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Morning Report: Mason Martin Highlights the Top Performers in the Pirates’ Farm System This Year

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Over at Baseball America, I had the assignment of naming the Minor League Player of the Year for the Pirates. We feature a Player of the Year and Pitcher of the Year at Pirates Prospects, coming after all of the minor league teams have finished their season. At BA, every player was in consideration for the one spot.

As you can see by clicking the link above, my pick was Mason Martin. The season isn’t over, but Martin has already had a big year at the plate, combining for 34 home runs between Greensboro and Bradenton, with a combined .909 OPS. As with any prospect, there are things to work on going forward — in Martin’s case it’s raising the batting average and cutting down on strikeouts, which I detailed a bit in the story — but the progress shown by Martin this year, especially in the power department, has been impressive.

The jump to Double-A will be a big one for Martin, really testing his work on reducing strikeouts and maintaining a good average. I could see him being a three-outcomes type hitter in the majors, with power fueling his game. He’s got some time to work on his development to get to that point, as the Pirates still have Josh Bell under control for a few more years.

Martin was the clear winner for me on the hitting side this year. I mentioned James Marvel and Cody Bolton in the article as candidates on the pitching side. If playing time wasn’t an issue, I’d also highlight Oneil Cruz on the hitting side.

All four of these guys should start in Double-A or higher next year. Marvel could even get a shot at the majors this season, and should be a depth option at least to start next year. Bolton could contend for the rotation in 2021, if not earlier, while Martin and Cruz could push for starting roles around 2021 or 2022.

If the Pirates are competitive around those years, then these are some of the prospects who can help give them a boost. Or, if they go for a rebuild and get to a point where they can start contending around 2021-2022, these are some of the guys they can build around, while adding some higher upside guys like Quinn Priester and Tahnaj Thomas in the following years.

Of course, that all depends on the progress from these guys going forward. In Martin’s case, he’ll get a big test with the jump to Altoona next year, at which point we might start to see if he can fit in as a future replacement for Bell in Pittsburgh.

PLAYOFF PUSH

Indianapolis has been eliminated from the playoffs.

Altoona has been eliminated from the playoffs.

Bradenton has been eliminated from the playoffs.

Greensboro has 8 games left. They trail by seven in the division and they are 4 1/2 games back for the second best record, which could possibly get them a playoff spot.

Morgantown has 9 games left. They trail by a 1/2 game in the division and two games in the wild card.

Bristol has 3 games left. They are a 1/2 game ahead in first place. Two teams make the playoffs in each division.

GCL Pirates have been eliminated from the playoffs.

DSL Pirates1 season ended.

DSL Pirates2 have clinched a playoff spot

TODAY’S SCHEDULE

Today’s Starter and Notes: The Pittsburgh Pirates won 9-8 over the Cincinnati Reds on Sunday afternoon. The Pirates now travel to Philadelphia for three games against the Phillies. They will send out Joe Musgrove in the series opener. He gave up five runs over five innings against the Washington Nationals in his last start. Musgrove faced the Phillies on July 20th and he gave up one unearned run over six innings, allowing just two hits. He has a 4.02 ERA on the road, compared to 5.35 at home. The Phillies will counter with veteran lefty Jason Vargas, who has a 3.99 ERA in 117.1 innings, with 92 strikeouts and a 1.27 WHIP. He has made his last two starts in Philadelphia, allowing two runs over six innings to the Chicago Cubs, followed by two runs over 5.2 innings against the San Diego Padres. Vargas faced the Pirates on July 28th while he was with the New York Mets, and he surrendered three runs in 5.2 innings.

The minor league schedule includes the third start for Cody Ponce in Indianapolis. He gave up six runs over four innings in the first game, followed by five shutout innings in the second start. Ponce has not walked a batter in Triple-A, while picking up 13 strikeouts. Bristol is sending out 19-year-old Santiago Florez, who is coming off of his best start of the season. Florez tossed six shutout frames six days ago, allowing four hits, with no walks and seven strikeouts.

Morgantown is sending out JC Flowers for his seventh start. This year’s fourth round pick went 3.1 innings in his last start, allowing eight hits and five runs, which are both highs for him. Altoona is sending out Domingo Robles, who gave up one run over seven innings in his last start, while tying his career high with nine strikeouts. His shortest outing of the year came back on July 2nd against today’s opponent (2.1 IP versus Akron). Brad Case goes for Bradenton. He has allowed four runs in each of his last three starts. Greensboro doesn’t have a starter listed, but it should be Will Kobos, who tossed five no-hit innings in his last start, while striking out a career high eight batters. The DSL regular season is over. The Pirates2 received a first round bye, so their playoffs will start later this week.

MLB: Pittsburgh (55-75) @ Phillies (67-62) 7:05 PM
Probable starter: Joe Musgrove (4.74 ERA, 125:34 SO/BB, 142.1 IP)

AAA: Indianapolis (64-68) vs Toledo (62-70) 7:05 PM (season preview)
Probable starter: Cody Ponce (4.00 ERA, 13:0 SO/BB, 9.0 IP)

AA: Altoona (65-67) vs Akron (60-72) 6:00 PM  (season preview)
Probable starter: Domingo Robles (4.55 ERA, 66:20 SO/BB, 89.0 IP)

High-A: Bradenton (70-61) vs Palm Beach (56-70) 6:30 PM (season preview)
Probable starter: Brad Case (4.61 ERA, 51:22 SO/BB, 66.1 IP)

Low-A: Greensboro (75-55) vs Rome (62-69) 7:00 PM (season preview)
Probable starter: Will Kobos (2.25 ERA, 25:12 SO/BB, 24.0 IP)

Short-Season A: Morgantown (36-31) @ State College (35-33) 6:05 PM (season preview)
Probable starter: JC Flowers (5.31 ERA, 19:9 SO/BB, 20.1 IP)

Rookie: Bristol (33-31) vs Danville (28-37) 6:30 PM (season preview)
Probable starter: Santiago Florez (3.47 ERA, 30:19 SO/BB, 36.1 IP)

GCL: Pirates (17-34) vs Braves (17-30) 12:00 PM (season preview)

DSL: Pirates1 (34-36) (season preview)

DSL: Pirates2 (56-16) vs TBD (season preview)

HIGHLIGHTS

From Indianapolis on Saturday, Christian Kelley hits a two-run double

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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