Sometime this offseason, the Pirates will announce their minor-league award winners, ranging from top hitter to pitcher to recognizing other contributors in the farm system.
After tracking the farm system this winter in this feature, separate pieces and Friday Insider, we feel that we can give our suggestions for who the winners for some key awards should be.
Keep in mind these awards are going to be based on a player's individual performance, not necessarily their ranking in the farm system or prospect charts. A sleeper in Class AAA Indianapolis, AA Altoona, High-A Greensboro or Low-A Bradenton has the same chance as someone who has cracked the majors. We'll also be looking at all players who spent time in the majors, so some of these players have made the leap to the majors this season.
Without further ado, our five award winners this year, with five runners up:
HITTER OF THE YEAR
Endy Rodriguez
There is no other option here. With respect to Matt Gorski -- who led all of minor-league baseball in home runs before a quad injury made him miss a good chunk of the season -- and Jacob Gonzalez torrid start, nobody could quite match Rodriguez's output this year.
In 125 games across Greensboro, Altoona and Indianapolis, Rodriguez hit .323 with 25 home runs, 95 RBIs, 39 doubles and a .997 OPS. He made the leap to top 100 prospect status and has positioned himself for a 2023 promotion. He'll be added to the 40 man roster this winter.
I profiled Rodriguez last week, which you can read here.
Runner-up: C Blake Sabol
PITCHER OF THE YEAR
Quinn Priester
There was a time early this year that I thought Mike Burrows was going to win this award, and he made the jump to Indianapolis and Baseball America's Top 100 list. The jump to AAA roughed him up a little early on though, and some shoulder discomfort shortened his season a bit.
Had Anthony Solometo or Bubba Chandler had a full year in Bradenton, they also might have won, but the two spent a good chunk of this season at Pirate City first. Their futures look bright and should be on the rise in 2023.
Priester's season started late because of an oblique injury but wound up being the best starter in Altoona, going 5-5 with a 3.29 ERA and 89 strikeouts over 90 1/3 innings.
He is currently in the Arizona Fall League to make up for some of those lost innings.
Runner-up: RHP Roansy Contreras
RELIEVER OF THE YEAR
Tahnaj Thomas
This was a make or break year for Thomas, who had shown clear potential and some roadblocks he needed to get over. He did just that, recording a 3.02 ERA and 52 strikeouts over 50 2/3 innings for Altoona while transitioning to the bullpen. He still showed upper-90s stuff with good secondary offerings, and with better body movement, he was able to put together a full season for the first time as a pro.
The question with Thomas is do the Pirates protect him from the Rule 5 draft or try to sneak the reliever through.
Runner-up: RHP Yerry De Los Santos
DEFENDER OF THE YEAR
Jared Triolo
Cards on the table: This one was decided when I was chatting with Curve manager Kieran Mattison before the end of their season. I brought up how Triolo was the defending minor-league Gold Glove winner. Mattison, who managed him last year in Greensboro, too, said that he got even better this year.
Triolo is the best defensive third baseman the Pirates have had since, well, that guy playing third base for them now. He's bounced around the diamond to generally positive reviews. He also swung a solid bat, hitting .282 with a 121 wRC+ for Altoona.
Runner-up: INF Andres Alvarez
BREAKOUT PLAYER
Luis Ortiz
There were a couple candidates here, many of them in the upper levels of the farm system. Andres Alvarez played his way into the everyday lineup for the Curve as a utility player and wound up having a 20-20 season. Sabol had a strong 2021 season, but the former seventh-rounder made a legitimate case that he needs to be added to the roster this winter. Gorski is in a similar boat after a big year.
But ultimately, there were only two choices for this award: Rodriguez, who broke into top 100 prospect lists with a huge season, or Ortiz, who went from Class Low-A Bradenton to the majors in the span of 12 months. A hard-throwing right-hander, he has a plus slider and a fastball that sits in the upper-90s. If he can add a third pitch, he could be a force.
Expect Ortiz to pop up on FanGraphs' top 100 prospect list during their next big update. It might not be the only list he gets consideration for.
Runner-up: Rodriguez
Our expanded top-20 list will be next week.
