The Pittsburgh Pirates and the other major league teams will be participating in the MLB June Amateur Draft on Sunday. The first round of the draft is sandwiched between Saturday’s Futures Game and Monday’s Home Run Derby before the All-Star Game on Tuesday. It will be like four days in paradise for baseball fans. The Pirates will pick ninth, their lowest position since 2019.
Possible First-Round Picks for the Pirates in the 2024 Draft
Baseball’s draft is different from that of football or basketball in that the draftees generally won’t provide immediate help, Paul Skenes being a rare exception. Thus, baseball teams will draft based on the best player available, rather than on need.
On the other hand, the Pirates have a big hole in their organization in that they lack good prospects at first base. On the major league level, since trading Josh Bell, first base has been occupied by a string of one-year rentals, with varying degrees of success. The last two highly regarded first-base prospects the Pirates had were Mason Martin and Will Craig. Martin is currently playing in the Atlantic League. Craig is on the coaching staff at Wake Forest.
General manager Ben Cherington won’t ask for any writer’s opinion. He’s already on record saying that the Pirates will take a “best-athlete-available” approach in this year’s draft. But suppose there’s a college first baseman available who might be just a year away from the majors? One strategy may be to sign Rowdy Tellez for an additional year until this hypothetical college first baseman is ready. Might Cherington be tempted to depart from the norm and make a selection based on need? There are two college first basemen rated as worthy first-round picks.
Following is one man’s opinion on the two players most likely to be available when the Pirates pick, as well as two first basemen who might fall their way if the stars align.
Best Available
If the draft goes according to the rankings – which it rarely does – the Pirates would end up with the No. 9 prospect. That would be high school shortstop/outfielder Konnor Griffin of Jackson Prep in Mississippi. At six-foot-four and 215 pounds, he has the potential to be a five-tool player. Scouts project Griffin could eventually develop into a 30-30 player while providing strong defense at shortstop or in center field. The young right-handed hitter is committed to Louisiana State University. That, along with the fact that he’ll require more time for development than a college player, may scare some teams away. But not the Pirates, if they’re truly committed to taking the best available player who comes their way.
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The No. 8 prospect, Braden Montgomery, may fall to the Pirates, too. He’s a six-foot-two, 220-pound switch-hitting outfielder from Texas A&M. He began his college career at Stanford before transferring to Texas A&M for the 2024 season. It was there he blossomed into a power hitter. In 2024, he hit .322/.454/.733 with 27 homers and 85 RBI in 61 games. His decision to abandon plans to be a two-way player may have contributed to his improved power hitting. Scouts give his arm a 70 ranking, making him suitable for right field.
Who’s On First?
The No. 3 ranked prospect available in the draft is Jac Caglianone, a big first baseman/pitcher from the University of Florida. He bats and throws left-handed. He hits for power and throws a fastball that can touch 100 mph. Scouts rate his power and his fastball at 70. This season for Florida, he batted .419/.544/.875, 35 HR, and 72 RBI in 66 games. He wasn’t quite as successful on the mound, where he had a 4.76 ERA and 6.1 walks per nine innings.
But isn’t this discussion moot, you ask? How will the No. 3 prospect in the draft be available when the Pirates pick ninth? Here’s how. The Colorado Rockies, picking third, are reported to be high on Hagen Smith, a left-handed pitcher from the University of Arkansas. The Oakland Athletics, picking fourth, are said to favor Montgomery. Griffin is thought to be the type of prospect the Chicago White Sox, picking fifth, have been trying to acquire via a trade. If all of this speculation is true, Caglianone needs only to survive three more turns before he drops to the Pirates.
A more reasonable possibility to be available for the Pirates to draft might be the No. 7 prospect, Nick Kurtz of Wake Forest. Like Caglianone, he’s big and bats left-handed. Kurtz is six-feet-five, 240 pounds, the same height as Caglianone, and 10 pounds lighter. Kurtz’s power is to all fields. He gets high marks as a fielder at first base as well. In 2024, he hit .306/.531/.763, 22 HR, and 57 RBI in 54 games. Kurtz has drawn comparisons to Jim Thome.
The Last Word
The Pirates can’t go wrong with any of the top prospects in this draft. Despite their frugal reputation, lately, they haven’t been cheap when it comes to the draft. It will be interesting to see what direction the teams take on Sunday night.
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