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DYLAN BUSBY, THIRD BASEMAN
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| Born: November 28, 1995 Height: 6’3″ Weight: 185 Bats: Right Throws: Right Drafted: 3rd Round, 88th Overall, 2017 How Acquired: Draft College: Florida State Agent: N/A |
WTM’s PLAYER PROFILE |
| Busby’s calling card is raw power. After a slow start in 2017 that was probably due to off-season hernia surgery, he put up a 315/399/597 line for Florida State that ended up nearly identical to his line as a sophomore in 2016. He also slugged .567 in the wood-bat Cape Cod League in 2016. In his last two collegiate seasons, though, Busby struck out in a little over a quarter of his at-bats, so swinging and missing is likely to be a big part of his game. He played both third and first in college, and has good athleticism and at least an average arm. He could stick at third or ultimately move to first or right. Busby was considered more of a fifth round option and rated 189th by MLB Pipeline and 129th by Baseball America; he signed for a little under the slot amount of $626,600. Taking a power-oriented hitter like Busby is unusual for the Pirates, who haven’t emphasized power much in the draft in a long time and who could use considerably more of it in their system.
2017 Busby had a rough debut, showing poor plate discipline and not showing the expected power. He did get three extra base hits, including his only HR, in his last four games, so there’s that. 2018 A college hitter from a major program, drafted as early as Busby was, typically would go to Bradenton for his first full season, but after Busby’s struggles the Pirates sent him to West Virginia. He started off slowly, but got hot in May, batting 273/304/614, although the power came with just one walk and 17 strikeouts. After a dozen May games, though, Busby got beaned and spent much of the rest of the season trying to get free of concussion symptoms. He was out until early July, when he went to the GCL for a rehab. Another beaning cut that rehab short after eight games. He was out for nearly another month before going to Bristol in August. He finally made it back to West Virginia for four games in mid-August, then went back on the disabled list. 2019 Busby was the regular third baseman for Bradenton. He had an all-or-nothing season, to put it mildly. He led the pitching-dominated Florida State League in home runs and, despite a very low batting average, was second in slugging. He also struck out in over 36% of his plate appearances. He was prone to lengthy slumps. Busby hit his tenth HR on May 5, but didn’t hit another one until June 9. He also had a stretch of 17 games without a home run or RBI later in the season. He had only a mild platoon split. 2020 2021 Busby had a lost season. He opened it with Indianapolis, but was hurt a few games in. He returned only briefly to rehab in September. It’s not clear whether the injury was another concussion. It’d be interesting to see what Busby might do at higher levels if he could get past the injury problems. The FSL is a very tough place for power hitters, so his power output in 2019 was impressive. It’s hard to imagine an approach with so much swing and miss working in AA or higher, but it’d be nice if he got a chance. |
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CONTRACT INFORMATION
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| 2022: Minor league contract |
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PLAYER INFORMATION
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| Signing Bonus: $575,000 MiLB Debut: 2017 MLB Debut: MiLB FA Eligible: 2023 MLB FA Eligible: Rule 5 Eligible: 2020 Added to 40-Man: Options Remaining: 3 MLB Service Time: 0.000 |
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TRANSACTIONS
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| June 13, 2017: Drafted by the Pittsburgh Pirates in the 3rd round, 88th overall pick; signed on June 28. |