The Pittsburgh Pirates saw some strong results from a young pitching staff in Bristol this year, including the breakout of Tahnaj Thomas. The 19-year-old was acquired from the Cleveland Indians last winter in a five-player deal, coming over as a raw pitcher with a ton of upside.
The Pirates saw him start to exceed any previous expectations by early July when he was throwing more strikes while consistently hitting 99+ MPH, pushing his stock up to a top five prospect in the system by the end of the year.
The progress Thomas saw wasn’t just a young pitcher finally reaching his potential. There was a lot of work that went into his emergence as a legit top prospect. His development was pushed along in early Spring Training by a minor shoulder injury that brought about a major mechanical adjustment.
The Pirates had Thomas working all year with new Bristol pitching coach Eric Minshall, who along with rehab pitching coach Matt Ford, helped make mechanical changes in Thomas’ delivery that led to the success. Thomas went on to put up great numbers in Bristol, along with the eye-catching velocity.
As for Minshall, he is no longer in the Pirates’ system.
Minshall was told that he wasn’t being brought back at the end of the season, while the Pirates were still under Neal Huntington’s front office. That’s not what you’d expect for a coach who worked with the breakout prospect in the system this year.
The Pirates hired Minshall back in mid-January. He worked down at Pirates City from the start of Spring Training, through Extended ST, and then went to Bristol in late June. He had extensive experience before joining the Pirates, including the pitching coach position for Miami Hamilton during the previous six seasons. He owns the Cincinnati Throwing Club and ran the Southern Ohio Elite summer development program for many years. It wasn’t pro experience, but he had a track record of successfully developing pitchers.
I was able to talk to Minshall earlier this year about the intriguing young rotation at Bristol. He went in-depth about working with each player from spring through early July, when the article was posted. We also talked about some of the other pitchers making progress (and others who weren’t) at that time, so there was more than you see in that piece. It wasn’t just a look inside the team, it was a look at the person helping these prospects grow as players.
For the first time since becoming affiliated with the Pirates, the Bristol starting rotation didn’t include a single college draft pick. Minshall was working with that six-man group that had no one older than 20 years old. Two of his pitchers, Luis Ortiz and Adrian Florencio, had no pro experience, yet they were able to skip over the lowest two levels. It was not a group that had a lot of prior experience or success.
Bristol pitchers posted a 4.09 ERA during the season. The Appalachian League is one of the more hitter-friendly leagues, so that ERA was actually a solid number, ranking them fourth in the league, .04 behind third place. In 2018, Bristol had a 5.67 ERA, ranking them last in the league. Their 5.24 ERA in 2017 was next to last in the league. They had the worst ERA in 2014, 2015 and 2016, their first three years as an affiliate of the Pirates.
Basically, we haven’t seen anything close to the pitching performance we saw from Bristol this year and they did it with their most inexperienced starting staff ever, along with a first-year pitching coach in charge.
From all accounts I got, Minshall was a well-liked coach in the system. I heard from some players who really liked him, and a few others who worked with him briefly who were surprised that he wasn’t coming back. I looked at his results, such as helping Tahnaj Thomas through that mechanical change, while getting him to throw harder and throw more strikes at the same time. Thomas also improved his slider into an out pitch, and developed a changeup into a solid third pitch.
Minshall spent all year working with Santiago Florez, who is one of the highest upside pitchers in the system and showed solid results in 2019. We heard positives from pitchers who weren’t in the rotation, such as Yoelvis Reyes and Saul de la Cruz each showing huge improvements. As a group, there seemed to be many more positives than in the past, as it showed in the stats and the scouting reports.
It all adds up to a coach who seemed more in line for a promotion than a one-and-done trial in the system.
“I was blind-sided by the dismissal,” Minshall said when I reached out to him after learning the news. “Disbelief would be a good way of putting it. In communication with front office staff and coordinators, I was led to believe I was doing a great job. On several occasions, in writing, I was told I was exceeding expectations. Every visit by front office staff and consultants was ended with high praise. I poured everything I had into the players. So, this came as a great surprise.”
The Pirates went through a lot of changes this off-season in their front office and Minshall doesn’t believe that the person responsible for his decision is still with the Pirates.
“My understanding is my dismissal all came down to one person who is no longer in the system,” Minshall said. “Not once, was I ever told I was doing something wrong or that something needed to be done a different way. Quite the contrary. When I was dismissed I was promised a call to explain. That call never happened. I think not being told why I was let go is what bothers me most.”
Minshall is still looking for work at this time, and would be open to rejoining the Pirates if given the chance. The 2019 season allowed him to add some strong accomplishments to his resume. Other teams have noticed the work, as he received calls from multiple teams since being let go by the Pirates.
“You really get to a point where you are helping these young men grow up,” Minshall said. “You form some amazing relationships by gaining trust and fostering accountability with these men. We had a successful run in Bristol this season. Many of our pitchers improved, our staff competed at a high level and we made the playoffs. I just wish I had been able to see it through.”
Even if he doesn’t come back to the Pirates, Minshall said he had a great experience with the organization during his brief time. He left his mark on a lot of young pitchers who will take what they learned from him as use it as they go forward. In turn, he learned from them and will use that going forward to teach new pitchers.
“The Pirates afforded me a great opportunity to learn how to be a pro,” Minshall said about his time in the system. “Understanding the pro system, implement standards and help young men achieve success. I thoroughly enjoyed collaborating with the coaching staffs and continuing the great work they had done before I became a Pirate. The 2019 season as a Pirate working in extended and then in Bristol will be a highlight of my life. The progress that so many of our prospects made this year is special. I am proud of their work and they have earned every accolade.”
The Pirates have a real chance to put together a prospect rotation at Greensboro this year. Thomas and Florez could move up from Bristol. Braxton Ashcraft and Michael Burrows could make the jump from Morgantown, while first round pick Quinn Priester is a legit option to skip to Low-A ball, after making his final start of the season with Morgantown.
That’s five starting pitchers who are top 20 prospects in the system. Whoever ends up as the pitching coach at that level is going to be responsible for bringing along the next wave of top prospects in the system. You can only hope that they see the type of results we saw with Bristol this year.
