Episode five of The Pirates Prospects Podcast can be downloaded or streamed below. This week’s episode includes analysis from Tom Bragg (@TomBraggSports) and James Santelli (@JamesSantelli) on the Pirates, John Dreker (@JohnDreker) on the draft, an interview with Pittsburgh Pirates reliever Mark Melancon (@Mark_Melancon_), and more. Highlights of the show include:
Minor League Update:
**With the mid-season prospect rankings coming up, I give a view of what goes into my rankings and what I consider for each player. It’s not all about upside. If it was, Tyler Glasnow would be the number one prospect in the system. As for that number one prospect, the guy I’m leaning towards right now is Gregory Polanco.
**John Dreker joins the show to discuss the average mock draft rankings, and compares those rankings to his own personal rankings. We discuss why we wouldn’t want D.J. Peterson to be taken by the Pirates.
With James and Tom:
**A continued discussion of the potential regression of Jeff Locke.
**The Pirates pitching staff is for real, and is a big reason why the team is contending. We talk about A.J. Burnett, Wandy Rodriguez, and Francisco Liriano and how they’re anchoring the rotation.
**The return of Charlie Morton and Jeff Karstens will bring some interesting decisions, and we talk about what the moves could be when those guys return.
**Is the other shoe going to drop? What should the expectations be for the Pirates?
**Why does James hate Ted Lilly?
Player Interview
**This week’s player interview is with Mark Melancon. Mark and James Santelli discuss his bounce back this year, Jason Grilli, Russell Martin, which starters have stood out to him in the rotation, and his nickname on the team. Mark also teases a new addition to the “Shark Tank” over the next week that the fans will enjoy.
Click here to download the show (right-click and “Save Link As”) or stream it below.
