MLB.com announced their top 100 prospects list. See the link and updates at the bottom of this page. Jim Callis mentioned on the radio earlier this week that there were seven Pittsburgh Pirates players on the list and the final tally is at the bottom of this page.
Based on the top ten at each position, Tyler Glasnow should head the Pirates list. He ranked third overall for right-handed pitchers, trailing two highly touted prospects in Noah Syndergaard of the New York Mets and Lucas Giolito of the Washington Nationals. Glasnow will be live tweeting during the show, which is something usually reserved for guys that rank in the top 50.
https://twitter.com/TGlasnow/status/560847494599278592
It will be interesting to see where MLB.com has Austin Meadows ranked. He was recently rated #2 in the Pirates system by both Keith Law and John Sickels. MLB Pipeline had him eighth among outfielders though, which is just below where Law had him ranked among outfielders in his top 100 list. Baseball America had Meadows ranked third in the Pirates’ system, trailing Glasnow and Jameson Taillon. Just like Glasnow, Meadows will be tweeting during the show.
Going to be tweeting during @MLBNetwork's Top 50 Prospects show for @MLBPipeline, Friday at 9 pm ET. Join me by using #mlbpipeline
— Austin Meadows (@austin_meadows) January 30, 2015
Jameson Taillon didn’t make the top ten for right-handed pitchers this year, but he did get an honorable mention, so he was considered for the list. It is a deep position, so that doesn’t mean he will drop far down their rankings, but he won’t be as high as last year when MLB.com had him fifth among right-handed pitchers and ranked 16th overall.
Reese McGuire was ranked seventh among catchers both last year and this year. MLB.com had him ranked just outside the top 100 last year, mentioning that he almost made the list. McGuire had a strong season on defense in 2014 and wasn’t overmatched at that plate as one of the youngest players in full-season ball. That should get him into the top 100.
Josh Bell was ranked as the best first base prospect, though the position isn’t deep. He will be in the top 100, as Callis mentioned that only two first baseman made their list, but it should be interesting to see where he ends up. Keith Law had him 60th and most people have him either third or fourth among Pirates players.
Alen Hanson should also make the top 100 list. He was an honorable mention by Jonathan Mayo last night, and just missed out on the shortstops list, which is a deep position for prospects.
If I had to guess the final player in their top 100, I’d say it is Nick Kingham, although he might not be the lowest Pirates player on the list. During their mid-season rankings, MLB.com had seven Pirates on their list and Kingham was ranked 66th overall, ahead of both Alen Hanson and Reese McGuire.
Update: 9:07 PM: The #51-100 prospects rankings was released and the Pirates have three in the second half of the list. Reese McGuire ranked #64, jumping up big in the rankings from last year. Nick Kingham was ranked #74, dropping a few spots from the mid-season rankings. Alen Hanson is the seventh Pirates player on the list, ranking 92nd overall. Austin Meadows was the first Pirates player in the top 50, rank 46th overall.
Update: 9:18 PM: Josh Bell ranked #34, which means Jameson Taillon and Tyler Glasnow are the top two ranked prospects on the Pirates.
Update: 9:21 PM: Jameson Taillon ended up dropping 15 spots from last year. He is 31st overall.
Update: 9:38 PM: Tyler Glasnow nabbed the top spot among Pirates players and finished 12th overall. No real surprises on the list. I’ll add the link once it’s up on their site. The final rankings of Pirates players in MLB.com’s top 100 are:
12. Tyler Glasnow
31. Jameson Taillon
34. Josh Bell
46. Austin Meadows
64. Reese McGuire
74. Nick Kingham
92. Alen Hanson
Update: 10:02 PM: Here is the top 100 list. They have a write-up and list the scouting grades for each player. The Pirates were the only team with more than six prospects in the top 100.
John started working at Pirates Prospects in 2009, but his connection to the Pittsburgh Pirates started exactly 100 years earlier when Dots Miller debuted for the 1909 World Series champions. John was born in Kearny, NJ, two blocks from the house where Dots Miller grew up. From that hometown hero connection came a love of Pirates history, as well as the sport of baseball.
When he didn't make it as a lefty pitcher with an 80+ MPH fastball and a slider that needed work, John turned to covering the game, eventually focusing in on the prospects side, where his interest was pushed by the big league team being below .500 for so long. John has covered the minors in some form since the 2002 season, and leads the draft and international coverage on Pirates Prospects. He writes daily on Pittsburgh Baseball History, when he's not covering the entire system daily throughout the entire year on Pirates Prospects.
why isn’t Jacoby Jones on this list?
http://18.206.184.11/2015/01/pittsburgh-pirates-2015-top-prospects-19-jacoby-jones.html
april and june will turn heads and change minds
flying under the radar will just make him better
I don’t think he’s ever flown under the radar. He was considered a possible first round pick going back to high school, he dropped due to an LSU commitment and a high price tag. Jones was gaining attention early in his HS career too and for five years(at least), people talked about his potential. No one doubts the tools he possesses or the fact he could be a great player, it’s the makeup that always held him back and now his plate patience. A 22-year-old in low-A that puts up a 33/132 BB/SO rate is always going to be rated low unless he’s a defensive standout at a key position. He’s a marginal shortstop, who has one plus tool, power.
