Baseball America rated right-handed pitcher Paul Skenes its No. 9 prospect, and the 2023 No. 1 overall draft pick is one of four Pittsburgh Pirates in its updated top 100 prospect rankings.
Right-handed pitchers Bubba Chandler (59) and Jared Jones (74) and second baseman Termarr Johnson (77) also are ranked among Baseball America’s top 100 prospects.
The 21-year-old Skenes has the highest ranking of any pitching prospect but is behind two other players in his draft class. Outfielder Wyatt Langford, who went fourth overall to the Texas Rangers, is ranked No. 5. Outfielder Dylan Crews, the No. 2 pick by the Washington Nationals, is ranked sixth.
After signing for a MLB Draft-record $9.2 million bonus, the 6-foot-6 ½, 250-pound Skenes pitched one inning in the Florida Complex League, started two games for Low-A Bradenton and two games for Double-A Altoona.
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• July 2023: Led by No. 1 pick Paul Skenes, 5 Pirates in Baseball America's Top 100 prospects rankings
The 21-year-old Chandler, a 2021 third-round pick, was 9-4 with a 4.75 ERA and 1.50 WHIP and 10.2 strikeouts per nine innings in 24 starts at High-A Greensboro last season before earning a promotion to Altoona.
Jones, 22, a 2020 second-rounder, was 1-4 with a 2.23 ERA and 1.08 WHIP in 10 starts at Altoona before being promoted to Triple-A Indianapolis, where he averaged 10.9 strikeouts per nine innings while going 4-5 with a 4.72 ERA and 1.32 WHIP in 82 innings over 16 starts.
The 19-year-old Johnson, the No. 4 overall pick in 2022, batted .244/.422/.438 with 12 doubles, 18 home runs and 59 RBIs in 105 games split between Low-A Bradenton and High-A Greensboro.
Shortstop Jackson Holliday of the Baltimore Orioles is Baseball America’s top-ranked prospect, followed by outfielder Jackson Chourio of the Milwaukee Brewers, third baseman Junior Caminero of the Tampa Bay Rays, Rangers outfielder Evan Carter and Langford.
