Mining for Prospects: Untapped Markets

Dovydas Neverauskas hails from
baseball neophyte Lithuania

A few weeks ago, it became public knowledge that the Pirates signed Australian pitching Nick Hutchings back in November.  One of the interesting developments revealed by the signing was a relationship between Pirates and the Australian League team Adelaide Bite.  Pirates scout Tony Harris doubles as the Bite's manager.  Hutchings is also one of several players in the Pirates organization from Australia.  None of them are big-time prospects or high-profile international signings, but that may come.

South African Glove Wizard

During Neal Huntington's tenure, the Pittsburgh Pirates have signed international players from exotic and under-the-radar locations.  They signed two kids from India who literally won what was the equivalent of a reality show contest. Only one remains in the Pirates farm system - Rinku Singh - and he's basically a non-prospect at this point.  An argument can be made that those particular signings were publicity stunts, but the same is not true of other strange signings.  The Pirates signed Dovydas Neverauskas out of Lithuania and followed that up a few years later by signing Alex Lukashevich out of Belarus (both profiled here). Neverauskas is ahead of Lukashevich right now in both development and prospect status, but both are legitimate guys to watch.

31+ Mini Series

Currently, I'm working on my top 30 Pirates prospect list. As I write this, I'm one-sixth of the way through with prospects 26-30 finished.  What's most exciting is that a list of 30 actually includes 30 intriguing prospects.  In years past, finding 20 players in the Pirates system worth writing about was often difficult.  That's finally changed, and even 30 may not be enough. 

 In the past, I've written articles about several players that didn't make my top 30. Below is the current list.  They will start a new mini-series "31+" that will feature spotlights on other players in thefarm systems in a more narrative writing style.  Make sure to check back regularly as this will be updated regularly.  Enjoy!

From Eastern Europe With Love

Eastern Europe

Traditionally, Major League Baseball players come from two places: The United States and Canada and Latin America.  Lately, Asia has joined the ranks in as far as supplying Major League Baseball with talent.  Other than that, places like Africa and Europe have done little to produce professional baseball talent.  That doesn't mean teams won't look for the diamond in the rough in those areas.

The Pirates are no exceptions.  Recently, the Pirates have signed two players from India, Rinku Singh and Dinesh Patel, and a player from South Africa, Gift Ngeope.  Negope and Singh are still in the minor league system and both have an outside shot of one day being big leaguers.  In addition to those signings, the Pirates had two intriguing pitchers on their GCL squad this year, both from Eastern Europe. Dovydas Neverauskas hails from Lithuania while Alex Lukashevich is a native of Belarus.