Pirates Place Four on ESPN Top 100 Prospects
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PITTSBURGH -- The Pittsburgh Pirates head into 2025 with some incredible talent through their minor league system.
Kiley McDaniel of ESPN released his top 100 prospects list for 2025, which featured four Pirates. Right-handed pitcher Bubba Chandler comes in at No. 11, second baseman Termarr Johnson ranks No. 72, shortstop Konnor Griffin comes in at No. 81 and right-handed pitcher Braxton Ashcraft is near the end at No. 99.
The Pirates drafted Chandler in 2021, convincing him to forgo his commitment to Clemson to play quarterback.
Chandler played most of 2024 in Double-A with the Altoona Curve, starting 16 of 19 games, a 6-7 record, one save, one shutout. He also had a 3.70 ERA in 80.1 innings pitched, allowing 55 hits, 33 earned runs and 26 walks, while making 94 strikeouts and holding hitters to a .192 batting average, along with having a 1.01 WHIP.
Chandler earned a promotion to Triple-A with the Indianapolis Indians on Aug. 8 and pitched even better than he did in Double-A.
He finished with 4-0 record in seven starts, a 1.83 ERA in 39.1 innings pitched, allowing just 26 hits, eight earned runs, two home runs and 15 walks to 54 strikeouts. He held opposing hitters to a .183 batting average and a 1.04 WHIP.
The Pirates took Johnson No. 4 overall in the 2022 MLB Draft out of Benjamin Elijah Mayes High School in Atlanta. Johnson chose a $7,219,000 signing bonus with the Pirates over his commitment to Arizona State.
He spent most of 2024 with the Greensboro Grasshoppers at High Single-A, slashing .238/.372/.712, along with 17 doubles, a triple, 13 home runs, 46 RBIs,20 stolen bases and 78 walks to 105 strikeouts.
The Pirates promoted the 20-year old to Double-A on Aug. 27 and he played in 14 games for them, slashing .229/.316/.396, with two doubles, two home runs, eight RBIs and seven walks to 11 strikeouts.
The Pirates took Griffin with the No. 9 overall pick in the 2024 MLB Draft out of Jackson Preparatory School in Jackson, Miss., signing him to a $6,532,025 bonus, which is above slot for No. 9 overall at $6,216,600.
Griffin, who bats right-handed, had a .559 batting average, with 66 hits in 118 at-bats, along with 39 RBIs, 13 doubles, nine home runs and four triples as a senior. He also only struckout 10 times, while earning 47 walks and got hit by pitch five times.
He also showed his prowess in the infield, with a .932 fielding percentage, turning nine double plays and only committing six errors. He also plays in the outfield too, giving the Pirates a number of positions they can put him at to succeed.
The Pirates selected Ashcraft with the No. 51 overall pick in the second round of the 2018 MLB Draft out of Robinson High School in Waco, Texas.
Ashcraft started 2024 with Altoona, starting 10 of 11 games, a 2-2 record, a 3.69 ERA in 53.2 innings pitched, 63 strikeouts to eight walks, held opposing hitters to a .244 batting average and had a WHIP of 1.10.
He received a promotion to Indianapolis on June 11 and dealt with some minor injuries, but pitched well. He had four starts in five appearances, just one earned run in 19.1 innings pitched for a 0.47 ERA, 14 strikeouts to four walks and 15 hits, an opposing batting average of .205 and a WHIP of .098.
Dominic writes for Pittsburgh Pirates On SI, Pittsburgh Panthers Pn SI and also, Pittsburgh Steelers On SI. A Pittsburgh native, Dominic grew up watching Pittsburgh Sports and wrote for The Pitt News as an undergraduate at the University of Pittsburgh, covering Pitt Athletics. He would write for Pittsburgh Sports Now after college and has years of experience covering sports across Pittsburgh.