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