Saturday, July 12

PITTSBURGH -- Although there have been frustrations with the Major League team, the Pirates’ farm system is painting a prettier picture in 2025, especially among their top prospects. The club can boast having five players on MLB Pipeline’s Top 100 list, four of whom are with the top two affiliates.

A few of these players should be up in Pittsburgh before the end of the year, and those who don’t could at least move up a level.

Let’s take a look at how the top five prospects in the Pirates’ system are doing:

1. RHP Bubba Chandler, Triple-A Indianapolis
Stats: 2-1, 2.17 ERA, 56 K, 16 BB, 1.13 WHIP, 37 1/3 IP

The No. 2 prospect in the game has been outstanding, ranking in the top five of the International League in strikeouts, ERA and batting average against (.197). Chandler was named the International League’s pitcher of the month in April. The burning question, though, is when will we see him in Pittsburgh? The Pirates opted to be conservative with his buildup for the season, taking a page out of the Paul Skenes book. The goal was to have him fully stretched out in May, and he has thrown 86 pitches each of his last two outings, so he’s getting close.

2. INF/OF Konnor Griffin, Single-A Bradenton
Stats: .313/.361/.528, 7 HR, 24 RBI, 17 SB, 34 games

Griffin has had some hot and cold stretches in his first full season of pro ball, and he recently has been on a heater. During a nine-game hitting streak, which ended Tuesday, he had a slash line of .525/.535/.750 with two home runs and six stolen bases. He ranks among the top five in the Florida State League in batting average, home runs and slugging, and is first in hits (45), total bases (76) and runs (34). A 27.7% strikeout rate will need to be improved upon, but the body of work has been terrific.

3. RHP Thomas Harrington, Triple-A Indianapolis
Stats: 2-3, 5.59 ERA, 31 K, 10 BB, 1.48 WHIP, 29 IP

Harrington made a quick cameo with the Pirates at the start of the season, including picking up his first Major League save. His landing back in Indianapolis hasn’t been very soft, but it’s a mixed bag. The fastball has been hit hard -- a .328 batting average against with 93.6 mph average exit velocity. The breaking stuff, on the other hand, has been sharp. Harrington’s sweeper has a 35.7% whiff rate with no extra-base hits allowed, and the curveball is also getting a whiff a third of the time with a .154 batting average against.

4. 2B Termarr Johnson, Double-A Altoona
Stats: .271/.374/.429, 5 HR, 10 RBI, 7 SB

Johnson has cut his strikeout rate to 16.7%, the lowest he’s had at any stop in his Minor League journey and a drastic drop from his 26% clip in 2023. He is hitting .333 (12-for-36) with a pair of home runs and triples during a 10-game on-base streak. He did not score on Tuesday, which ended a stretch in which he scored a run in seven straight games, the longest streak in the Eastern League.

5. LHP Hunter Barco, Triple-A Indianapolis
Stats: 1-0, 0.89 ERA, 40 K, 13 BB, 0.89 WHIP, 30 1/3 IP with Double-A Altoona and Triple-A Indianapolis

No, that’s not a typo. Barco’s ERA currently sits under 1. The southpaw cleaned up some things mechanically while with Altoona last year, and it has translated to his game in 2025, helping him hit the mid- to upper-90s more consistently. Barco was removed from his last outing on Thursday after experiencing shoulder discomfort, but the hope is for him to return to the mound by the end of the month.

Mitch Keller struck out his 357th batter at PNC Park on Monday, passing Gerrit Cole for the third-most in the stadium’s history. Which southpaw has struck out the most batters at PNC Park?

A. Francisco Liriano
B. Oliver Pérez
C. Paul Maholm
D. Tony Watson

There have been countless stories throughout the years of how Triple-A managers told players that they are going to the Majors. But for Chris Truby last week, the roles were reversed. The Triple-A Indianapolis manager was getting his callup to the Pirates’ coaching staff.

There was little fanfare for the event. Director of coaching and player development Michael Chernow and assistant general manager Steve Sanders walked into Truby’s office and closed the door for a private conversation.

“Typically, when they walk into the room and they close the door, it’s something bad that’s about to happen,” Truby joked. “But, yeah, this was good.”

Truby joined the Pirates ahead of the 2022 season as the Minor League infield coordinator and had served as Indianapolis’ bench coach before becoming manager this season. He and veteran coach Gene Lamont were added to the coaching staff last week to help fill the bench coach duties that Don Kelly vacated whenever he became manager. Truby will be doing day-to-day operational tasks, helping with the infield and handling communication and messaging.

“I’m just here to do whatever I can to take a load off of Donnie’s plate,” Truby said. “Just be out on the field, be available. And whenever I’m needed, I’ll help out.”

The Pirates welcome the Brewers to PNC Park for a four-game set starting Thursday. Friday brings a Zambelli fireworks display. The first 20,000 fans Saturday will take home a short-sleeve jersey, presented by RE/MAX Select Realty. Ticket information can be found here.

• Lamont brings invaluable experience, history with Kelly to new role with Bucs.

• Four new swing metrics tell us more than we’ve ever known about contact.

C. Maholm

Maholm struck out 383 batters at PNC Park over his 10-year Major League career, the first seven of which were with the Pirates.

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