Baseball America released their mid-season top 50 prospects, and the Pirates had three players on the list. Jameson Taillon, Gregory Polanco, and Alen Hanson were those three players, ranked in that order.
Taillon was the 11th best prospect in the league. Their caption said that Taillon isn’t far behind Cole as far as arriving to the majors. My guess is that Taillon will be up in the middle of June 2014.
Polanco was the 13th best prospect. They said that when he arrives, the Pirates will field three legitimate center fielders. If I were ranking them defensively, I’d go Polanco, then Starling Marte, then Andrew McCutchen.
Hanson finished 39th on the list. BA noted that he might end up as a second baseman, but that he hits enough that a move won’t be a problem. I still think Hanson has a chance to stick at short. He has the tools needed to be decent at the position. He won’t provide defensive value, but he also won’t be a huge liability, and his offense at shortstop will be a big boost.
Yesterday Baseball America had Tyler Glasnow as one of the breakthrough prospects of 2013, so it’s safe to say he finished just outside of the top 50.
