The MLB season is a little over a week old.
The minor league season hasn’t even lasted a week for most teams.
Anyone who has been following baseball for any significant amount of time knows that nothing significant has happened yet that can be projected out.
That’s not to say that the combined no-hitter from Chase De Jong, Austin Brice, and Yerry De Los Santos last night wasn’t a great moment. That moment would definitely have Pirates fans wondering what any of those three pitchers could do in the majors.
It’s not to say that Wil Crowe hasn’t looked great as a multi-inning reliever, with nine strikeouts in seven shutout innings so far. It’s just that it has only been seven innings.
This isn’t to say that you shouldn’t get excited for the multiple home runs that Cal Mitchell, Jase Bowen, and Maikol Escotto have hit in their first weeks. It’s more like you shouldn’t be worried that Oneil Cruz hasn’t hit a home run yet.
It’s not to say that Luis Peralta is the next low-level sleeper prospect after throwing five no-hit innings last night himself, and striking out ten in the process, while sitting 93-96 MPH. It’s more like “here’s another good thing that happened.”
Because it did.
Luis Peralta had a great night last night. The trio of Austin Brice, Chase De Jong, and Yerry De Los Santos had an amazing night.
Mitchell, Bowen, and Escotto are off to great starts in their season. So is Wil Crowe at the MLB level in a new role.
All of these are encouraging signs, and we could find plenty more as we dig through the system.
We could also find signs of players struggling, which would be dismissed with the same disclaimer of small sample sizes.
We could all just wait until the sample sizes are stable, and then react in a positive or negative way, depending on the results.
But that takes the fun out of the process.
It takes the fun out of wondering next week if Peralta can do it again.
It takes the fun out of wondering if Mitchell, Bowen, and Escotto are heading for big years in the power department.
It takes the fun out of guessing what De Jong, Brice, and/or De Los Santos could be in the majors.
And it takes the fun out of guessing if they’ll be sharing a bullpen with Wil Crowe for years.
Baseball is meant to be fun. While the Pirates haven’t been fun to watch overall, there have been plenty of stories to follow in that system which provide the joy of watching baseball, even if it’s a small sample size.
Pirates Prospects Spotlight
Why Am I Here? Some Interesting Initial Assignments in the Pirates’ System
Pirates Links
Prospect Watch: Indianapolis Tosses a Combined No-Hitter
Daily Video Rundown: Brenden Dixon, Henry Davis, Maikol Escotto
Pirates Discussion: Pirates 6, Cubs 2; Thompson Leaves Early
Other Pirates Coverage:
- Danny Demilio: Gamel’s First Inning Homer, Hayes’ Four-Hit Day Lead Pirates to 6-2 Win Over Cubs
- Mike Asti: From the Pirates Clubhouse: Shelton, Thompson, Crowe After Win Over Cubs 4/13/22
- Danny Demilio: Belief in Pirates Big Reason for Ke’Bryan Hayes Signing Extension
- Dejan Kovacevic: Nutting’s saying the right stuff, but still no Reynolds approach
- Jason Mackey: Jose Quintana adjusted his arsenal to impress in Pirates debut
THIS WEEK ON PIRATES PROSPECTS
Which Pirates Prospects Stood Out in the First Week?
Top Pirates Prospects Sorted by Level, Position and Age
Why Am I Here? Some Interesting Initial Assignments in the Pirates’ System
Travis Swaggerty Gears For Season After Roller Coaster Break
Ji-Hwan Bae: Opposite Field Hitting Leads To Strong Opening Week
Cody Bolton Returns to the Mound After Two Years Away
Indianapolis Indians Pitching Staff Thrive Through Chaotic Week
