Jared Oliva*, OF, PIT

Jared Oliva sure looked good in the Arizona Fall League (.312/.413/.473 in 109 PA). Is he as good as all that? Was that a true picture of his talents?

• Born: November 27, 1995
• B/T: Right/Right
• 6’2″, 195-lbs
• Drafted by the Pittsburgh Pirates in the 7th round of the 2017 MLB June Amateur Draft from University of Arizona (Tucson, AZ)

The Numbers

His raw numbers are listed above courtesy of baseball-reference.com. Let’s aggregate by year then focus on the important numbers for minor leaguers:

The speed is good and consistent. Combined with very good OBP numbers, including a full season at Double-A where he didn’t miss a beat, is a very good sign.

He doesn’t K% too much, and he draws walks.

That power is a bit concerning. At the upper levels, and in the majors, if you strike out a fair bit and you don’t have much power in your bat, you can be pitched to. The funny thing is when he was the University of Arizona, he was known as a power guy. But he’s 24 now, so where’s the power?

Defensively, he’s fine and with his strong arm he could play CF or easily a corner.

He hit righties better than lefties, but gets on base against them both the same, but the power shows more against righties.

He has pull power, not much into opposite field power yet. I’d be shifting over to Left against Mr. Oliva.

“The hills are alive…” Seriously, these mountainous waves show a batter who likes early summer, but not spring or late summer. It’s not a level thing either, for he’s going one level per year like clockwork. See you in AAA in 2020, Jared, and I won’t buy tickets for your early season games.

The Scouts

• Rotowire: #80 on their Top 400.
• BaseballHQ: Not on their Top 100.
• Fangraphs: Not on their Top 120.
• ​Fantasy Six Pack: #374 on their dynasty list.
• Prospects365: #137 on Ray Butler’s Top 200.
• Imaginary Brick Wall: #119 on the Top 487.
• Fantrax: #107 on the Top 250.

Warnings

It would be nice to see his college power (ISO of .151 for his college career) at least.

He’s done well in the upper minors already, so he should do well at AAA, but he has to do it first.

Conclusion

He looks like a starter to me, perhaps not a star unless that power develops. He could be a top of the order speed guy, or table setter by getting on base in front of the power guys. Given the state of play in 2020, he probably won’t be with the Pirates until 2021, but I do expect him there then.