11mo
Photo: Wilbur Miller
By: Wilbur Miller
The Bradenton Marauders are the lowest-level full-season team in the Pirates’ farm system, but in 2023 they had several position players with some of the better upside in a system that currently is very heavy with pitching, not hitting, at the top. The catch, of course, is that these players have a long, long way to go, and still need to address some clear shortcomings.
Termarr Johnson is familiar enough and spent about half of 2023 with Greensboro, but several others are less well known. Those would be outfielder Lonnie White, Jr.; shortstop Yordany De Los Santos; and outfielder Shalin Polanco. The three ranked 9th, 16th and 29th, in that order, in the Draft Nation 2024 Pittsburgh Pirates Minor League Guide. A big question for all three in the short term will be whether they’re at Greensboro to start the season or at some point later.
Photo: Wilbur Miller
Lonnie White, Jr.
A 64th overall draft pick out of prep school who signed an overslot bonus, White’s 2023 season was a success solely by virtue of him playing a meaningful part of it. From the time he was drafted in July 2021 until June 2023, nearly two years, White got into just 11 games due to a variety of injuries. Once he finally returned from a spring thumb injury that required surgery, he got into 61 games split between the Florida Complex League (17 games) and the Marauders (44) and put up a combined 276/406/476 slash line. The key feature is the power, which increased once he’d been at Bradenton a bit. With the Marauders he put up a .229 ISO (isolated slugging average) in a league where the norm was .130. That included a .581 slugging average in August and September after a slow start at the level.
White’s power—which included the ability to hit the ball deep to all fields—is all the more intriguing because he has well above average speed and may be able to stay in center. The catch, as is so often the case with lower-level hitters, is making contact. He struck out in over a quarter of his plate appearances but is fairly selective at the plate, as shown by his 15% walk rate. Whether the Pirates are willing to try him at Greensboro to open the season will tell us a lot.
Yordany De Los Santos
One of the most intriguing players in the system, De Los Santos signed out of the Dominican in 2022 for $1.2M, a huge amount for a team that as a rule passes on the top international prospects. He’s athletic enough to stay at short if he doesn’t outgrow the position, but his arm is strong enough for third. The big attraction isn’t too different from White: While in the Dominican Summer League in 2022, De Los Santos put up exit velocities that would have been impressive in the majors. He had a very solid showing there as a 17-year-old, including very impressive plate discipline.
De Los Santos’ DSL performance carried over well to the FCL in 2023. In 17 games, he had a 328/397/463 slash line and struck out in fewer than one-seventh of his plate appearances. That won a quick promotion to Bradenton, where the story was different. De Los Santos struggled to a .578 OPS and fanned in nearly 40% of his plate appearances. The sudden divergence between the two levels is striking and, given his previous history, suggests De Los Santos needs more time than the 38 games he got with Bradenton to adjust to a jump that’s bigger than it was before MLB eliminated the two levels between the FCL and the Florida State League. That’s especially true for a guy who’ll play all of 2024 at age 19. It’s likely, though, that De Los Santos will open the season back with Bradenton.
Photo: Wilbur Miller
Shalin Polanco
Polanco was an even bigger international signing than De Los Santos, getting a $2.3M bonus in 2021. He’s an outfielder with average speed who may or may not be able to stay in center. Like White and De Los Santos, Polanco stands out for his ability to hit the ball hard; he put up a lot of good exit velocities at Bradenton in 2023. Contact, though, has been an even bigger issue for him.
Polanco’s followed an interesting pattern as a pro. He’s played three seasons from 2021-23, one each in the DSL, FCL and FSL. Each time he’s struggled early, then started to hit. What’s more, he’s improved steadily each year. He put up a .622 OPS in the DSL, .696 in the FCL and .763 in the FSL. With Bradenton, Polanco seemed to be breaking out. In May, he hit six home runs, equaling the number he hit in his first two years. In June he hit another six and slugged .567. He also slowly reduced his strikeout rate each month, although it remained high. Unfortunately, Polanco went out with an injury in July and didn’t return (he looked healthy in extended spring training in the fall).
Polanco played the 2023 season at age 19, two years younger than the average position player in the league. It would have been nice if he’d been able to finish out the season at Bradenton and solidify a claim on a Greensboro assignment in 2023, but there’s a good chance he’ll be there anyway.
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