Bucco Boys Prospect Weekly: Tony Blanco Jr.'s Power Surge, Barco Blanks Triple-A
By Simon Lane ·
Built Different: Tony Blanco Jr. Is Hitting Home Runs at a Frightening Pace
Tony Blanco Jr. (A+, LF, Rank: 22) went 6-for-17 with two home runs, two doubles, and four walks last week, adding to a month that has become the most compelling story in the Pirates' lower levels. Over the last 30 days, he is slashing .279/.353/.689 with seven home runs, four doubles, and 13 RBI across 18 games at High-A Greensboro. That is a sustained, repeatable demonstration of what his power ceiling looks like when he is locked in. For the season, he has 19 home runs in 263 plate appearances at A+, a rate that would comfortably project to 50-plus over a full 600-PA campaign. He is 21 years old. The power is not theoretical.
The honest caveat is that the profile has real limitations and the scouting report does not hide them: a 40 hit grade, 40 field grade, and 30 speed. He is a right-handed corner bat with a 65 raw power grade and a swing that carries a 49.5% swing rate and 63% contact rate, a combination that predicts the 76-strikeout total through 263 at-bats at A+. The path to a big-league role runs directly through contact improvement, because the strikeout rate against upper-level velocity and breaking balls will test whether the power can stay this prolific. His projection as a bench bat or up-the-ladder power option is fair given the swing-and-miss, but it undersells what happens when he connects. The Pirates do not have many 21-year-olds who can hit baseballs like this. The next step is Double-A, and the question of whether the power travels is the most interesting one in the system right now.
Nothing to See Here: Hunter Barco's Cleanest Outing of the Year
Hunter Barco (AAA, LHP, Rank: 8) threw six innings against Indianapolis opponents and allowed just one hit with zero runs and two walks, striking out three. The line does not jump off the page in terms of strikeout volume, but context matters: Barco entered the week with a 4.12 ERA across 54.2 Triple-A innings and a 3.00 ERA over his last 30 days at the level, and this was the cleanest, most efficient outing of his season. For a pitcher whose 2026 has been defined by walk trouble, a two-walk, six-inning shutout performance is a meaningful data point. The sinker-slider combination, anchored by a 60-grade slider that has always been his best pitch, was working as designed. The deception in his low-slot, cross-body delivery kept hitters off the fastball, which sits 95-97 mph and plays up from that arm angle.
The concern with Barco has never been stuff; it has been durability and consistency. His big-league numbers in 2026 (7.36 ERA, 2.11 WHIP in 14.2 MLB innings) reflect what happens when the command wavers against players who can punish mistakes with a major-league bat. The fastball that plays at Triple-A gets more plate when the location slips against big-league hitters, and his changeup is still a fringy third offering that does not give him a reliable way to miss bats against left-handed hitters. Last year's stretch at Double-A, where he posted a 0.00 ERA across six starts and 25.2 innings, showed what the ceiling looks like. This week's performance at Triple-A was the first real glimpse of that version of Barco in 2026. Whether it signals a mechanical correction or just a good day against a favorable lineup is worth watching closely over the next few starts.
Quick Hits
Lonnie White Jr. (AA, OF, Rank: 24) · drove in 3 on 7 hits, including a home run, across 18 plate appearances with four walks and just two strikeouts. He is slashing .413/.494/.773 over his last 20 games at Double-A, a stretch that includes seven home runs. For the season at Altoona, the line reads .301/.397/.566 with 16 home runs. A 60-runner who plays true center and has legitimate power, White is delivering at a level that makes his 45 hit grade feel conservative at the moment.
Antwone Kelly (AAA, RHP, Rank: 16) · struck out 9 over 5.2 innings of one-run ball, though six walks kept the outing from being truly clean. The strikeout numbers are real: Kelly is sitting at a 27% whiff rate over the last 30 days, and his 30-day ERA checks in at 0.51 across 17.2 innings. A 97-100 mph fastball with a functional slider-changeup foundation gives him a legitimate case as a back-end starter, but those six walks serve as a weekly reminder that the command grade (40) is not wrong. His Triple-A ERA on the season is 4.09 through 83.2 innings.