your analysis does not include versatility and hustle
players like Jones, Jay Hay, Tony Philips, Kendall, Marte and Nyger fly under the radar because their contribution metrics can’t be quantified at first site
I’ve seen Jones play numerous times, both in person and on tv when he was in college. Trust me, I take everything into account. I just didn’t want to see here and rewrite his entire profile, so I pointed out why he isn’t rated higher. Your original question was why isn’t he in the top 100 for MLB and I don’t think he wouldn’t make their top 200 either based on their team rankings. He is not an under the radar type player, Jones is well known to people who rank prospects and cover the draft, he was getting first round mention back in 2009 as a HS junior and 2010 when he slipped due to demands and then again in 2012/2013 when he was at LSU. He even had a huge freshman season at LSU, so he was getting plenty of notice. Nothing about him fits under the radar. It’s like saying people don’t know that Andrew McCutchen is good yet
curious where you may have ranked some of these guys in the past? Jay Hay, Tony Philips, Al Martin, Kendall, Marte and Nyger
But power is the only tool that matters!! 😅
In Baseball America’s 2008 rankings they had McCuthen ranked 14th and Jay Bruce ranked 1st. In 2009 they had McCutchen ranked 33rd and Matt Wieters 1st. Although they listed McCutchen as a potential Hall of Famer both years. I’d think that would get you a higher ranking. http://www.sportsonearth.com/article/67202234/your-ultimate-major-league-baseball-prospect-fix-1994-2009
ddo: Good points, he was very talented, but was never thought to be as good as he has been in his first 6 years. The MVP of the NL in 2013, and 3rd Place in 2012 and 2014; an All Star his last 4 years, a Silver Slugger his last 3 years, and a Gold Glove along the way. We have seen deferred salary’s for folks like Evan Longoria, Ryan Braun, and just recently, Max Scherzer. IMO, there is no reason for not acting right now to extend him.
Cutch is a great player, but the gold glove is a joke. I would like to see him stay in Pittsburgh but do so in LF
I was bemoaning the fact that we went Herrera to the Mets instead of Hanson, but Alen has come in ahead of Dilson on both Law’s and Mayo’s lists if I am not mistaken?
I still have concerns over maturity and attitude issues with Hanson – I actually think he would be a mid season call up this year if those issues were not a concern in the FO.
almost makes me think the f.o. knows what they are doing, no matter what smizik claims.
John: Thank you for the updates and final list. Nothing but blue skies for the Pirates, and I cannot say enough about how wonderful it is to have this system come together as well as it has – almost like there was a plan in place when they walked in the door in 2007. Whodathunkit that it would spawn new industries dedicated to keeping a very interested fan base informed about the prospects within the system. Hard to believe this system was only rated as 7th best by one of the experts – 4 position players and 3 SP’s – 7 of the Top 100. Some of the teams in the Top 10 are teams who benefitted from the old system where you could get additional high draft picks simply by losing a player to free agency.
Just another positive that will go into the mix when Forbes places values on the 30 MLB Teams in March/April. Two consecutive years to the playoffs, a relatively young team with plenty of future, and 7 of the best 100 Prospects in the Minor Leagues. Take some of that increased borrowing power and sign our very own SUPERSTAR, Andrew McCutchen, to a nice extension through age 36.
The thought of having Cutch in Pit for his entire career is music to all fans ears. He seems like the type of man to want that for himself, too.
The wildcard in this mix though is Meadows. If he continues to progress as expected, where does he fit in to the mix? I’d be surprised if they give Cutch a market rate deal if they have a budding superstar to take his place for less than 5% of his salary.
Scott: A very good point, but I would rather have Andrew’s signature on a contract and then figure out the future involving Meadows, Polanco, Marte and others afterward. We drafted him and developed him and his value using WAR has been about 7 times what we have paid him in salary, so we may have stashed a few bucks somewhere.
When the Value of the franchise was around $300 mil in 2010 and increased to $572 in 2014, does anyone doubt the contribution of ‘Cutch to that evaluation? The Value of the franchise was just about dormant for 3 or 4 years prior to 2010, and then an average increase of 22.5% per year that coincides with the recognition to ‘Cutch of being an MVP-caliber player. I know I am preaching to the choir, but Baseball is a business and the Pirates are in year 6 of a 10 year TV contract with Root Sports, and they should want to lock the Pirates up early. I figure the difference between with ‘Cutch and without ‘Cutch would be equal to or greater than any possible salary we would pay. Pay the man his money.
I will not argue Cutch isn’t worth a top tier contract. He clearly plays way above his current pay grade.
I will say a successful franchise is asking for trouble paying a player for past performance. The Pirates would be wise to pay players based on what they believe a player will contribute during the years under contract. Even a stud like Cutch.
Do they look at in tiers also. IT seems they way they talk about Geolito they would put him in a whole other class about Glasnow. Even though they look at Glasnow as the 3rd ranked pitcher
They seem to hit Glasnow hard on his control.