Pittsburgh Pirates Minor League Statcast Standouts: Batters

Looking at the Pittsburgh Pirates prospects who stand out in key Statcast categories at the plate for power and swing decisions.

One of the latest features on the new PiratesProspects.com is the addition of a sortable Statcast Leaderboard for the minor league system.

Recently, I did a series of articles that broke down the advanced metrics of Pirates hitters in the big leagues.

The minor league Statcast data on Pirates Prospects doesn’t include bat tracking, but it does include some important stats for scouting a player remotely.

The sample sizes are small, especially in the lower levels, but today I’m going to look at who stands out with some key Statcast metrics.

Plate Discipline

O-Swing% is pretty much my go-to metric when evaluating swing decisions. If a player can avoid expanding his strike zone by consistently laying off pitches outside the zone, that player will have an increased chance of success by forcing pitchers to work over the plate.

I don’t know what the minor league averages are for this metric. The MLB average this season is 32.6%. I also don’t know how a chase rate typically increases as you move up to the higher levels. I would imagine outside pitches in the lower levels are easier to identify, versus the upper levels when pitchers are so precise that their misses end up an inch outside of the zone.

So, I’m not going to just focus on chase rates, but the overall decision-making process. I’m looking for all qualified players who have:

O-Swing% <= 32.6%
O-Contact% >= 63.0%
Z-Contact% >= 86.5%

I left out Z-Swing% from this group. I don’t mind if a player is below-average swinging in the zone, as long as their swing decisions consistently lead to above-average contact rates. You could say the same thing about players who chase with above-average O-contact%, but I feel that is more rare, and the profile of players who reduce chase swings is typically better.

With all of this said, below is the group of players making consistently good swing decisions from a contact standpoint.

Johan De Los Santos, SS - He’s had a great season so far in the FCL, batting .321/.465/.571 with two homers and four triples. De Los Santos chases on 26.2% of pitches outside the zone, but makes contact on 90.5% of those swings. The 2025 international signing also makes contact on 88.6% inside the zone, despite a more patient 74.5% swing rate. The final numbers speak for themselves. De Los Santos has shown early in his career to be a high average hitter who can get on base at a tremendous rate, likely due to his swing selectivity across the board.

Fredderick Ovalle, 2B - The Pirates recently promoted Ovalle from the FCL to Bradenton after 50 plate appearances at the rookie level. The second-year infielder was hitting .308/.420/.385 with seven stolen bases. He only chased 19.5% of the time, with an 87.5% contact rate on chase swings. Ovalle also has a minor league system leading 93.3% contact rate in the zone from a selective 62.5% swing rate. He doesn’t have much power to his game, but paired with some speed, Ovalle’s selectivity and high contact rates provide some value.

Jonathan Rivero, C - Another FCL player, with the difference from the previous two mentions being this is Rivero’s second season at this level. He’s showing improved results, batting .256/.356/.385, up from .180/.314/.250 last season. That could be due to a 20.5% chase rate and a 75% contact rate on chase swings. He also makes contact 92.9% on swings in the zone with a 73.7% swing rate. Rivero joins Ovalle and De Los Santos as the three top contact hitters in the system, though the disclaimer about the statistical reduction during the jump from the FCL to higher levels really plays here.

Dylan Palmer, 2B - What stands out to me about Palmer is that he leads the organization with 23 stolen bases. Last year’s 11th round pick is batting .270/.373/.355 in Low-A Bradenton, showing a good contact profile. He chases on 28.2% of pitches outside the zone, but makes contact on 74.3% of those swings. He also makes contact 88.6% of the time in the zone, with a conservative 68.3% swing rate. Palmer’s base running is a legitimate tool, and his ability to consistently get on base would only add to that standout tool.

Antonio Pimentel, SS - Another speedster on the bases in Bradenton, Pimentel has 15 steals so far this season. His numbers aren’t as good as Palmer, with a .210/.320/.295 line. He does make the cut on swing decisions, with a 27.8% chase rate and a 69.1% contact rate on those swings. He also makes contact 87.3% in the zone, with a 72.7% swing rate. Pimentel hit .385/.492/.606 last year in the DSL, then jumped over the FCL to Bradenton. That’s a difficult adjustment, and he struggled for two seasons in the DSL before he put up those 2025 numbers. The big trend throughout his career is a double-digit walk rate, which is a byproduct of the swing decisions and contact skills.

