{"id":68171,"date":"2024-03-13T08:00:31","date_gmt":"2024-03-13T12:00:31","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/baseball\/?p=68171"},"modified":"2024-03-12T16:04:27","modified_gmt":"2024-03-12T20:04:27","slug":"pirates-spring-breakout-game-prospects","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/baseball\/2024\/03\/13\/pirates-spring-breakout-game-prospects\/","title":{"rendered":"Pirates’ Spring Breakout Game Showcases Intriguing Prospects"},"content":{"rendered":"

The Pittsburgh Pirates\u2019 roster for Thursday\u2019s Spring Breakout game is an intriguing one. The game pits their prospects against the Baltimore Orioles\u2019 prospects. The Spring Breakout games<\/a>, which involve all 30 MLB teams, are a brilliant promotional idea by Major League Baseball. At no time in baseball history has there been as much interest and scrutiny of prospects. Perhaps taking a cue from the NBA\u2019s inaugural preseason tournament, the Breakout games are a good way to put MLB in the headlines before its season starts.<\/p>\n

Pirates Spring Breakout Roster<\/h2>\n

Top Two Prospects on Display<\/h3>\n

By now, every self-respecting baseball fan knows about right-handed pitcher Paul Skenes<\/a>. He was the No. 1 overall pick in last year’s June Amateur Draft, signing for a record $9.2 million bonus. In his senior year at Louisiana State University, he led the Tigers to the 2023 College World Series championship. That year, he was 13-2 with a 1.69 ERA, .750 WHIP, 209 strikeouts, and 20 walks in 122-2\/3 innings. He\u2019s 21 years old, stands at an intimidating six-foot-six, 235 pounds, and has thrown his fastball as hard as 102 mph. He\u2019s been touted as the greatest pitching prospect since Stephen Strasburg<\/a>. The Pirates are proceeding with caution and informed him he\u2019ll start the season in the minors<\/a>. Don\u2019t be surprised if he\u2019s in the majors by June.<\/p>\n

Skenes and the Pirates’ No. 2 prospect, second baseman Termarr Johnson<\/a>, will be leading the Spring Breakout team. Johnson, 19, was the Pirates\u2019 No. 1 draft pick in 2022. He\u2019s the youngest player in the Pirates\u2019 spring training camp. At five-foot-eight, he might be the smallest, too. He\u2019s visibly upset when he makes an out or fails to make a play in the field. That kind of drive for perfection will take him far in the majors. All indications are that he\u2019ll be an above-average major-league hitter and may advance more rapidly than one might expect. In the exhibition games, he\u2019s looked like a major-league hitter already. He\u2019s 7-for-18 in the spring with two no-doubt homers as of this writing. It\u2019s his defense that needs the most work.<\/p>\n