Welcome to the Pirates Prospects daily video rundown, where we pull some of the top videos of the Pittsburgh Pirates across the internet.
Ke’Bryan Hayes Home Run
Hayes is one of the best in the league when it comes to exit velocity, it’s just his launch angle that keeps him from sending baseballs over the fence. He caught it just right here, hitting his first of the spring against Philadelphia.
Major Ke Alert. pic.twitter.com/maarmURx9W
— Pittsburgh Pirates (@Pirates) February 27, 2023
Quinn Priester
He hasn’t appeared in an official Spring Training contest but the 2019 first round pick by the Pirates pitched an inning in a simulated game this past Sunday, facing veteran Chris Owings here.
Good sample of Quinn Priester’s pitch mix pic.twitter.com/YVfflD4VDQ
— Alex Stumpf (@AlexJStumpf) February 26, 2023
Malcom Nunez
Nunez could factor into the first base picture at some point this year, depending on the status of Ji-Man Choi and Carlos Santana. Here he drives a double against Vince Velasquez.
We’ve got a sim game down in Bradenton, and Malcom Nunez rips a double off Vince Velasquez pic.twitter.com/c6gcEesqBj
— Justice delos Santos (@justdelossantos) February 26, 2023
Anthony began writing over 10 years ago, starting a personal blog to cover the 2011 MLB draft, where the Pirates selected first overall. After bouncing around many websites covering hockey, he refocused his attention to baseball, his first love when it comes to sports. He eventually found himself here at Pirates Prospects in late 2021, where he covers the team’s four full season minor league affiliates.
Off topic, but did you guys hear that former Bucs Pitcher, Joe Musgrove, fractured his big toe after dropping a kettle bell on it yesterday? Going to set him back 2+ weeks.
Just hoping we can go relatively unscathed through ST. Far more important than wins and losses.
Love Joe Musgrove, but must say I would be tickled if all the$200+MM signee’s for the Padres result in a below 500 record. Their GM gets way too much credit considering the results. Already traded away the farm, failure would be sweet for the MLB club
Yes my god just think where they’d be with Hudson Head.
Who would we prefer as the next option at 1B, after Santana & Choi are shipped out, Nunez or Triolo?
I am hoping Malcom Nunez will be able to continue hitting with homers in the majors. I think the purpose of acquiring him was to switch him to a first baseman.
I would say Nunez at 1b…They would be wasting his glove if they put Triolo there…
I think I’d prefer Gorski or even Martin, if they can figure out how to lower their SO% to below 30%.
Of the two you listed, I like Nunez’s bat better. Obviously Triolo is far superior glove and legs.
Ke’Bryan Hayes has proved he is an elite fielder at third base and hinted at being a plus hitter. Whether his offensive capabilities reach a level near his defensive prowess is the kind of thing to ‘dream on.’ Yet, as noted here by others, his hitting does not need to be that good to justify his contract. Left out of the conversation is his injury history. In 2022 a wrist injury may well be the cause of his less than expected hitting. Wrist/hand injuries, like Ke’Bryan sustained, are particularly difficult for hitters to overcome, and they do not heal quickly. That said, he spent several times on the injury list in 2021, too. So, is he injury prone? Maybe, but it’s possible he’s just been unlucky and we shall see the real offensive Ke’Bryan Hayes in 2023. Dream on that!
He’s almost exactly the hitter scouts projected he’d be nearly a decade ago when they said he’d need a swing change to unlock his power.
It’s the swing.
I remember but hope not.
Hayes defensive floor is so high that all we need from him is average MLB plate production. He is capable of so much more than that, but if he can get to 100 to 110 WRC+ I will consider him a monster success at the price the pirates paid.
Anything else is gravy. The idea that he has to win silver sluggers is misplaced, even though his exit velos show he has the capability with the right mechanical tweaks.
Wonder if Castro 3b/ Bae 2b can give more value than Hays 3b/ or Castro or Bae at 2b. I know one of Bae or Castro or could be the dh, but that could be davis and Endy sharing catching/ dh situation. Also this is more of a 2024 and beyond quandary.
The real question is if the team is better with Triolo at 3B, Hayes at SS, Castro at 2B, Cruz in RF, and Bae as Super Utility guy?
Now imagine Hayes were traded to another team who unlocked his power and turned him into a 6 WAR star.
Still misplaced?
Yes if that’s what is expected. It isn’t a misplaced HOPE.
I hear you buddy, but if the expectation is not to get the most out of the talent they have then I’m not sure why they ever bothered firing Huntington.
Kebryan Hayes drilling ground balls into the dirt is akin to Gerrit Cole pitching to contact.
I would expect to get a 90th percentile success rate sometimes. Ideally, more often than most teams. But I would never expect 100% of players to reach their 90th percentile projections.
everything is relative.
You can’t expect every player to be their peak selves. No team does that. so if we are trying to decide whether haye’s is a disappointment or not I stand by what I said. if he can get to 100 110 WRC+ I’m happy.
Now if EVERY prospect ends up not hitting their peak then sure. I think Hayes injuries have been significant enough that we don’t know yet.
His back was the big issue last year and he admitted that….. noone has power with a bad back, noone. Its always possible he was looking at doing something with his swing but couldn’t due to the other setbacks. I would like to see someone interview him and ask him about it *hint hint* these are the questions we want to know after an offseason- what did you work on to try to get more value from your exit velocity for 2023.
You’re pretty astute at seeing changes in swings. Did you see anything in Hayes HR swing that looked different than last year?
I think a better questgion is: was there anything in his swing which was different LAST year that might have been due to injury
Not in any practical sense, no. Look at the batted ball data and tell me what’s different about last year that led to worse outcomes.
lol, spent about 15 minutes this morning watching clips on Savant trying to figure out just that.
He definitely looks deeper into his legs as opposed to being more upright last year and his hands are starting further from his body. At least to my eye!