Bucco Boys Prospect Weekly: Florentino's Power Surge Hits 22, Sterling Earns His Greensboro Ticket
By Simon Lane ·
Bucco Boys Prospect Weekly covers the last 7 days of action for the Pirates farm system.
Twenty-Two Homers at 19: Edward Florentino Is Running Out of Arguments Against Him
Edward Florentino (A+, OF, Rank: 2) went 6-for-30 last week with three home runs, six walks, and six strikeouts, pushing his combined season total to 22 home runs across 402 plate appearances. Two of those homers came in the same game on Sunday, his second career multi-homer performance and the third home run in three consecutive games. The week was a microcosm of his full season at Greensboro: real power, genuine patience, and enough swing-and-miss to keep the profile honest. His 62 walks on the year against 110 strikeouts is a ratio that most 19-year-olds cannot dream of producing at High-A, and the 13.4% walk rate for the season reflects zone management that is simply not common at this level or this age. Over the last 30 days, his contact rate has climbed to 73% after sitting closer to 68% season-long, which suggests he has been squaring the ball more cleanly in the back half of the year even as the power production has stayed consistent.
The full picture here is among the more compelling in the Pittsburgh system. Florentino is a 55 hit, 55 power, 55 speed package who runs a 39.6% swing rate, among the most selective marks in the system, and backs it up with a 15.4% walk rate that plays far older than his age. The gap between his .228 average and .483 slugging at High-A this year shows who he is right now: a teenager who takes walks, hits baseballs a long way when he connects, and carries some contact risk that advanced pitchers will continue to probe. His projection as a second-division corner outfielder feels conservative given the current production rate, and the argument for a Double-A assignment before the season ends strengthens with every home run series. Last year he hit .290/.400/.548 between rookie ball and Bradenton with 16 homers across 351 plate appearances. This year he has 22 through 402 at a level two rungs higher. Pittsburgh's most exciting 19-year-old is not slowing down.
96 Innings and a Ticket Out: Levi Sterling Heads to Greensboro
Levi Sterling (A, RHP, Rank: 26) closed his Single-A tenure with a six-inning start against Bradenton opponents, striking out 11 while allowing three runs on three hits and two walks. The Pirates assigned him to Greensboro the next day, August 18, for his first look at High-A. The outing was a fitting finale for a 19-year-old who logged 96 innings across 21 starts at Bradenton in 2026, posting a 4.31 ERA with 112 strikeouts and 39 walks. The strikeout volume is the number that matters most: a 26.2% K rate across a full Single-A season at age 19 with a four-pitch mix is a legitimate developmental marker, and his last 30 days at Bradenton were the best stretch of his season, showing a 2.76 ERA, 25 strikeouts in 16.1 innings, and a 30% whiff rate. His strike rate over that same stretch ticked up to 51.3%, which is the exit data you want before bumping a teenager up a level.
The jump from last year to this one is worth emphasizing. In 2025, Sterling posted a 6.09 ERA across 34 innings between rookie ball and a brief Bradenton cameo with 34 strikeouts and 23 walks. This season he nearly tripled that innings total at the same level, cut his ERA by nearly two full runs, and added 78 strikeouts while holding the walk rate at a manageable 9.1%. He has a 93-95 mph four-seamer paired with a 55-grade slider, a developing curve, and a changeup that still profiles as fringe-average but functional. Command remains below-average, the fastball efficiency can push pitch counts early, and the changeup is not yet a weapon against left-handed hitters. The profile points toward a potential number-four starter if the command takes another step, with a multi-inning relief floor if it does not. The next six weeks in Greensboro are the most valuable developmental stretch the Pirates will get on him before the offseason begins.
Quick Hits
- Reinold Navarro (A+, LHP, Rank: 41) · tossed five perfect innings in what turned out to be his final Bradenton start: one hit, no runs, no walks, six strikeouts, and a promotion to Greensboro two days later alongside Sterling. The outing stands out against the rest of his season, where a 60-walk total across 69.1 innings reflects the command limitations (35 grade) that define his profile. The 65-grade fastball that sits 95-99 mph and the 60-grade slider give him one of the more uncomfortable two-pitch combinations in the lower minors, and a 42.5% whiff rate for the season backs that up. His walk rate is the honest caveat, and command at High-A against hitters who can lay off will be a real test.
- Wyatt Sanford (A+, SS, Rank: 12) · went 5-for-25 last week with two home runs, four RBI, three walks, and a hit by pitch. He is slashing .279/.422/.521 at High-A Greensboro this season across 273 plate appearances, with 26 stolen bases backing up the 60-grade speed. A 60-runner with a credible shortstop glove and a 14.2% walk rate, his power output in 2026 has been a genuine addition to a profile that already had an elevated floor from the defense and baserunning. The contact (60.2% rate) is still the question mark, and his vulnerability to spin in two-strike counts will define how quickly he moves.
