Below Deck: Meadows' weird year in Triple-A

The lofty expectations Austin Meadows faced once his first full Class AAA season began in April have since dissipated.

So has his status as a top prospect in baseball, and any notion that he could help the Pirates in 2017.

With major league rosters expanding Sept. 1, Neal Huntington told reporters Sunday in Cincinnati that, barring unforeseen circumstances, the front office plans for the 22-year-old center fielder to remain at Indianapolis for the remainder of the season, continuing what has been an unusual season for the club's top prospect.



"We don’t want him to put the pressure of the world on his shoulders that he has to hit .600 the last two weeks of August to get called up in September," Huntington said. "There’s a lot of variables that go into that. Where we are, where he is, where he is in his development curve, that’s the most important trait. And as we work through that, nothing’s really changed on that front."

Meadows struggled right from the start of the season, then spent five weeks on the disabled list with his second hamstring injury in as many years, and suffered an oblique injury last week that forced him to miss five games. He was pulled from Indianapolis' loss to Columbus on Sunday after aggravating the injury.

After missing five games because of the oblique, he went a combined 5 for 9 on Wednesday and Thursday, but went 1 for 6 the rest of the week.

Now, his batting average is .250 with a .311 on-base percentage, four home runs and 36 RBIs in 72 games. He's stolen 11 bases and has a 49-to-24 strikeout-to-walk ratio. That performance was unlikely to merit being recalled from Class AAA.

After breaking his orbital bone in March of 2016, he batted .311 with 16 doubles, six home runs, 23 RBI and only 32 strikeouts in 190 plate appearances for Class AA Altoona, a time when Indianapolis manager Andy Barkett described him as "the best hitter in the minor leagues."

That earned him a promotion to Indianapolis in July, but he suffered an injury to his right hamstring after 12 games at that level and finished the season with Indianapolis batting .214 in 145 plate appearances.

"Last year, obviously with the injuries, they crept up on me toward the end of the year," Meadows told DKPittsburghSports.com in May. "For me, it was about maintaining my body and maintaining my health for this year. This offseason I did yoga and stuff like that to maintain my flexibility and stay durable. It was about learning about my body and the mental approach."

That adjusted offseason regimen seemed to work at the start of the season, though Meadows was pressing at the plate, second-guessing his approach and falling into bad counts. He started the season in a 1-for-26 slump before getting hot in June.

Meadows raised his average to .248 on June 28, but he pulled up lame when running to first base on a ground ball. The diagnosis: another right hamstring strain.

The Pirates' head athletic trainer, Todd Tomczyk, told reporters in Philadelphia the following week that the team's training staff would take a closer look at Meadows' offseason program to ensure it does not become a chronic issue.

Long-term health risks aside, missing time cost him valuable experience that could have prepared him to potentially help the Pirates in 2017.

The organization's philosophy is for prospects to have a certain number of at-bats at Class AAA before reaching the major leagues, or at least to stay there long-term. They followed that plan last season with Josh Bell, who had 542 at-bats in Class AAA. By comparison, Meadows has 410.

Now, the Pirates must determine how to best prepare Meadows to make up for that lost time while also keeping a close eye on his health. Huntington said the front office is examining if winter ball would be a "good fit" for Meadows to receive more at-bats.

Meadows must also find a way to handle the mental anguish that prospects deal with once their lofty goals are not met as quickly as expected.

"I think all of us can say, to a certain degree, we can be hard on ourselves," Meadows said in May. "I’ve always been competitive. For me, realizing the higher you go up, being in Triple-A and stuff like that, you’re going to face some failure. You’re going to face adversity. Being able to handle it will help you in the long run."

INDIANAPOLIS

• Shortstop Kevin Newman is on an eight-game hitting streak and is now batting .288 in 31 games at Class AAA. A first-round draft pick in 2015, Newman's progress at the plate came after he struggled in that facet at Class AA. Newman slashed .259/.310/.359 in 82 games with Altoona this season.

ALTOONA

• After dealing with back tightness in June and a bout of inconsistency in July, Mitch Keller has been outstanding in four starts with the Curve. Entering Sunday, the right-hander was 1-1 with a 3.13 ERA, 1.17 WHIP and 27 strikeouts to nine walks in 23 innings.

• Shortstop Cole Tucker is starting to adjust to pitching at Double-A. He's 14 for 40 in his last 10 games, raising his season average to .350 with the Curve. Tucker, who broke Bradenton's single-season stolen base record with 36, has six steals in 34 games.

BRADENTON

• Ke'Bryan Hayes continues to be one of the more consistent hitters for High-A Bradenton, batting .378 over his last 10 games. The third baseman and former first-round pick has a season average of .280 with 27 stolen bases in 102 games.

• First baseman Will Craig, the Pirates' first-round pick in 2016, continues to struggle at the plate, batting .209 over his last 10 games. He has struck out 101 times in 118 games, though he has a .374 on-base percentage.