Power Potential

The next batch of stats will look at the power potential from the minor league hitters. In this section, I’m looking at Average Exit Velocity, HardHit%, and Barrel%.

The MLB averages:

Avg EV: 89.0
HardHit: 39.3%
Barrel: 8.1%

I’m looking for minor league players who cross all three thresholds. There are actually seven qualified players who check all three boxes, but I’m going to include an eighth below, with a disclaimer.

Edward Florentino, OF - One of the top 100 prospects in the game, Florentino leads the Pirates’ minor league system with a 94.5 MPH average exit velocity. He also has a 40.9% hard hit rate and a 13.6% barrel rate. These numbers come from his limited time in Bradenton, where he had 40 plate appearances before moving to the Statcast-free Greensboro. They do explain his eight homers so far this season in 136 combined plate appearances.

Bralyn Brazoban, OF - He was one of the Pirates’ top international signings in 2024, and is in his first full season in the US this year. Brazoban has a 93.5 MPH average exit velocity, along with a 50% hard hit rate and a 16.7% barrel rate. He has his first two homers of his career this season, along with four triples, matching his career total from the last two years. The power tool might be starting to kick in for the 19-year-old outfielder, which makes him one of the more exciting players to follow in the lowest levels.

Hyun Seung Lee, SS - This is the disclaimer I mentioned earlier. Lee has a 0% barrel rate shown, but I’m not entirely sure about the accuracy of that data. The metrics from the FCL aren’t complete, with some missing results in my database that I hope to fill in with future updates. That said, Lee has a 92.8 MPH exit velocity and a 45.5% hard hit rate. The disclaimer is that even the exit velocities and hard hit rates might be flawed at the lower levels. However, Lee has stood out this year with a .320/.435/.600 line in the FCL, with two homers, three triples, and two doubles. The power metrics show those numbers might not be a fluke. The 2025 signing out of Korea is one of the more interesting rookie-level guys in my view.

Shawn Ross, C - This inclusion doesn’t surprise me at all. The entire offensive game for Ross is power, which is negated by a very high strikeout rate. He hit seven homers in 77 plate appearances this season for Altoona, but only batted .211 due to a 37.7% strikeout rate. Altoona doesn’t have Statcast data, but in his 42 Triple-A plate appearances, he has a 91.4 MPH exit velocity, 57.9% hard hit rate, and a 15.8% barrel rate. Ross was always interesting to me in the lower levels for having some of the best power in the system, and he still has some of the best power in the system to this day.

Estuar Suero, OF - Suero was acquired in the Rich Hill trade at the deadline in 2023, and was touted highly as a teenager for his advanced power. That still stands out, with a 91.2 MPH exit velocity, a minor league system leading 58.3% hard hit rate, and a 12.5% barrel rate. Suero is currently on the IL in Bradenton, after batting .234/.265/.362. His downside is a 46.9% strikeout rate, due to one of the worst contact rates among qualified minor leaguers in the system. He struggles with contact, but when he makes contact, he crushes the ball.

Esmerlyn Valdez, OF - The Pirates already gave Valdez a brief look in the Majors, where he showed off his power with two homers. In 203 plate appearances at the Triple-A level, he has a 90 MPH average exit velocity, a 45.5% hard hit rate, and a 14% barrel rate. One of the better breakout stories in the system this year, it wouldn’t surprise me to see Valdez back in the Majors at some point this season.

Billy Cook, OF - The official hoister of the cone almost got an honorable mention in the plate patience section. Cook only missed due to a 79.1% contact rate on swings inside the zone, which is below-average. He makes up for that with power. Cook has an 89.7 MPH exit velocity, a 42.9% hard hit rate, and a 14.3% barrel rate in Triple-A. Those numbers didn’t translate to the Majors, where he had a 76.4 MPH exit velocity, a 15.4% hard hit rate, and a 0% barrel rate. This is an example of how the metrics in the minors don’t fully project a player’s ability at the highest level.