- Chris Rembert (A, 2B, Rank: 5) · reached base 10 times in 20 plate appearances last week: six hits, four walks, two strikeouts, a double, and a stolen base. In his eight-game sample at Bradenton since signing, he is hitting .290/.421/.355 with a 37.9% swing rate and an 84.5% contact rate. Rembert is a contact bat with a 55 hit tool who signed for $2.4 million, roughly half a million over slot as a second-round pick out of Auburn. He is 21, plays second, and has enough barrel control to warrant watching closely as the sample grows.
- Axiel Plaz (A+, C, Rank: 33) · drove in four on five hits last week, adding two home runs. He is hitting .297/.377/.487 at High-A through 356 plate appearances with 14 home runs and a strikeout rate that has improved as he has climbed. The 55-grade raw power plays in games, and the 73.1% contact rate for the season is encouraging for a catcher who was hitting .086 at Greensboro a year ago. A bench-profile backstop with a real right-handed bat.
- Yordany De Los Santos (A+, SS, Rank: 23) · went 6-for-25 with a homer, three RBI, two walks, and six strikeouts last week. The week was a brighter data point for a player whose last 30 days at High-A tell a more complicated story: a .211/.276/.316 slash line with a 54.8% swing rate and 70.5% contact rate over that stretch. He has 44 stolen bases on the season, which is real regardless of what the bat does, but the hit tool (graded 45) and chase tendencies are genuine concerns as he faces upper-level sequencing more regularly.
- Easton Carmichael (AA, C, Rank: 31) · went 5-for-16 with a home run and five RBI in 16 plate appearances at Altoona last week. He has 19 home runs combined across High-A and Double-A this season and has driven in 78 runs through 409 plate appearances. The Double-A transition has softened the production somewhat, with a .254/.292/.418 line and a 4.8% walk rate at Altoona, but Carmichael profiles as an aggressive contact hitter who earns his production from barrel contact rather than walks. His long-term home is likely first base or a corner, but the bat has been the most consistently productive element of his game all year.
- Thomas Harrington (AAA, RHP, Rank: 17) · threw 10.1 innings across two outings last week without allowing a run, scattering seven hits with four walks and four strikeouts. Over his last 30 days at Indianapolis he has a 3.26 ERA in 19.1 innings, a meaningful turn after a season ERA that sat at 5.56 through 81 innings. Harrington is a 55-grade curveball backed by a 93-95 mph fastball and a four-pitch mix; command has been the persistent issue, and this recent stretch is the most encouraging stretch of consistency he has shown at Triple-A. A back-end starter type whose proximity to the big league rotation depends on whether the walk rate (9.5% season-long) comes down.
- Connor Wietgrefe (AAA, LHP, Rank: 49) · struck out six over six innings against Indianapolis opponents, allowing three earned runs on six hits with no walks. The zero-walk line is the most relevant detail: his season at Triple-A shows a 5.7% walk rate and 48.3% strike rate, which are the numbers that keep a 92-94 mph lefty relevant against upper-level lineups. He has a 3.20 ERA at Indianapolis and a 2.97 ERA over the last 30 days. A 55-grade command profile and plus deception from the left side are the carrying tools, and he is among the more rotation-ready arms in the system despite modest stuff grades.
- Cy Nielson (AAA, LHP, Rank: 47) · was promoted from Double-A Altoona to Indianapolis on August 14 and followed his debut with another gem: 5.1 innings, one hit, no runs, no walks, six strikeouts. His two-start Triple-A sample now shows a 0.00 ERA with a 0.19 WHIP. He spent the season at Altoona with a 5.60 ERA across 53 innings as a reliever, so the early Indianapolis numbers carry a small-sample caveat, but the 93-96 mph fastball from a left-handed crossfire slot gives his stuff a legitimate shot to play at higher levels in shorter stints. He is 25, projects as an up-down reliever, and the last two weeks have been the best sustained stretch of his 2026.
- Termarr Johnson (AAA, SS, Rank: 14) · was placed on the full-season injured list by Indianapolis on August 18. His last appearance was August 8, and he had gone 1-for-15 over his four games prior to the placement. On the season at Triple-A he is slashing .199/.336/.319 with eight home runs and 24 stolen bases across 406 plate appearances. A difficult 2026 at the plate for one of the system's higher-profile positional prospects.
- Hunter Barco (AAA, LHP, Rank: 8) · was recalled to Pittsburgh on August 16 and optioned back to Indianapolis the following day. His MLB line for the season now reads 7.64 ERA across 17.2 innings, while his Triple-A numbers sit at a 4.12 ERA in 54.2 frames with a 54-strikeout, 29-walk split. The fastball/slider combination is still legitimate; the command drifts enough against big-league bats that mistakes get punished at a higher rate than they do at Indianapolis. Seth Hernandez (A+, RHP, Rank: 1) was transferred from the 7-day IL to the 60-day IL at Greensboro on August 15.