Notes: Minor Matters, Ollie Retires, Move To Mexico; CBA - Not Yet

More meetings...

Notes:

• Fangraphs released its Top Prospect list; it runs 114 players deep, with a write up for every player they project as an everyday MLB player or better. The Buc list is the same ol' - SS Oneil Cruz (8), C Henry Davis (22), RHP Roansy Contreras (41), SS Liover Peguero (90), RHP Quinn Priester (102) & 2B Nick Gonzales (105).
• It also released a list of the Top 100 Prospects by ZiPS projection, which uses different evaluation criteria. The system ranks just three Bucco babes - Cruz (14), Priester (41), and Peguero (76). In players rated Top 10 by position, 2B Tucupito Marcano (8 ) made the list along with Rudolfo Castro (10).

Oneil Cruz - 10/3/2021 photo Pirates/MLB.com

• The Pirates released IF Robbie Glendinning, 26, a native Aussie and an interesting prospect with potential who broke out in 2019. But a logjam up the middle, tossed in with no MiLB play in 2020 and TJ surgery putting him on ice for the past two seasons, made Robbie expendable.
• The Pirates shut down their minor league camp on Wednesday & Thursday due to a outbreak of a "flu-like" illness that wasn't Covid related. Camp started up again on Friday.
• LHP Ollie Perez, 39, said he'll retire from baseball after his Mexican League campaign ends. He tossed for eight teams over 19 MLB seasons, and was with the Bucs from 2003-06.
• OF Keon Broxton, who has been in the minors for the past two years, signed to play in the Mexican League. He was a former Buc product (he played seven games w/two at-bats for Pittsburgh in 2015; he was mainly a defensive replacement/pinch runner) before being sent to Milwaukee and beginning an MLB odyssey.
• MLB and the union met for a week straight; not much public progress was reported except it seems a 12-team playoff is in the works. But they are meeting today, and it may be that more substantial negotiations have taken place without being leaked. Reaching an agreement by February 28th, the cutoff date for opening the season on time on March 31st, or thereabouts, are still a possibility though not a likelihood.