Axiel Plaz (A+, C, Rank: 33) · went 4-for-15 with two home runs and four RBI in 15 plate appearances. His 12th home run of the season puts him on pace to comfortably surpass his total from a year ago, and his .301/.383/.481 line across 333 plate appearances at A+ is a genuine breakout. A 50 hit tool paired with a 55 power grade and a contact rate that has trended upward as he has climbed; there is a real offensive profile here even if the defensive projection keeps the ceiling in the bench or reserve-catcher range.
Jared Jones (A+, 1B, Rank: 37) · reached base five times in 24 plate appearances, going 5-for-19 with a homer and five walks, adding to a season line of .314/.418/.523 with 15 home runs at Greensboro. His 30-day slash of .289/.379/.513 confirms this is not a one-month blip. The quad-A ceiling is a realistic projection given the corner-only profile and a contact rate that sits at 65.6%, but the walk rates (46 walks in 306 A+ plate appearances this year) suggest more hitting feel than the 40 hit grade implies.
Wilton Guerrero Jr. (RK, SS, Rank: 23) · had 6 hits in 20 plate appearances last week, including a triple, five RBI, and just two strikeouts. He is hitting .329/.411/.414 through 165 combined plate appearances across both DSL levels this year, with 17 stolen bases and a 70-grade speed tool doing what a 17-year-old shortstop's speed tool should be doing. No home runs and only eight doubles in the profile, but for a teenager in his first pro summer, the contact approach and on-base production are the right markers to track.
Wyatt Sanford (A+, SS, Rank: 4) · returned from a 7-day IL stint and went 4-for-17 with two home runs, six walks, and seven strikeouts in his first five games back. The season line at Greensboro sits at .282/.429/.518 with 10 home runs and 24 stolen bases in 248 plate appearances. His 39.3% swing rate over the last 30 days is the most selective stretch of his season, which is producing walks but also a 59.7% contact rate that is driving some swing-and-miss. He is 20 years old with an everyday shortstop projection, and getting back on the field healthy is the most important development of the week.
Javier Rivas (AA, SS, Rank: 10) · went 5-for-16 with a double and a home run in 17 plate appearances. He is hitting .313/.333/.500 over the last 30 days at Altoona, though the two walks against 15 strikeouts in that stretch illustrates the ongoing tension in the profile: there is real power for a shortstop-sized frame, but the 58.3% swing rate and 67.6% contact rate leave almost no margin against quality pitching. His season OBP at Double-A is .278. The power is genuine; the approach will determine how far it carries him.
Termarr Johnson (AAA, SS, Rank: 11) · was placed on the 7-day IL on August 9 retroactive to that date. He had gone 8-for-37 with two home runs in the 14 days leading up to the placement, continuing a difficult Triple-A season where he is slashing .199/.336/.319 in 406 plate appearances. The 24 stolen bases remain a real weapon, but the offensive struggles at Indianapolis have been persistent enough to raise real questions about his development timeline.
Connor Wietgrefe (AAA, LHP, Rank: 49) · allowed four earned runs in 4.2 innings last week in a bumpy outing, but the broader picture at Triple-A remains solid. His season ERA at Indianapolis is 3.06 across 53 innings, and he sits at 2.63 over the last 30 days. An 86-91 mph fastball and a 50 changeup are not overpowering tools, but his 47.8% strike rate and clean repeatable delivery keep him effective. I'd still take the over on him getting a big-league look before the season ends.
Khristian Curtis (MLB, RHP, Rank: 26) · was activated from the 7-day IL on August 12 and allowed two earned runs in two innings in his return outing. He had been sidelined since July 25. His Triple-A season (6.08 ERA, 32 strikeouts in 26.2 innings) has been rough, though his MLB debut earlier this year produced four strikeouts and zero runs over five innings, which is still a useful data point for what the ceiling looks like when things are clicking.
Keiner Delgado (AA, 2B, Rank: 46) · drove in 4 runs across 28 plate appearances last week, going 7-for-25 with a homer and walking three times. He is hitting .235/.333/.395 over the last 30 days at Double-A, and the 20 stolen bases this season remain his most reliable weapon. A switch-hitter with a pronounced right-side platoon weakness, Delgado profiles as a bench utility piece; the speed and the walks keep him relevant even when the contact is inconsistent.