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CAL MITCHELL, CORNER OUTFIELDER
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| Born: March 8, 1999 Height: 6’1″ Weight: 200 Bats: Left Throws: Left Drafted: 2nd Round, 50th Overall, 2017 How Acquired: Draft High School: Rancho Bernardo HS (CA) Agent: N/A |
WTM’s PLAYER PROFILE |
| Mitchell reflected a draft strategy on the Pirates’ part that appeared to seek upside, as they went with prep players on their first four selections. He also reflected a greater emphasis on power potential than they’ve generally shown. Mitchell was rated more highly going into his senior year than at draft time, but a change in his approach at the plate hurt his stock. He’d shown plus power and the ability to drive the ball to all fields in the past, but in 2017 he developed a pull happy swing that resulted in increased swings and misses. He rebounded late to put up decent stats for the season and has the power, hit tool and strike zone judgment to be a good hitter in the future if the strikeouts aren’t an issue. He’s a below average runner who was already limited as a prep player to left field and he doesn’t have a strong arm, so his bat will have to carry him. He had a commitment to the University of San Diego, but the Pirates signed him for exactly the slot amount.
2017 Mitchell didn’t hit the ball with a great deal of authority during his debut, but he wasn’t overmatched, as the BB:K ratio shows. He played two games each in center and right, and spent the rest of his time in left. 2018 The Pirates sent Mitchell to West Virginia, where he was one of the league’s youngest players. He got off to a fast start, but tailed off steadily after the first month until he rebounded a bit at season’s end. His monthly OPS: April: 1.043 His plate discipline was just decent throughout the season. Mitchell had a reverse platoon split, batting 357/413/490 against LHPs and 258/325/409 against RHPs. He played a few games in right and otherwise played left. 2019 Mitchell had a frustrating season. Considering the context — a player who’d just turned 20 in the pitching-dominated Florida State League — his power numbers were good. He was sixth in the league in HRs and tenth in SLG. His walk and K rates, though, were obviously bad. Every time he seemed to have gotten the bat going, he’d go into a lengthy slump. His OPS by month: April: .807 Mitchell had significant problems with LHPs, with a .542 OPS vs. .750 against RHPs. He had ten outfield assists, although that doesn’t necessarily show a strong arm. 2020 2021 Mitchell got off to a strong start at Altoona and appeared to be living up to his potential. Through the first two months, he had eight home runs and was slugging .535. Over the last three months in AA, he had four homers, just one after July, and slugged .357. Mitchell struggled badly against LHPs, with a .536 OPS, compared to .820 against RHPs. His walk rate remained low but his K rate was much lower than in the past. He played almost exclusively in right. The Pirates moved him up to Indianapolis after the AA season ended and he got into seven games there. Mitchell hasn’t quite put it together yet, although he showed signs of it in 2021. He’s eligible for the Rule 5 draft. Given their historically bad offense and baffling inability to find outfielders who can hit, the Pirates couldn’t afford to let Mitchell go, but they chose not to protect him. They instead stuck with a raft of below-mediocre non-prospects, but they got away with it when the lockout led to the draft’s cancellation. UPDATE: The cancellation of the draft was fortunate. Mitchell started well in AAA and the Pirates called him up in late May. |
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CONTRACT INFORMATION
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| 2022: Major league minimum |
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PLAYER INFORMATION
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| Signing Bonus: $1,357,300 MiLB Debut: 2017 MLB Debut: 5/24/2022 MiLB FA Eligible: N/A MLB FA Eligible: 2028 Rule 5 Eligible: N/A Added to 40-Man: 5/24/2022 Options Remaining: 3 MLB Service Time: 0.000 |
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TRANSACTIONS
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| June 12, 2017: Drafted by the Pittsburgh Pirates in the 2nd round, 50th overall pick; signed on June 20. May 24, 2022: Contract purchased by the Pittsburgh Pirates. |