While the Pittsburgh Pirates were busy sweeping the St. Louis Cardinals to open the 2016 MLB season, their minor league affiliates set their rosters for the year. The top prospects at the Pirates' higher levels are pretty well-known: Jameson Taillon and Tyler Glasnow in Triple-A Indianapolis, along with Harold Ramirez and Reese McGuire in Double-A Altoona.
Going deeper, though, there area a handful of potential breakout stars at the Single-A level. Tim Williams of Pirates Prospects recently made his picks for the players to watch in Bradenton (High-A) and West Virginia (A).
Bradenton Marauders Prospects To Watch
Williams went with a pair of southpaws in Brandon Waddell and Stephen Tarpley. Waddell has more impressive pure stuff, but Tarpley has a wider arsenal of offerings, mixing pitches and speeds effectively. The hitters he chose were third baseman Connor Joe and second baseman Kevin Kramer. Joe has good power for the High-A level and slick skills at the hot corner, while Kramer projects as more of a gap-to-gap hitter.
West Virginia Power Prospects To Watch
Dario Agrazal and JT Brubaker were Williams' picks for A-ball pitchers. Agrazal is a sinkerballer while Brubaker is more of a typical two-pitch guy, but both have velocity that is climbing into the mid-90s. Williams doubled-down on outfielder Tito Polo -- one of his big predictions from last year -- due to Polo's overall hitting acumen and speed on the basepaths, which he likened to recently extended Gregory Polanco. His other hitter, the hulking Casey Hughston, is more of a long-term project, needing to improve his opposite-field approach to match his power stroke.
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