Braylon Bishop had a change of heart. Several of them, actually.
Selected by the Pirates in the 14th round of July’s MLB draft, Bishop thought briefly about turning pro, then appeared to double-down on his commitment to the University of Arkansas, which he made as a 15-year-old back in 2017.
Growing up in Texarkana, located about 4 1/2 hours south of Fayetteville in Arkansas’ southwest corner, Bishop dreamed of one day playing for the Razorbacks. It’s why he committed as early as he did.
But as the athletic outfielder tried to figure out the route he wanted to take, his mind bouncing all around the room with possibilities, he passed the time with one of his favorite hobbies: hitting off a tee.
“After the draft, I was going to the cage and hitting by myself, and I finally thought, ‘I feel like I’ve been hitting college pitching for a while now [through showcases and other tournament]. I feel like I’m good enough,’ ” Bishop said. “That’s just how I see it.”
But that’s only part of what Bishop realized that day. Taken as late as he was — Baseball America had him mocked as a top-10 pick as recently as June 2020 — Bishop knew his signing bonus was going to be small. He also didn’t care.
It will all be part of the journey, the 18-year-old Bishop said he told himself.
“Whatever they’re gonna give me, I can’t really argue with it,” Bishop said. “But I just sort of said, before this money is gone, I’ll have another contract. I want to be in the league before I’m 21.
“I know it’s hard to do, but that’s the goal.”
Bishop signing with the Pirates served as the final piece of their strategy, as it allowed them to collect five top-100 players — an unprecedented haul.
Ranked 88th by Baseball America and 94th by MLB Pipeline, Bishop joined Henry Davis, Anthony Solometo, Lonnie White Jr. and Bubba Chandler in a draft class the Pirates hope can transform their future.
Listed at 6-foot-1, 196 pounds, Bishop is a left-handed hitter with blazing speed. Already he’s been clocked at 6.6 seconds in the 60-yard dash, which is below the MLB average (6.7-6.9 seconds).
“I feel like I can cover a lot of ground in the outfield,” said Bishop, who played quarterback and safety for his high school football team and finished fourth in the state in triple jump his senior year.
Growing up, Bishop idolized Ken Griffey Jr. for his ability to move in center field. He’s also a big Torii Hunter fan because Hunter is from Pine Bluff, Ark., about 2 1/2 hours east of Texarkana.
Scouts see Bishop as having plenty of untapped power potential, although there are questions about his ability to hit for average and make enough consistent contact — concerns that probably haven’t been eliminated by Bishop’s start in the Florida Complex League: a .182 average through seven games, with two walks and five strikeouts in 22 at-bats.
“I’ve been hitting balls hard,” Bishop said. “That’s all I’ve really wanted to accomplish. If I hit fastballs hard, I feel like I’m going to be successful.”
Living away from home has been the biggest adjustment for Bishop, who’s rooming with White at Pirate City. The two get along well, eat most of their meals together and pass the time playing video games, with Bishop laughing that White just somehow can’t ever seem to beat him in MLB The Show 21.
As for actual baseball, Bishop knows he has a ton of work to do, especially if he wants to make his MLB debut inside of three years.
“I’m ready for the challenge,” Bishop said. “That’s the type of work ethic that I want to produce.”
Which is why Bishop ultimately chose to bypass college, as much as he felt pulled to Arkansas and excited as he was to play there after a tremendous prep career where he hit .400 with eight doubles, five triples, four home runs and 12 steals as a senior, becoming Perfect Game’s Player of the Year in Arkansas.
Bishop also talked a lot with his father after the draft, and Nick Bishop reinforced to his son that their family would support whatever he wanted to do. Ultimately, that came down to starting his pro career because Braylon believed he was ready.
“I was jumping back and forth from the gate,” Braylon said. “My dad kept telling me, whatever I decide to lock in and go with it. I had to make a decision, and I think this is what’s best for me. I can’t look back.”
