft, came in at number one. He didn’t debut in the minors in 2010 but this guy has a pretty high ceiling. It’s been a while since the Pirates have had a bona fide ace and Goldstein projects Taillon’s upside of being just that.
Number two is their second round pick in 2010, Stetson Allie. He also didn’t play in the minors last year but this is a kid who can touch 100 mph. He’s a few years away as well and while the potential is there, he has some big time control issues that could hurt him.
Number three is also a pitcher. Luis Heredia was a 2010 signee and he also signed too late to pitch in the minors in 2010 and he’s only 16 years old so he’ll probably be a short season candidate. Tony Sanchez (C) and Rudy Owens rounds out the top five with Owens is knocking on the door of pitching for the big league club.
Bottom line, the Pirates have a ton of talent coming up, it’s just not going to be anytime soon. If the Pirates were smart, they’d pick up a couple of older, college players with more experience so they can capture some lightening in a bottle and maybe put together a good team in 2015. Before then, it’s probably going to be up to the front office via free agency.
In more Pirates prospects news, David Laurila talked to 2007 draft pick Daniel Moskos.
