Former San Francisco Giants Top Pick Realizing Potential With Pittsburgh Pirates

A former San Francisco Giants top draft pick is finding success with the Pittsburgh Pirates.
Sep 27, 2024; Bronx, New York, USA; Pittsburgh Pirates catcher Joey Bart (14) hits a single against the New York Yankees during the first inning at Yankee Stadium.
Sep 27, 2024; Bronx, New York, USA; Pittsburgh Pirates catcher Joey Bart (14) hits a single against the New York Yankees during the first inning at Yankee Stadium. / John Jones-Imagn Images
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In the 2018 MLB draft, the San Francisco Giants believed they had found their contingency plan for star catcher Buster Posey.

A legendary player for the franchise, the team knew that he wasn’t going to be behind the plate forever, and someone would have to step into that role eventually.

So, with the No. 2 overall pick that year, they selected Joey Bart out of Georgia Tech.

Replacing a player of Posey's caliber is not an easy thing to do, but it was the former Yellow Jackets star who was going to receive the first shot at doing exactly that.

He made his Major League debut during the COVID-shortened campaign in 2020 to mixed results. Encouragingly, he performed at a high level when back at Triple-A the next year, but each time he played with the Giants, he struggled to find consistency.

Despite the underwhelming MLB results, Bart remained one of the top prospects in the game. The lowest he was ranked from 2019-2022 was No. 71, as he was viewed as a can’t-miss prospect behind the plate.

Unfortunately for San Francisco, he was never able to live up to those expectations over the course of four years.

As a result, he was traded to the Pittsburgh Pirates on Apr. 4, 2024, in exchange for minor league pitcher Austin Strickland.

Sometimes, all it takes is a change of scenery for a player to find their rhythm, and Bart has made the most of his opportunities with his new franchise.

The consistency and production that evaded him with the Giants has been found with the Pirates, as he put together a stellar 2024 campaign.

In his San Francisco career, he had a paltry .623 OPS in 457 at-bats. With Pittsburgh, across 253 at-bats while splitting time with Yasmani Grandal, Bart had an OPS of .799, recording a slash line of .265/.337/.462 with 13 home runs and 45 RBI.

An impressive 2.2 WAR was recorded as the immense potential he possessed is finally beginning to show through.

And in the opinion of Thomas Harrigan of MLB.com, it will continue in 2025.

He selected Bart as one of his breakout candidates for the upcoming season who will build upon a small sample size from last year.

“The 28-year-old still needs to prove himself on defense, but with Grandal a free agent, he’s about to receive the biggest opportunity of his career.”

If he can continue performing at that rate at the plate, Pittsburgh will accept whatever growing pains he is still going through defensively since he showed he can be a legitimate contributor with the bat.

The Pirates have consistently struggled to find offensive production, but Bart looks capable of providing it.

Hindsight is 20/20, but this looks like a move that will backfire on the Giants.

However, they are certainly happy with what they have received from Patrick Bailey to this point and are hoping he can have a breakout of his own in 2025.


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Kenneth Teape
KENNETH TEAPE

Kenneth Teape is an alumnus of SUNY Old Westbury and graduated in 2013 with an Honors Degree in Media Communications with a focus on print journalism. During his time at Old Westbury, he worked for the school newspaper and several online publications, such as Knicks Now, the official website of the New York Knicks, and a self-made website with fellow students, Gotham City Sports News. Kenneth has also been a site expert at Empire Writes Back, Musket Fire, and Lake Show Life within the FanSided Network. He was a contributor to HoopsHabit, with work featured on Bleacher Report and Yardbarker. In addition to his work here, he is a reporter for both NBA Analysis Network and NFL Analysis Network, as well as a writer and editor for Packers Coverage. You can follow him on X, formerly Twitter, @teapester725, or reach him via email at teapester725@gmail.com.