FanGraphs posts their list of the Pirates’ top prospects

FanGraphs has posted their list of the Pirates’ top 35 prospects. It’s actually much more extensive than that, as it includes capsule comments on a number of other players, including some of the international prospects the Pirates just signed. The scouting reports on the top 35 are detailed and well worth a read, partly because the authors, Eric Longenhagen and Kiley McDaniel, at least in my opinion are the gold standard for online prospect writing.

Overall, they refer to the system as having “sneaky upside,” which is a product of a lot of the hitters being in the process of trying to alter their approaches. FG has a higher opinion of some of the team’s prospects than you’ll find in most places, Jared Oliva and newly acquired Tahnaj Thomas, for instance. They also haven’t given up on Luis Escobar. They’re a lot higher on Cole Tucker than Kevin Newman, and don’t seem too put out by Kevin Kramer’s struggles during his debut with the Pirates. (They’re not Sizers, obviously.) The best comment was the body-comp for Oneil Cruz: Harold Carmichael.