The Indianapolis Indians are the only affiliate in action, beginning their season with a short three-game homestand against the Omaha Storm Chasers.
The prospect star power for the Pittsburgh Pirates will be on display this weekend with their Triple-A affiliate. The starting rotation will have the Pirates top three pitching prospects in Mike Burrows, Quinn Priester, and Luis Ortiz.
Ortiz and Burrows are set to toe the rubber this weekend, along with Caleb Smith sandwiched in-between. The catcher they’ll be throwing to — on most days — will be top prospect Endy Rodriguez. After Endy, the position player group includes Nick Gonzales, Malcom Nunez and Travis Swaggerty.
Unfortunately, if you were looking for a big time prospect matchup, the Omaha Storm Chasers are not that team. The Kansas City Royals’ affiliate has seen quite a few graduations over the last few years, so the upper level prospect depth has thinned out.
Jackson Kowar (RHP), the Royals 2018 first round draft pick and former top 100 prospect, had a difficult 2022 season and will look to get back on track. Nick Pratto (1B) was the Royals 2017 first round pick, and also former top 100 prospect. He had a strong 2022 season in the minors, but a rough debut in the majors, carrying a .657 OPS across his first 182 plate appearances.
I have yet to see set rosters, but I imagine there is at least a chance we get to catch former Pirates farmhand Robbie Glendinning (The Great Glen-Dinger) in Royal blue this weekend.
Triple-A: Indianapolis Indians
Opponent: OMAHA (ROYALS)
Top Prospects
Player | Position | Pipeline Ranking
- MAIKEL GARCIA | SS | 3
- NICK LOFTIN | UTIL | 4
- SAMAD TAYLOR | 2B/OF | 21
Pirates Prospects Daily
By John Dreker
The Pirates are off today, but as you just read, the minor league season starts today. The Prospect Watch will be posted after the game has ended tonight. We will also post the full Indianapolis roster once it becomes available.
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