Pittsburgh Pirates Dynasty Sleepers, Breakouts, and Busts

With dynasty season ramping up, I figured it was time to talk about some sleepers, breakouts, and busts for each team. You can find my rankings and reports to see how I value players for your dynasty leagues, but I also feel like it’s helpful to truly identify whether I believe a player can be a breakout or not. Here is where I call my shots on players I think require a call to action in dynasty, whether it be to buy or sell that player.

While you are here, be sure to check out the updated Pittsburgh Pirates top prospect list, updated with new international prospects:

Pittsburgh Pirates Dynasty Sleepers, Breakouts, and Busts

MLB Sleeper: Nick Yorke, 2B/OF, 22, 6’0”/200

Yorke was traded from Boston to Pittsburgh at the trade deadline and was on base in 33 of his 40 games in the Pirates org, earning a promotion to the Majors on September 16.

Finally, having a healthy 2024 season, Yorke posted a .303/.385/.449 slash line in the Minors with 12 home runs and 33 doubles. Yorke also stole 21 bases while posting impressive contact rates.

Yorke has made significant strides in the power department, posting an average exit velocity north of 91 mph and a 90th percentile above 105 mph. Both of these marks show above-average power. Yorke pairs it with respectable contact rates, which have also been strong, with an overall mark north of 79 percent and 86 percent in-zone.

Yorke knows the zone well and shows strong pitch recognition. He is not chasing often and has strong swing rates on pitches he can drive. Yorke does not show major swing-and-miss issues against breaking balls either, with a contact rate of 74 percent, a pretty good mark for breaking balls.

Given his time in the Majors, Yorke looks like the front-runner to be the Pirates starting second baseman heading into 2025.

MLB Breakout: Jared Jones, Pittsburgh Pirates, 23, 6’1”/190

It is time to buy a full breakout from Jones in 2025, and the cost is fairly low all things considered. Despite the buzz early in 2024 after breaking camp with the team, the hype does not seem to be there, in dynasty or redraft.

Jones broke camp with the Pirates in 2024, pitching 121.2 innings with a 4.14 ERA and a 26.2 percent strikeout rate. Jones missed several months in the season with a lat strain and, upon return, struggled, but Jones did finish the year strong. In his final start, Jones struck out seven batters across 4.1 innings while allowing two earned runs.

Jones blows his fastball by hitters, sitting north of 97 mph and hitting 101 on the gun. He creates plus IVB from his 5-foot-5 release height. His -4.1 VAA is near elite and Jones creates a ton of extension. This all led to an impressive 26 percent whiff rate.

The slider is Jones' primary used secondary, sitting 89 mph with a strong gyro shape. It had an impressive 37 percent whiff rate. The interesting thing to watch will be Jones's curveball. After using it around seven percent of the time for most of the season, he upped the usage to close to 16 percent in September and posted a 38 percent whiff rate that month.

The strike-throwing is good, and Jones has the pure stuff to significantly outperform his ADP. Expect plenty of innings and good results for Jones in 2025.

MLB Bust: Joey Bart, C, 28, 6’2”/238

Joey Bart is one of the tougher players to evaluate at the positon. From the beginning of the season through July 8, he slashed .240/.333/.440 with four home runs and a 30 percent strikeout rate. Bart did miss time with an injury there. From July 9 through July 23, Bart struck out 23 percent of the time and slashed .302/.362/.552 with eight home runs. Bart again missed more time but returned in September and slashed .241/.302/.345 with one home run and a 29 percent strikeout rate.

Maybe this pick looks like a complete whiff. Bart is going to play and probably has a solid chance to be productive. Endy Rodriguez is back and healthy and could factor in, but he also could fit in at first base.

From an underlying data standpoint, Bart has below-average contact skills, and while his chase rate is decent, the approach is not as good given the low zone and heart swing rates. The ground ball rate of 49 percent leads to a low sweet-spot rate and less barrels despite the bat speed being good.

Behind the plate, Bart also shows to be a below average catcher.

Bart has elite bat speed but still has questionable contact skills. The Pirates still have Henry Davis and Endy Rodriguez if Bart does not work. It is hard to say what to expect from Bart. He could provide power. But he also might not work out like some hope.

Pittsburgh Pirates Prospect Sleeper: Jhonny Severino, SS/3B, 20, 6’2”/185, A

Severino was one of the best players I saw when I spent a week at the complex in Florida. Listed at 6’2”/185, I would guess he is probably 6’4” and still has projection left on an already good frame.

At the plate, Severino has shown the ability to hit the ball hard and had a 90th percentile exit velocity of around 101 mph for the year. He posted around league-average contact rates, both overall and in the zone.

In the field, Severino played third base and showed smooth actions and a good arm. He made several plays, and while they were routine plays, they just looked smooth. I was quite impressed with the overall look at Severino, and the eye test backs the strong performance.

Between the complex and Single-A, Severino slashed .271/.341/.528 with 16 home runs, 18 doubles, and six triples while stealing 16 bases. Given the frame and projection left, Severino will surely tap into more power in his athletic frame.

Pittsburgh Pirates Prospect Breakout: Edward Florentino, 1B/OF, 18, 6’4”/200, DSL

Florentino signed as part of the Pirates 2024 international class, receiving a $395k bonus. Having an advanced frame at 6’4”/200, Florentino mashed and was one of the Pirates’ best DSL hitters. His slash of .260/.432/.459 with five home runs and 17 extra-base hits in 49 games.

Considering the frame and long levers, Florentino does not swing and miss often. He posted above-average contact rates and had an impressive 86 percent in-zone mark. He does not expand the zone often and walked at a high clip in 2024, backed by a sub-20 percent chase rate.

Florentino hit the ball pretty hard for a 17 year-old, having a 90th percentile exit velocity already near the MLB average at 103.5 mph. Given the amount of line drives and fly balls Florentino hits and a swing that is geared for loft, he should get plenty of game power. Florentino feels like a significant potential breakout when he comes stateside in 2025.