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Pirates Send Four Prospects to the Rookie Career Development Program

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The Pittsburgh Pirates are currently holding their winter mini-camp this week and there were a few surprise no-shows, even though the camp is voluntary for everyone. There is a good reason for four prospects not being at Pirate City right now. Mitch Keller, Nick Burdi, Pablo Reyes and Kevin Kramer have all been sent to the Rookie Career Development Program according to Jonathan Mayo. Only Burdi showed up for the first day of the mini-camp.

The RCDP is an event held for players who either recently made their big league debut, or should in the near future. It’s a three-day event that helps them adjust better to life in the  Major Leagues, covering every aspect from finances, to conduct, to dress codes, to the MLB drug program and everything in between. It’s been held near Washington DC in the past, but it’s been moved to Miami this year.

The RCDP has been in place since 1992. Recent attendees for the Pirates includes Austin Meadows, Jordan Luplow and Kevin Newman last year. Clay Holmes, Edgar Santana, Max Moroff and Dovydas Neverauskas went in 2017. Elias Diaz, Josh Bell and Tyler Glasnow attended in 2016.

Not every player is asked to go, so if you see a name missing from the list, don’t look into it too much as a sign. Teams will send between two and four players each year. With the Pirates sending three players this year who have already appeared in the majors, that leaves out some possible 2019 debuts. Keller is expected to make his debut at some point in 2019, while others who don’t debut until September could be asked to attend the 2020 RDCP.

John Dreker
John Dreker
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.

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