PITTSBURGH (93.7 The Fan) – A roll of the dice for the Pirates in the second round of the MLB Draft. GM Ben Cherington takes a left-handed starter having a great year in college, only to have Tommy John surgery this May.
Hunter Barco is a 6’4”, 210-pound pitcher at the University of Florida who in 2019 was considered the best high school left-hander. In his first full freshman year with the Gators, Barco named to the SEC All-Newcomer Team and tied for 11th nationally with 10 wins going 10-3 with a 4.01 ERA in 83 innings allowing 77 hits and striking out 94. Made nine starts this season before being shutdown. The Jacksonville native was 5-2 with a 2.50 ERA, 69 strikeouts to 11 walks and 34 hits allowed in 50.1 innings.
“Hunter has been on our radar since high school,” said Pirates Senior Director of Amateur Scouting Joe DelliCarri. “He had really made tremendous progress and the command he had shown us before the Tommy John surgery. Getting to know Hunter over that time, he’s very passionate about learning. Done a tremendous job of figuring out who he is and how he works. We factor in the injury, but there are several areas we believe Hunter brings to the table that align with what we can do moving forward.”
“When healthy, Barco has been very similar to the prospect he was back in high school, albeit now with a track record of SEC success,” according to MLB.com. “The 6-foot-4 southpaw relies mostly on his fastball-slider combination. His fastball typically sits around 92 mph and touches 95. When he commands it well, that's plenty, given the life it has and the lower-slot, cross-body delivery that causes some deception. His 80-mph sweeping slider misses a ton of bats and he can manipulate the shape of it to give it more of a curveball look at times. He sells his changeup well with excellent arm speed.”
“Barco has done an excellent job of consistently finding the strike zone in college, though there’s improvement that can be made in terms of command within the zone with that funky delivery tough to repeat at times. He has a ceiling of being a No. 3 or 4 starter.”
The Pirates would like the 21-year-old to continue to use his various arm slots, which has been key to his effectiveness. At the same time, working on his delivery to avoid future injuries.
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