Pirates Pitching Prospect Looking To Bounce Back
The Pittsburgh Pirates trio of top-100 right-handed pitching prospects Bubba Chandler, Braxton Ashcraft and Thomas Harrington aren't the only pitchers working their way up through the minor league system.
Left-handed pitcher Anthony Solometo isn't too far from being one of the Pirates' top-ranked prospects by MLB Pipeline, as he ranks seventh overall and fourth among Pirates pitchers. He's also the top-ranked left-handed pitcher in Pittsburgh's system and is projected by MLB Pipeline to reach the big leagues in 2025.
Solometo had a rough go of it in Double-A Altoona in 2024, but with the lessons he gained from it, the left-handed pitcher feels as good as he's ever felt heading into next season.
"I've accepted the process in a sense where I know I need to go through these levels against where I want to be," Solometo said. I thought I was really good at handling the outside noise and handling all these things, but after going through what I've been through this year, I feel like I'm the strongest I've ever been. And as the season comes to a close, I'm just really excited for the future. "
Solometo, 22, was taken out of high school in the second round of the 2021 MLB Draft. He got off to a strong start in the pro ranks, going 5-1 with a 2.64 ERA over 13 appearances, including eight starts in 2022 in the Florida State League. He followed that up with another solid year, going 4-7 with a 3.26 ERA in 110.1 innings pitched in 24 starts across High-A Greensboro and Double-A Altoona.
Things hit a snag for Solometo in 2024. After making three starts across the FSL and Florida Complex League, he returned to Altoona and had the worst season of his young career, going 1-7 with a 5.98 ERA in 58.2 innings pitched across 20 appearances, including 17 starts. Opponents batted .269 against him and he posted a 1.62 WHIP.
In 2023, Solometo went 2-4 with a 4.35 ERA in 12 starts for Altoona.
Solometo isn't the first pitcher to experience a rough season upon reaching the highest league of their career, nor will he be the last. Him bouncing back from last season would be a more than welcome sign, even if there are pitchers ahead of him knocking on the door of the big leagues.
At the end of the day, it's just about reaching the big leagues for Solometo and seeing everything he's worked toward becoming a reality with the Pirates.
"Achieving the dream, it's all I can think about every night I rest my head on my pillow," Solometo said. "I'm sitting there thinking about what steps I need to take to get to where I need to be. I'll be wearing the Pirates uniform one day, and I'll be able to go out there and just show the world everything that I've been working for since I was six years old. That's the moment I'm most excited for. It's the chance to start this journey, and also after getting it done just figuring out how I can stay up here for as long as I possibly can."
