Prospect Watch: JT Brubaker Looking to Comeback Strong after Injury Filled Season
Even though the Pittsburgh Pirates used 14 different starting pitchers last season, prospect JT Brubaker was not one of the ones called. The reason why? Brubaker spent most of the 2019 season on the injured list thanks to a forearm strain that allowed him to make just six starts last season. However, 2020 is a new year for the Pirates 2015 6th round draft pick, and he looks to make his Major League debut sometime this season, due to his success throughout the Pirates Minor League system.
His journey through the Pirates minor league system began in 2015 with the Class A Short Season West Virginia Power. He made 15 starts that year and pitched to a 2.82 ERA in 73.1 innings of work while walking just 12 and striking out 49. He won his first national award in professional baseball that season when he was named the New York Penn League Pitcher of the Week on July 27th, 2015. For his success, he was promoted to High A Bradenton the following year, but things didn't go as smoothly for Brubaker in Florida.
After making 12 starts in West Virginia to start the season while keeping an ERA under 3.50, Brubaker got the call to join the Bradenton Marauders. Brubaker struggled in his first go around going 2-6 in 14 starts with a 5.32 ERA. However, he kept his pinpoint control that has followed him throughout his career walking just 22 batters in 67.2 innings of work. 2017 saw him take the jump to Double A Altoona and again he saw an inflated ERA going 7-6 with a 4.44 ERA. While the ERA was high, Brubaker found his strikeout pitch fanning 109 batters in 129 innings of work.
Then, Brubaker entered the 2018 season, a year that changed him from average pitcher to prospect to watch. In his first six starts with Altoona, Brubaker went 2-2 with a 1.80 ERA and got the call to Triple A. He ended up dominating the International League pitching to a 3.10 ERA in 22 starts going 8-4. He was tied for the fourth fewest walks among eligible pitchers in the International League with 36 while striking out 96 batters in 119 innings of work. He was named the Top pitcher in the Pirates farm system by the organization and looked to make his MLB debut sometime in 2019.
However, those plans were derailed after just four starts into the season. Brubaker was cruising through his first four starts, going 2-1 with a 2.57 ERA while striking out 21 and walking four in 20 innings of work. However, he would have to go on the 10-day injured list with a right forearm strain putting his season to a halt. He would try and come back in late June on a rehab assignment, but after two starts he had to be shut down again due to discomfort and wouldn't return to the mound for the rest of the season.
Brubaker came into camp in 2020 healthy once again after receiving Platelet Rich Plasma (PRP) shots to help heal the tendons in his throwing arm. He was throwing well early on in camp, making two appearances throwing 2.1 innings of work while allowing one run and striking out three batters. While Brubaker wasn't going to make the roster out of Spring Training, another strong performance at the Triple A level could have him eyeing at least a few spot starts throughout the 2020 season.
Since coming out of Akron University, Brubaker has made several changes throughout his career as he molded into the Major League ready pitcher he is today. The biggest thing is his jump in velocity that has made him harder to hit. Coming out of college, Brubaker only topped out at around 94 mph on his fastball. However, since working through the Pirates Minor League system, he has upped his velocity to 99 mph on his fastball which has helped his strikeout numbers. He went from being an average middle of the rotation guy, to someone who should be able to be a top of the rotation guy.
Brubaker has also been working on rounding out his Arsenal adding a slider to his repertoire in 2020. This pitch will offer some deception to that high speed fastball and have opposing hitters guessing on every pitch. He is also working on varying the velocity of his fastball so he can kick it into high gear when he needs to and slow things down in other situations. This change of speed, and his ability to locate pitches will be important for Brubaker to develop into a quality major League starting pitcher. With a career BB/9 of just 2.97, Brubaker wont allow a lot of free passes and will make hitters work for their opportunities.
Prediction: 1-2, 3.23 ERA (5 MLB starts)
I think 2020 is the year that JT Brubaker finally gets his call to the Major Leagues. While he won't make the Opening Day Roster, I see Brubaker getting the call halfway through the season to make a spot start for the Pirates and he will stick around for the last month or so of the season. Brubaker has the stuff to be a Major League starting pitcher, he just has to be able to keep that good control and stay off of the injured list to return to that top pitcher status in 2020.
As of now, the season is expected to begin somewhere around May 25th. Until then, we will continue to look at the men who make up this year's team and their contributions in 2020.
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