Joshua Palacios

Palacios joined the Pirates for the 2023 season, his third organization in as many campaigns. He was also afforded his most significant sample in the majors, as he racked up 264 plate appearances while primarily manning corner outfield positions in Pittsburgh. His surface-level stats won't show it, but there were some positives to take out of that sample as Palacios dropped his strikeout rate to a palatable 21.6 percent. He also managed a 10.3 percent barrel rate and 109.6 max exit velocity. In order to truly leverage that raw power, Palacios will need to lift the ball more frequently. He had a well below-average 7.4 degree launch angle and 32.6 percent flyball rate, with the end result being a forgettable .174 ISO and .413 slugging percentage. Based on Palacios' big-league sample to this point, that doesn't seem likely. However, if he falls into an everyday job - a possibility if the Pirates don't add to their outfield this offseason -- his progress could be worth monitoring in deeper formats, especially because he should also chip in some stolen bases with consistent playing time.