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Instructs Report: Max Kranick Showing Promise With His New Curveball

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BRADENTON, Fla. – The Pirates received some impressive debuts from their 2016 prep pitchers. Left-hander Braeden Ogle consistently flashed a fastball that touched the 94-96 MPH range early in starts. Travis MacGregor showed some potential with his long frame and developing breaking pitch. But one of the most impressive debuts came from Max Kranick, taken in the 11th round and given a $300,000 bonus, which amounted to all the money the Pirates had left to spend in their draft bonus pool.

Watching the prep pitchers this year, Ogle definitely looks like the flashiest prospect of the group, and might be the best guy right now with his current stuff. But I get the feeling that in a few years, Kranick will emerge as the top prospect from this bunch, and that mostly comes down to his command.

“I think my command is my strong point,” Kranick said. “I feel like it already has been. I feel like I can put my fastball wherever I want, in any count.”

The right-hander finished his pro debut in the GCL with a 2.43 ERA and a 21:4 K/BB ratio in 33.1 innings. He pitches on a downward plane and can move the fastball all around the zone. He also has an advanced feel for a changeup. This combination is probably because he was forced to use the fastball/changeup combination exclusively at a young age, and didn’t add a breaking pitch until high school. That’s also why the breaking pitch has been the biggest focus in his development this year.

Kranick switched to a curveball this year, after his previous slider was ineffective at getting swings and misses. He’s only been throwing the curveball for about a year now, but is showing some steady improvements.

“Last year I threw a slider, and I was never really too consistent with the release point,” Kranick said. “This year I’m just focusing on a consistent release point, and working on spin and stuff  like that. It’s come a long way.”

When I saw Kranick for his first start of the year, he didn’t throw many curveballs, and a lot of the pitches he threw ended up getting spiked in the dirt in front of the plate. The pitch looked improved by the end of the season, and he has carried those improvements over to the GCL.

“I’m definitely getting the hang of it. I just started throwing it literally [last] off-season,” Kranick said. “This is my first year with it. As the year has gone on, I’ve gotten better and better.”

It’s no surprise that the big focus for him this off-season during instructs has been working on his off-speed stuff more often, specifically the curveball. His fastball has been consistently in the 89-93 MPH range, and has touched higher in the past. He’s got the frame to add some velocity as he fills out and adds strength. And he already has a feel for the changeup. If the curveball continues to develop as expected, then Kranick will be a very interesting pitching prospect to follow in the coming years.

Instructs Notes

By John Dreker

On Tuesday at Pirate City, they moved the regular game to the morning, instead of the normal 1:00 start time. Getting there at noon, I missed that game. The afternoon was a simulated game, where the batters and fielders practice certain situations as the pitchers get their work in, so there aren’t many notes from the action.

**Max Kranick put in two “innings” of work, which was basically just him going out twice to pitch, since outs weren’t being kept in the traditional sense. Kranick looked good, working his fastball down in the zone. The most noteworthy event during his time on the mound was when a batter bailed out on a curveball that ended up going over the plate for a strike.

“My curveball has been coming along, but it’s getting better,” Kranick said of the pitch.

**Gage Hinsz pitched an inning for the other side and was really popping his fastball. He was keeping it down in the zone and working the inside of the plate. The match-up I was looking forward to was Kevin Sanchez against Hinsz. Sanchez was the top signing during the 2015-16 international class, getting a $450,000 bonus. He battled Hinsz to a full count before striking out swinging.

**Sergio Cubilete, Jordan Jess and Ike Schlabach also saw action. Cubilete was almost all fastballs and gave up a couple well hit balls. He sat 90-93 the other day, but he has hit 95 MPH this season. Schlabach had a quick inning, while Jess ran into a little trouble before ending it with a swinging strike on an off-speed pitch. He was sitting 90-92 last week.

**Along with all of the minor league coaches and other staff usually in attendance, Clint Hurdle was also there watching the action.

Tim Williams
Tim Williams
Tim is the owner, producer, editor, and lead writer of PiratesProspects.com. He has been running Pirates Prospects since 2009, becoming the first new media reporter and outlet covering the Pirates at the MLB level in 2011 and 2012. His work can also be found in Baseball America, where he has been a contributor since 2014 and the Pirates' correspondent since 2019.

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