In a lot of ways, the start of 2025 for the Pirates’ farm system mirrored what many knew—but also feared—entering the season. The club continues to churn out interesting pitching prospects, including the sport’s top arm still curiously in the minors, Bubba Chandler, and several reinforcements who have gotten looks at the big league level, including Braxton Ashcraft, Mike Burrows and Thomas Harrington.

Deeper down, Wilber Dotel and Antwone Kelly are turning heads. Konnor Griffin looks the part of one of the sport’s most electric prospects in the lower levels. But Pittsburgh also hasn’t graduated a single Top 30 Prospect so far, and the lack of upper-level hitting impact remains evident, especially as the team struggles to produce offense both in the big leagues and across full-season ball.

Baseball America subscribers can see the complete updated Pirates Top 30 here.

Read on below for prospect graduates, risers, fallers, new additions and injury updates below. Top 30 updates for all 30 teams can be found here.

Graduates

None

Risers

Hunter Barco, LHP: Before a trip to the injured list with a mild left shoulder strain, Barco was one of the most effective pitchers in the upper minors. He fired 25.2 scoreless innings with Double-A Altoona and was then promoted to Triple-A Indianapolis. Barco’s velo has ticked up across his entire pitch mix after cleaning up the lower half of his delivery over the offseason. The Pirates activated Barco off the IL on May 31.

Mitch Jebb, CF/2B: After showing a surprising amount of swing-and-miss early last season with High-A Greensboro, Jebb now looks more like the hitterish, slap-and-dash-type that helped him rank as the No. 62 prospect in the 2023 draft class. The plus runner is also seeing more time in center field this season.

Wilber Dotel, RHP: Already on the Top 30, Dotel surged into the mid teens after a hot start. His fastball now regularly brushes triple digits after adding velocity in 2024, and the Pirates spent this year refining his newfound power. Dotel’s fastball is carrying better, and he has much better feel for his newly-added splitter after swapping it for his changeup. The result? He’s striking out more batters than ever before, carrying a 28.9% strikeout rate in his first taste of the upper minors through 44.1 innings with Double-A Altoona.

Axiel Plaz, C: Plaz’s exit velocities are impressive for any player, let alone a 19-year-old catcher in Low-A. He swings a thunderous, albeit quite aggressive, stick and has made progress cutting down on his strikeouts even if there’s some skepticism his approach will hold up against better pitching. Defensively, his strides in game-calling and staff management drew internal praise early in the year and he has a plus arm, even if his receiving remains a work-in-progress.

Fallers

Thomas Harrington, RHP: Harrington was roughed up in his big league debut and tumbled out of the Baseball America Top 100 following lukewarm industry feedback. Concerns about Harrington’s fastball quality persist,and he hasn’t been quite as precise. His strike rate in Triple-A is down to 64% through late May, compared to 68% at the same level last year. Harrington still has back-of-the-rotation upside, but his struggles underscore his slimmer margin for error compared to others with louder stuff.

Billy Cook, 1B/OF: Cook entered spring training as a candidate to crack the Pirates’ big league roster thanks to his speed and defensive versatility. Instead, he has yet to get on track in Triple-A and is dabbling with different setups to help unlock more from his bat. Longstanding questions about his hit tool remain, and he’s making less contact—particularly on pitches in the zone—since arriving from the Orioles system.

Matt Ager, RHP: Ager was once considered a potential day one arm in the draft out of UC Santa Barbara, but he fell to the sixth round last year because of injury concerns and middling junior year performance. Through 21.1 innings, he has more walks (20) than strikeouts (17) with Low-A Bradenton.

Injuries

Carlson Reed, RHP: Reed was a trendy breakout pick entering the season, but the Pirates placed him on the 60-day injured list in late March with a back injury. He was on a rehab assignment as of late May.

Anthony Solometo, LHP: Solometo showed rejuvenated velocity in spring training. The momentum didn’t carry over into the season, though, as the Pirates placed him on the 60-day injured list in early May with a left shoulder injury.

New Additions

Antwone Kelly, RHP: Kelly improved his body over the offseason and arrived at Pirates camp with a fastball that regularly touched triple digits. He has overmatched High-A hitters, especially at the top of the zone, and has emerged as another potential long-term back-of-the-rotation arm in the Pirates system with a true three-pitch mix.

Esmerlyn Valdez, 1B/OF: Valdez has always had big power, and this year he’s getting to it a bit more consistently after working on flattening out his attack angle over the offseason. Valdez’s power surge in Greensboro makes him a candidate to get to Altoona soon if it continues.

Javier Rivas, SS: Like Valdez, Rivas is actualizing his power far more frequently this year in Greensboro, which is a notoriously hitter-friendly venue. But the 22-year-old is striking out far less and has a shot to stay on the left side of the infield. He has put himself on the radar this year.