Darell Morel, SS - The final player on the list is another FCL hitter. Morel, signed as an international free agent in 2015, has an 89.4 MPH exit velocity, a 41.7% hard hit rate, and an 8.3% barrel rate. He just makes the cut for this list, but his power has shown up in the box scores. Morel has a homer, four triples, and three doubles in 73 plate appearances in the FCL this season, already matching his triple and home run total from a full season in the DSL at age 17 in 2025. He’s got a lower contact rate, but the power could carry him above rookie ball.

Honorable Mention - Murf Gray just missed the cut, with an exit velocity that was 0.5 MPH below the threshold. His hard hit rate is 45.6% and his barrel rate is 12.3%. This is all based on his data in Bradenton, where he hit eight homers. He’s added five more in Greensboro, giving him a leading 13 homers in the Pirates’ minor league system.

Statistical Scouting Standouts

Here are the players who really caught my eye during this small sample sized look throughout the Pirates’ system.

Edward Florentino, OF - The last time I was writing about the Pirates on a daily basis was in 2024. Florentino was starting his career in the DSL, and showed some promise with five homers and ten doubles at the age of 17. He continued hitting for power last year with 16 combined homers between the FCL and Bradenton. The fact his power metrics are at the top of the minor league system isn’t a surprise. He’s only 19 and in High-A. With his power potential at Greensboro’s park, he shouldn’t have an issue putting up numbers at the level, even at the young age. Florentino didn’t really catch my eye as much as he confirmed what he’s shown since the start of his career.

Bralyn Brazoban, OF - I think it’s encouraging that Brazoban is beginning to add some power to his game. He’s only 19, and in his second run through the FCL. The overall results so far are considerably better than his first two seasons in rookie ball. His power is starting to show up in the stats, backed up by the metrics. He will be one of the more interesting lower level prospects to follow this season.

Hyun Seung Lee, SS - I keep seeing Lee’s name showing up in the leaders column, which might be due to the fact he’s had a few multi-hit games over the last week. His overall line in the FCL is great at the age of 18, and he shows some pop in his bat that has led to two homers and some extra base hits so far this season. Getting hyped over someone like Brazoban, who signed for $2 million, almost seems a bit obvious. Following someone like Lee, who signed for $160,000, dives a bit into sleeper breakout territory. I wouldn’t yet say Lee is breaking out, but he’s on the radar as a sleeper to watch.

Esmerlyn Valdez, OF - This is another confirmation situation, instead of an eye opening revelation. Valdez has already hit well enough to get a call to the Majors, and showed good results in limited time at the level. Going back to when I followed him in 2024, Valdez showed a lot of promising power, hitting 22 homers in Bradenton that season. He’s since kept the power, while improving his contact skills and reducing the swing and miss. This is good development progression that has his bat knocking on the door of the Majors at the age of 22.

Murf Gray, 3B - I’m always skeptical of college hitters until they start to show success at Double-A. Last year’s 73rd overall pick, Gray has shown tremendous power results this year, backed up by some of the best power metrics in the system. I don’t know much about his defense right now, but that power coming from a guy who has the potential to play the infield is eye opening. If he continues hitting this way, I’d expect Gray will get the chance to show what he can do in Altoona across a decent sample by the end of the season.

Johan De Los Santos, SS - This list isn’t really a ranking order, but I wrote De Los Santos lower than the rest due to his contact-over-power profile. He does have one of the best contact profiles in the system, with great swing decisions, and some of the highest contact rates. That’s a profile that becomes more difficult to maintain at higher levels. What I like is that the 17-year-old has shown speed, with 34 steals last season and already 14 this year. Speed and contact from the middle infield is a classic approach that will give him plenty of opportunities as he gets older and moves up the ladder. If his power increases along the way, De Los Santos will be a very interesting guy to follow.

Dylan Palmer, 2B - Speaking of speed and contact, Palmer gets a mention here for his system-leading 23 stolen bases, along with some impressive contact skills and good swing decisions. He’s also a college player in Low-A, so he’s not at a level where he’s being tested in a way that is projectable for the higher levels. The contact and elite base running will definitely give last year’s 11th round pick chances to keep moving up.

My next series will focus on the pitchers, including a breakdown of the MLB results, along with a look at what the minor league data is showing.

Until the next time I go live…

-Tim Williams