RHP Jack Hartman, the Pirates’ fourth round pick in the 2020 draft, has had Tommy John surgery.
Jack Hartman, the Pirates’ fourth-round pick in this past summer’s draft, has had Tommy John surgery.
— Jason Mackey (@JMackeyPG) December 9, 2020
The Pirates selected Hartman out of Appalachian State University, where he had a history of missing a lot of bats and a lot of strike zones. He was a senior and signed for a little over a tenth of the slot value. Hartman seems to have more upside than the typical senior pick, as he throws 94-97 mph with a sometimes-plus slider and very high spin rates. He probably projects as a reliever.
The timing of the surgery isn’t clear. The Pirates have implemented their year-old pledge to become more transparent by becoming more secretive than ever, so it doesn’t necessarily follow that it was recent. Regardless, we shouldn’t expect to see Hartman next year, which is probably very frustrating for him given that the pandemic wiped out what should have been his first half-season as a pro.
