The climb up the minor league ladder isn’t always a clean one. Players have down years and development isn’t always linear.
While we saw some players breakout last year, like Matt Gorski and Endy Rodriguez, some former notable prospects also had down years. Here’s a look at a few that will be trying to work their way back after a rough 2022 season.
Matt Fraizer
The Pirates breakout player in 2021, Frazier put together an outstanding season, slashing .306/.388/.552 with 23 home runs and 15 stolen bases while playing for Greensboro and Altoona.
He played all of 2022 back in Double-A, and couldn’t find the same success that he did the year prior. Of all players in the system with at least 250 plate appearances, Fraizer finished with the worst wRC+ (69).
Welcome back to Altoona Matt Fraizer! A two-run shot makes it a 6-4 game!
LISTEN: https://t.co/aioWvW3Svf
WATCH: https://t.co/6GP894jPtF pic.twitter.com/FBdQOKKO2m— Altoona Curve (@AltoonaCurve) April 8, 2022
It’s a very crowded outfield picture in the upper levels, and there’s a good chance he starts again in Altoona. So to find himself back in the organizational picture, he’ll have to look more like his 2021 self than what happened in 2022.
Sammy Siani
The outfielder was the 37th overall pick back in 2019 and hasn’t had the most smooth starts to his professional career. There was some to like during his time in Bradenton (116 wRC+ and 20.2 BB%), but also some left to be desired (12.7 LD% and .215 average).
Once he got to Greensboro, the walks were still good (13.8%), and the line drive rate even took a huge jump forward. The strikeouts though skyrocketed, as Siani struck out 36.2% of the time.
The struggle was so bad he was eventually sent to the complex league to work out some things, before heading back to Greensboro. He did steal 25 bases, so his speed could be his way back into prospect status.
Maikol Escotto
I talked about Escotto not too long ago, putting up decent numbers while in Bradenton in 2021, part of the team that won the division title. He finished with a league average wRC+ in his first time in Bradenton, showed some power with Greensboro in 2022, but ultimately struggled to make contact.
He ended up finishing the year in Bradenton again, and will be only 20-years-old when the season starts, where he will probably get another crack at Greensboro.
Liover Peguero
Entering the 2022 season, Peguero was a Top 100 prospect, and looked like a true option to eventually replace Oneil Cruz at shortstop at some point in the future.
It was a literal tale of two halves for the young prospect, who got off to an amazing start before getting promoted to Pittsburgh — picking up his first big league hit — and eventually struggling down the stretch.
Liover Peguero stays hot for Altoona #LetsGoBucs pic.twitter.com/9Jd4FSOMI1
— Anthony Murphy (@__Murphy88) September 16, 2022
Overall, Peguero posted just an 88 wRC+ in 521 plate appearances with the Curve. He’s still just 22, and has all of the tools to turn things around and return to his top prospect status.
Mason Martin
With Martin, it always remains a matter of making enough contact to force his way into the majors. He has some of the best raw power in all of the minors, shown by the fact he still hit 19 home runs in Triple-A, despite a .210 average and 35.6% strikeout rate.
The strikeouts have long been a concern, and his struggles in Indianapolis weren’t the biggest surprise. Martin is less a bounce back candidate, and more a guy to watch to see if he can figure out the strikeouts.
Highlight of the Day
Pirates Prospects Daily
By Tim Williams
**Wilbur Miller had photos from the first day of workouts at Pirate City.
**The Pirates signed LHP Kent Enmanuel to a minor league deal.
**Missed yesterday? Anthony broke down the other left-handed relievers in MLB camp.
