Dylan Busby

 

DYLAN BUSBY, THIRD BASEMAN
Born: November 28, 1995
Height: 6’3″
Weight: 185
Bats: Right
Throws: Right
Drafted: 3rd Round, 88th Overall, 2017
How Acquired: Draft
College: Florida State
Agent: N/A

WTM’s PLAYER PROFILE

Busby’s calling card is raw power.  After a slow start in 2017 that was probably due to off-season hernia surgery, he put up a 315/399/597 line for Florida State that ended up nearly identical to his line as a sophomore in 2016.  He also slugged .567 in the wood-bat Cape Cod League in 2016.  In his last two collegiate seasons, though, Busby struck out in a little over a quarter of his at-bats, so swinging and missing is likely to be a big part of his game.   He played both third and first in college, and has good athleticism and at least an average arm.  He could stick at third or ultimately move to first or right.  Busby was considered more of a fifth round option and rated 189th by MLB Pipeline and 129th by Baseball America; he signed for a little under the slot amount of $626,600.  Taking a power-oriented hitter like Busby is unusual for the Pirates, who haven’t emphasized power much in the draft in a long time and who could use considerably more of it in their system.

2017
A-:  188/266/256, 160 AB, 8 2B, 1 HR, 11 BB, 48 K, 7-11 SB

Busby had a rough debut, showing poor plate discipline and not showing the expected power.  He did get three extra base hits, including his only HR, in his last four games, so there’s that.

2018
R:  091/130/273, 22 AB, 1 2B, 1 HR, 11 K
R+:  250/300/438, 16 AB, 1 HR, 2 BB, 6 K
A:  243/341/461, 115 AB, 8 2B, 1 3B, 5 HR, 13 BB, 37 K, 3-4 SB

A college hitter from a major program, drafted as early as Busby was, typically would go to Bradenton for his first full season, but after Busby’s struggles the Pirates sent him to West Virginia.  He started off slowly, but got hot in May, batting 273/304/614, although the power came with just one walk and 17 strikeouts.  After a dozen May games, though, Busby got beaned and spent much of the rest of the season trying to get free of concussion symptoms.  He was out until early July, when he went to the GCL for a rehab.  Another beaning cut that rehab short after eight games.  He was out for nearly another month before going to Bristol in August.  He finally made it back to West Virginia for four games in mid-August, then went back on the disabled list.

2019
A+:  213/316/453, 375 AB, 16 2B, 4 3B, 22 HR, 47 BB, 158 K, 2-3 SB

Busby was the regular third baseman for Bradenton.  He had an all-or-nothing season, to put it mildly.  He led the pitching-dominated Florida State League in home runs and, despite a very low batting average, was second in slugging.  He also struck out in over 36% of his plate appearances.  He was prone to lengthy slumps.  Busby hit his tenth HR on May 5, but didn’t hit another one until June 9.  He also had a stretch of 17 games without a home run or RBI later in the season.  He had only a mild platoon split.

It’ll be interesting to see what Busby does at higher levels.  The FSL is a very tough place for power hitters, so his power output was impressive, but it’s hard to imagine an approach with so much swing and miss working in AA or higher.

CONTRACT INFORMATION
2020: Minor league contract
PLAYER INFORMATION
Signing Bonus: $575,000
MiLB Debut: 2017
MLB Debut:
MiLB FA Eligible: 2023
MLB FA Eligible:
Rule 5 Eligible: 2020
Added to 40-Man:
Options Remaining: 3
MLB Service Time: 0.000
TRANSACTIONS
June 13, 2017: Drafted by the Pittsburgh Pirates in the 3rd round, 88th overall pick; signed on June 28.