2 new MLB mock drafts have Pirates taking Reese McGuire at No. 9

Jonathan Mayo's latest mock draft has the Pirates taking high school catcher Reese McGuire at No. 9 and Mississippi State outfielder Hunter Renfroe at No. 14. This one has Austin Meadows falling to the Jays at No. 10. Based on everything I've read, if the Pirates are going to go the toolsy-outfielder route, I'd prefer to see them take Meadows at No. 9 rather than Renfroe at No. 14. But Renfroe seems to be moving up in mocks lately, and McGuire is a reasonable value pick at No. 9.

Keith Law's latest mock, meanwhile, also has the Bucs taking Reese McGuire at No. 9. Renfroe goes to the Padres at No. 13, so the Pirates take college hitter D.J. Peterson. At this point, we've heard the Pirates connected to McGuire and Peterson an awful lot, and Law notes that Neal Huntington flew to Washington State twice to see McGuire, so I think we have to consider McGuire the odds-on favorite at No. 9. (This time, Law has the Pirates passing on Clint Frazier, which, based on what I've read, I'd hate to see.) Of course, as Alex Anthopoulos recently noted, there's a ton of uncertainty at the top of the draft (Law's mock has the Astros taking Colin Moran and Jonathan Gray falling to the Indians at No. 5, for example), and it wouldn't be too surprising to see someone fall to the Pirates who wasn't expected to be there.