Scouting the Pirates system 2023: Best Infield Defense Tool

Looking at the best defensive infielders in the Pirates system.

Photo Credit: WTM

‘Scouting the Pirates system’ is taking an in depth look at the players in the organization, and how has the best tools. Each article will highlight a different tool, with each writer on the site pitching in who they believe has the best.

While hitting may sometimes be the easiest way to get noticed, defense remains just as a crucial part to the game.

The Pirates themselves have been no strangers to having some fantastic defensive prospects over the last couple of seasons. Ke’Bryan Hayes may very well be the best defensive player in the majors, and his backup Jared Triolo won a minor league gold glove at third.

Looking at the infield, the Pirates may not have anyone at that level, but they do have quite a few prospects that are very good with the glove.

Jack Brannigan

The only thing that may keep Brannigan from winning a minor league gold glove at third base, and continuing the trend, is that he’s been primarily playing shortstop since arriving to Greensboro, and has continued that in the Arizona Fall League.

No matter the position he plays, Brannigan has the glove, and arm, to hold the position well. Going back to when he was drafted, Brannigan has committed just 10 errors in 358 chances (.972 FLD%).

It should also be of little surprise that he would have one of the better arms in the system as well, seeing as he was drafted as a two-way player and hit the upper-90s in college on the mound.

He made one play while I was in Greensboro, it wasn’t an out, but he charged a ball and made an incredible throw that made the play so much closer than it should have been. No wasted movement, got to show off the cannon, just a great display, even if it didn’t get an out.

WTM: Javier Rivas, Deivis Nadal

For defense, it’s Javier Rivas.  I’ve seen a lot of him the past two years and he makes a lot of highlight reel plays.  He’s listed at 6’6”, but you wouldn’t think it watching him at short, because he has all the actions you’d like to see, easily fielding balls on the run and making diving stops, as well as making the resulting throws.  You could make an argument here for Tsung-Che Cheng because he’s always been remarkably reliable, even at the lower levels where errors are a fact of life.

For the arm, it’s Deivis Nadal, and it’s probably not even close.  He’s not a familiar name, as he’s a lower level utility guy, but the arm strength is serious.  He played some in the outfield this year and made some throws from deep in the field to home plate on the fly.

Other notables

I think doing the defensive side of these tools really gets an opportunity to show just how much we watch what’s going on in the minors. Outside of regular errors, which still don’t always paint the whole picture, there aren’t really any kind of defensive metrics available for the minors, so these are almost exclusively done with the eye test.

Again to add on to what WTM said, Rivas was one of the better defensive players I saw in the system this past year. Seeing his size, I wasn’t sure what to expect from he, but everything is calm, smooth and easy.

Nadal has a cannon, maybe the strongest in the entire system. He pitched during a blowout game this past year, and the only thing I could think of was that I really wanted to see him rear back and let one go from the mound, just to see what he could hit.

There were a couple of throws he made from the outfield (I know this is an infield specific article, but its worth mentioning) that I honestly wouldn’t be surprised if it was at or over triple digits.

While he’s more of a depth player, I’ve always been impressed with the glove work of Josh Bissonette, who spent the majority of the season with Indianapolis.

Yordany De los Santos was another that stood out, and at just 18-years-old, looked far more comfortable in the field than at the plate this past year. He has the skill set to stick at shortstop I believe, but also has the frame that may force him over to third as he continues to grow.