The Pirates could be facing some tough decisions before setting their 40-man roster next Tuesday to protect players from being selected in the Rule 5 Draft next month at the Winter Meetings.
The Pirates currently have 37 players on the roster. That leaves three open spots, and the Pirates have as many as six players who might at least interest other teams when the draft is held Dec. 13 in Las Vegas. All Rule 5 players must stay in the major leagues for the entire season or be offered back to their original clubs for half the $50,000 draft price.
Two players who will almost certainly be protected are right-hander Mitch Keller and shortstop Cole Tucker. Keller is universally regarded as the Pirates' top pitching prospect, and Tucker is a consensus top-10 pick by outlets who rank each organization's minor leaguers.
Keller, 22, was a combined 12-4 with a 3.48 ERA and 1.30 WHIP in 25 starts this year with Triple-A Indianapolis, Double-A Altoona and Class A Bradenton, striking out 135 in 142 1/3 innings. Baseball America ranked him as the 11th-best prospect in the International League and No. 6 in the Eastern League.
The 22-year-old Tucker hit .259/.333/.356 in 133 games for Altoona while stealing 36 bases in 48 attempts. He also committed just 14 errors.
Outfielder Jason Martin was one of four players acquired from the Astros in January in the Gerrit Cole trade. Houston left Martin unprotected last year, but it is doubtful the Pirates will follow suit.
The 23-year-old batted a combined .274/.337/.429 with 13 home runs in 127 games with Indianapolis and Altoona. However, Martin was just 12 for 24 in steal tries.
The Pirates picked right-hander JT Brubaker as their Minor League Pitcher of Year for going a combined 10-6 with a 2.81 ERA and 1.26 WHIP in 28 starts with Indianapolis and Altoona, and he might draw interest from other clubs if left unprotected. In 154 innings, the 24-year-old struck out 131.
Left-hander Domingo Robles and right-hander Eduardo Vera haven't received much hype. However, Robles has a great arm and Vera gets hitters out consistently, making them at least long shots to be drafted.
Robles, 20, was 9-9 with a 3.33 ERA and 1.29 WHIP in a combined 26 starts with the two Class A farm clubs, Bradenton and West Virginia, and he had 107 strikeouts in 143 1/3 innings. The 24-year-old Vera combined for 26 starts between Altoona and Bradenton, going 11-5 with a 3.48 ERA, 1.05 WHIP and 98 strikeouts in 155 innings.