Tony Blanco Jr. has some of the best raw power in the Pittsburgh Pirates’ system.
That was on display Saturday night, when he blasted two home runs, giving him 21 on the season for Greensboro.
The 6’ 7”, 243 pound outfielder only had eight home runs last season, and only had 18 across his first four seasons. The power was hidden away in the game results, even if it wasn’t obvious in the stat line.
The biggest proof of this? Blanco’s max exit velocity in Bradenton last season was 119.8 MPH.
The disclaimer is this came in Low-A, but those are Oneil Cruz numbers. Blanco’s average exit velocity was 93.1 MPH. By comparison, only one Bradenton hitter this season is above 90 MPH, and he’s two years older than Blanco.
One year earlier, Blanco launched a 114.4 MPH shot as an 18-year-old in the FCL. He only hit four home runs that season, but did bat .305 in 109 plate appearances.
Blanco’s average has gone down as he’s moved up in the system. He hit .264 last year, and is hitting .260 in Greensboro this season. Beyond the power, there have been some positive signs lately in his ability to make contact.
Over the last 30 days, Blanco is hitting .328/.427/.828. The power has been next level, with nine home runs in 75 plate appearances. It’s not just power. He’s hitting for average, and his strikeout rate has dropped to around 28% this season.
I always mention the fact that Greensboro is a hitter-friendly park, but Blanco has 11 home runs on the road versus 10 at home. His overall hitting has been better away from home.
What I like about what Blanco is doing this year starts with the power. He’s taken the incredible raw power he put on display at times over the last two years and has managed to consistently apply that to games. I also like the recent progression that has led to improved hitting across the board.
There was a time earlier this summer when Blanco had a decent amount of home runs, and an average around .237. He just didn’t stand out to me, looking like someone who couldn’t do much more than hit home runs, and who wasn’t maximizing the power he had.
All of that is changing. Not only is he increasing the home run totals, but he’s showing promise beyond the home runs. This is good, as Blanco will be an offense-first prospect.
I had Blanco rated the 33rd best prospect in my recent expansion of the top 50 prospects in the system. The lower ranking is due to concerns with his contact abilities. If he continues improving in that area, he could take a big jump in the rankings after the season.
Expanding the Pirates Prospects Rankings and Reports to the Top 50
Tony Blanco Jr. is the 33rd best prospect in the system.
Iredale’s Power History
I mentioned above that only one Bradenton hitter this season has an average exit velocity above 90 MPH. That hitter is Brent Iredale.
The third base prospect, drafted in the seventh round last year out of Arkansas, has a 92.6 MPH average exit velocity this season. His max is 113.8 MPH.
Last night, Iredale launched a 109.4 MPH home run for the Marauders. It was his 12th of the season, and his third homer of the week.
Iredale turned 23 this season, so he’s older for the Low-A level. This level is more aligned with college talent, and High-A would provide more of a challenge at the Division I equivalent level. But Iredale doesn’t have a lot of Division I experience.
His first two seasons in college were spent at the JuCo level, playing for New Mexico Junior College. The power was present at that level. He hit 17 homers his freshman season, followed by 25 the following year. Iredale became the first player to win back-to-back Western Junior College Athletic Conference MVP awards.
He transferred to Arkansas in 2025, where he hit .286/.450/.544 with 14 homers during his junior year. After being drafted by the Pirates, Iredale put up similar numbers this year in Bradenton. He’s batting .263/.392/.522 with 12 homers and a 16.1% walk rate.
The big concern is swing and miss, with a 29% strikeout rate. Iredale is a very passive hitter, with the third-lowest swing rate in Bradenton this season. That leads to the walks. However, his contact rate is among the lowest on the team.
As he moves up, the passive approach won’t lead to as many walks, and the low contact will lead to more strikeouts. He has some of the best power in the lower levels, but that could be negated by the swing and miss.
Still, the power was enough for Iredale to take one of the final spots in my top 50 prospect list, making him a deep sleeper to watch.
Polanco Getting Hot
With the biggest bonus of the Pirates’ 2021 international class, there was a lot of hype surrounding Shalin Polanco.
Over the last four seasons, he’s been stuck in A-ball, with his career stalling in the same way each year.
Polanco got the push to Low-A at the age of 19 in 2023. He showed some promise, hitting 12 home runs and getting on base at a .323 rate. The numbers have declined ever since.
He’s hit double-digit home runs in each of the last three seasons, but his OBP has dropped below .300 each year, due to a consistently declining BABIP. A big reason for that could be his line drive rate declining steadily, in tandem with his fly ball rate increasing. The fly balls haven’t led to an increase in home runs.
Polanco has stood out this past week.
He homered on Saturday night, hitting his tenth of the season. This followed two homers earlier in the week, giving him four total in his last eight games. He’s also hitting more consistently this week, with at least one hit in each of his last five starts.
Earlier in the year, the Pirates sent Polanco to Altoona, despite struggling numbers in Greensboro. It was less of a promotion and more using a once promising prospect as depth. The results from Polanco weren’t good, and after two months in Double-A, he returned to Greensboro.
Since that return, Polanco has been hitting better. He is batting .241/.353/.655 over his last two weeks. It’s a tiny drop of hope, but it’s better than what he’s done for the last three seasons.
With two weeks remaining in the season, Polanco has a chance to finish strong. He’s likely to return to A-ball next season, but just needs things to click for a short time to have a shot at getting his career back on track.
Saturday’s Results
Here were the top performers from the Pirates’ top 30 prospects on Saturday night. You can find the top 30 list, and their season/nightly results, on the Pirates Prospects homepage.
Wyatt Sanford (#7) stole his 27th base of the season, going 1-for-5 on the night. Sanford stole 34 bases last season between the FCL and Low-A. All of his stolen bases this year have come in Greensboro.
Connor Wietgrefe (#10) gave up four runs, two earned, in 6.1 innings for Indianapolis. He allowed six hits, walked one, and struck out three. In his last ten games at the level, the lefty has a 2.73 ERA in 59.1 innings, with only 15 walks and 44 strikeouts.
Mitch Jebb (#12) went 2-for-5, picking up his second-straight multi-hit game. Jebb has been in a slump lately, batting .195 in his last ten games, despite going 5-for-13 in his last three.
Jhonny Severino (#19) hit his 22nd double of the season. His 2-for-5 performance was his second straight multi-hit game, with a double in each contest.
Duce Gourson (#24) went 1-for-3 with two walks and two stolen bases. He now has 36 steals on the season, along with a 15.8% walk rate.
Bralyn Brazoban (#27) added his ninth double of the season. The 19-year-old outfielder has been struggling lately, going 3-for-30 in his last ten games with 16 strikeouts.
Blanco was the Player of the Day, led by his two home runs.
Jacob Bimbi stood out as the Pitcher of the Day, allowing two runs in 4.2 innings, with five strikeouts. Bimbi recorded 13 whiffs, which led the organization last night. The 2024 11th rounder has a 2.97 ERA in 66.2 innings for Greensboro this season, and has recently been stretched out to be a starter.
Last night’s Plays of the Day video shows both home runs from Blanco, along with the home runs from Iredale and Polanco, and the double from Severino.
Until the next time Blanco crushes one out of a minor league stadium…
-Tim Williams