TOP 10 REPORT (Rankings via MLB Pipeline)
Numbers through Thursday’s games
1. Henry Davis, C, High-A Greensboro: Director of player and coaching development John Baker said earlier this week the Pirates would like Davis, who’s out until at least October with an oblique injury, to play in the Arizona Fall League if he’s full recovered in time. Davis went 8 for 26 with three homers, one double and one triple in eight minor league games.
2. Quinn Priester, RHP, High-A Greensboro: Went four innings and allowed an earned run in his last start. Over his past five, Priester is 3-0 with a 1.61 ERA. He’s walked just six and struck out 38, a total exceeded by just four pitchers in all of MiLB during that time. The 2019 first-round pick is 7-3 with a 2.65 for the season, walking 34 and striking out 96 in 95 innings.
3. Oneil Cruz, SS, Class AA Altoona: Hit a home run an estimated at 461 feet Sunday in Akron. Now hitting .306 with an .821 OPS in 12 games since returning from a right forearm strain. Baker said earlier this week that the Pirates will probably back off the outfield stuff with Cruz for the year.
4. Nick Gonzales, 2B, High-A Greensboro: Has 94 total bases since Aug. 1, which ranks third in MiLB. Has 25 extra-base hits, including 11 homers in those 30 games, to go along with 32 RBIs. Took a foul ball off the leg Tuesday. He hasn’t played since, although Pirates director of sports medicine Todd Tomczyk said Gonzales was not injured; it was merely precautionary.
5. Liover Peguero, SS, High-A Greensboro: Had an eight-game hitting streak before Friday’s game, during which he was batting .419 with a 1.255 OPS. Season average is up to .271, which ranks 10th in the High-A East League.
6. Roansy Contreras, RHP, Class AA Altoona: Made his second start back Wednesday and again looked dominant, tossing three innings against Erie while allowed an unearned run, walking none and striking out four. The Pirates are being careful with Contreras, but he’s had zero issues with his velocity or dynamic stuff.
7. Anthony Solometo, LHP, Florida Complex League: Solometo hasn’t made an appearance yet in the Pirates’ organization after being selected in the second round of the 2021 draft.
8. Bubba Chandler, RHP/SS, Florida Complex League: Hitless in two games this week, Chandler is now batting just .172 on the year, with 15 strikeouts in 29 at-bats. Like Solometo, he has not yet pitched.
9. Tucupita Marcano, INF, Class AAA Indianapolis: After his average in the Pirates system had dipped all the way to .183 on Aug. 27, Marcano has hits in 9 of 10, batting .316 during that stretch. The only issue is that they’ve all been singles.
10. Carmen Mlodzinski, RHP, High-A Greensboro: Has been very limited since returning from a shoulder injury on Aug. 15. Has made four starts, with none of them going longer than 2 2/3 innings — which was his most recent one last Friday. Mlodzinski also has a 6.48 ERA in those 8 1/3 innings.
Other notables:
• Class AA Altoona OF Jack Suwinski is hitting .400 in seven September games. Among all Class AA players, Suwinski ranks 11th in on-base percentage (.381) and 14th in OPS (.868) this season.
• The Pirates might need to circle back on Jared Oliva soon. In 33 games with Class AAA Indianapolis since the big club optioned him at the end of July, Oliva is hitting .303 with nine doubles, two triples, two homers and 20 RBIs.
• As a team, High-A Greensboro ranks third in MiLB in home runs (182) and eighth in runs (684). Meanwhile, Low-A Bradenton’s pitching staff is second in all of MiLB with 1,212 strikeouts, led by Adrian Florencio with 115.
• Since the beginning of July, Low-A Bradenton’s Endy Rodriguez has hit .326 with a .970 OPS. He has also hit safely in 14 of his last 15 games, with a 1.212 OPS and 20 RBIs.
• Also at Class AA Altoona, Ji-Hwan Bae has a 20-game on-base streak, during which he’s hitting .348 with seven RBIs, 16 walks and five steals.
Jason Mackey: jmackey@post-gazette.com and Twitter @JMackeyPG.
First Published: September 10, 2021, 4:46 p.m.
