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Steven Brault is the Pirates Prospects 2017 Minor League Pitcher of the Year

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Steven Brault will make the start in Pittsburgh tonight. It will be his third start of the season, with all three coming this month. Brault wasn’t really getting starts out of necessity, but was placed in the Pirates’ rotation this month to give guys like Ivan Nova a break. He didn’t make a start earlier in the year, and that wasn’t because he was undeserving, but because the Pirates didn’t have many opportunities for depth starters, with the rotation staying mostly healthy and productive.

As a result, Brault stayed in the minors most of the year, and he dominated to the tune of a 1.94 ERA in 120.1 innings with Indianapolis, along with a 109:44 K/BB ratio. That performance makes him the 2017 Pirates Prospects Minor League Pitcher of the Year.

Brault’s ERA was the lowest in the system of any starter with more than 100 innings of work. Only Scooter Hightower (1.94 in 88 innings) and Tyler Glasnow (1.93 in 93.1 innings) were close when it came to pitchers with 80+ innings. He also finished tied sixth in strikeouts, and sixth in WHIP among pitchers with 80+ innings (second among pitchers with 100+ innings, behind Mitch Keller).

Brault is a guy who belongs in the majors, and if he were in a different organization, or if the Pirates had more injuries, he would have definitely had that shot this year. Going forward, it will be interesting to see how he is used with the Pirates. He has one more option year remaining, so he could be used as a nice depth option in 2018. He could also be used as a lefty reliever out of the bullpen, with the option to still pitch in the rotation, much like what we saw out of Trevor Williams this year.

His performance in 2017 with Indianapolis showed that he is ready for the majors, and he’s now getting that shot, only after being the best pitcher in the Pirates’ system this year.

Below you will find our Minor League Pitchers of the Year for each level in the farm system, our previous overall award winners, and the 2017 monthly awards.

Previous Pirates Prospects Minor League Pitchers of the Year

2016 – Mitch Keller

2015 – Chad Kuhl

2014 – Tyler Glasnow

2013 – Tyler Glasnow

2012 – Jeff Locke

2011 – Kyle McPherson

2017 Pirates Prospects Minor League Pitchers of the Year By Level

Indianapolis – Steven Brault, LHP (1.94 ERA, 120.1 IP, 109:44 K/BB)

Altoona – Austin Coley, RHP (3.01 ERA, 143.2 IP, 114:31 K/BB)

Bradenton – Pedro Vasquez, RHP (3.73 ERA, 137.2 IP, 107:30 K/BB)

West Virginia – Eduardo Vera, RHP (3.33 ERA, 132.1 IP, 109:14 K/BB)

Morgantown – Scooter Hightower, RHP (1.94 ERA, 88.0 IP, 80:9 K/BB)

Bristol – Braeden Ogle, LHP (3.14 ERA, 43.0 IP, 35:16 K/BB)

GCL Pirates – Samuel Reyes, RHP (2.65 ERA, 34.0 IP, 24:4 K/BB)

2017 Pirates Prospects Pitcher of the Month Awards

April

Overall – Alex McRae

Indianapolis – Tyler Eppler

Altoona – Alex McRae

Bradenton – Dario Agrazal

West Virginia – Luis Escobar

May

Overall – Steven Brault

Indianapolis – Steven Brault

Altoona – Austin Coley

Bradenton – Pedro Vasquez

West Virginia – Cam Vieaux

June

Overall – Steven Brault

Indianapolis – Steven Brault

Altoona – Tate Scioneaux

Bradenton – Dario Agrazal

West Virginia – Oddy Nunez

July

Overall – Tyler Glasnow

Indianapolis – Tyler Glasnow

Altoona – Tanner Anderson

Bradenton – Bret Helton

West Virginia – Luis Escobar

Morgantown – Ike Schlabach

Bristol – Hunter Stratton

GCL Pirates – Yeudry Manzanillo

August

Overall – Scooter Hightower

Indianapolis – Tyler Glasnow

Altoona – Mitch Keller

Bradenton – James Marvel

West Virginia – Eduardo Vera

Morgantown – Scooter Hightower

Bristol – Alex Manasa

GCL Pirates – Samuel Reyes

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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