Reinold Navarro spent the 2026 season building a very loud case for why Pittsburgh is so high on him. The Pirates’ 19-year-old left-hander doesn’t just flash velocity - he owns one of the best fastballs in the minor leagues, and Baseball America’s Stuff+ metric backed that up in a big way.
Navarro’s four-seamer finished first among all minor leaguers, earning a 121 Stuff+ grade. That put him three points clear of the next pitcher on the list and gave an early glimpse of just how overpowering the pitch can be. For a young arm still at the beginning of his pro career, that kind of number points straight toward upside.
The fastball plays because it comes with real heat and real life. Navarro averaged 96.1 mph with the pitch and can reach triple digits at times.
On top of that, he’s getting 19-plus inches of induced vertical break, and at points in his career he has averaged around 21. MLB pitchers averaged 16-plus inches of IVB in 2024, and Navarro’s numbers are close to the 20-plus range that marks an elite fastball.
That movement matters. More ride on a fastball means more swings under the ball, more chases, and more whiffs.
Pirates starter Jared Jones, who averages around 16 IVB, already has an elite fastball that gives hitters fits. Navarro is showing similar traits, at least in the early stages of his climb.
The public scouting grades reflect that same promise. Baseball America gave Navarro’s fastball a 70, while MLB Pipeline put it at 65, both of which land in well-above-average territory.
And it’s not a one-pitch story either. He also has a slider graded 60, giving him another weapon that already sits above average.
His changeup is used less often, but the fastball-slider mix is the foundation that should carry him toward the majors.
There’s still a clear hurdle in front of him: command. Navarro’s strike-throwing lagged behind the quality of his stuff, as he posted a 7.97 BB/9 and a 20.5% walk rate. Those numbers were high, even with improvement from 2025, and he’ll need to tighten that up against better competition at High-A in 2027.
Even with the control issues, Navarro’s 2026 season showed why Pittsburgh is paying attention. At Single-A Bradenton, he went 5-2 in 14 starts and 21 appearances, logging a 2.60 ERA across 69.1 innings with 117 strikeouts, 60 walks, a .157 BAA and a 1.42 WHIP. He worked both as a starter and in late-game relief, and he reached at least five innings five different times.
The Pirates moved him up to High-A Greensboro on Aug. 18, and the results were more uneven over three starts, where he finished with a 5.59 ERA. Still, there was a flash of exactly why his stock is so high: in his first High-A start on Aug. 21, he struck out eight over five innings and allowed one run in a 6-2 win over Bowling Green (Tampa Bay Rays).
Navarro’s season left him on the right track heading into 2027. The fastball is already carrying a lot of weight, and if the command comes along, the Pirates may have something special on their hands.
In Other News...
Pirates Face A Costly David Bednar Question This Offseason
David Bednars path out of Pittsburgh and into free agency has become one of the more interesting offseason subplots for a club that still needs to sharpen its roster in multiple places. The Pirates moved on from him after a rough start to the 2026 season, only to watch him settle in and finish strong, which makes the trade look a little more complicated now than it did in the moment. The prospects Pittsburgh got back are part of the equation too, but the bigger question is what the Pirates are willing to spend if they want to keep a proven late-inning arm in the mix.
Bednar remains a high-end bullpen option, the kind of reliever any contender would be happy to plug into the back end, but Pittsburgh has to weigh that against a broader list of needs. The bullpen can always use help, yet the front office also has other roster areas demanding attention, and thats where the real tension sits for this winter. The Pirates may like the idea of a reunion, but whether they make a serious push could say more about their offseason priorities than about Bednar himself. [Read more 🡒]
Pirates May Be Running Out Of Time On Their Top Offseason Need
The Pirates have spent the early offseason treating second base as their clearest priority, and Brandon Lowe has emerged as the player most tied to that need. Pittsburgh has been weighing ways to address the spot while the free-agent market still has some depth, but the broader backdrop is making the decision harder. The club would prefer to sort through its options with some patience, especially with other second basemen available if the top target proves too expensive or too difficult to land.
The problem is the calendar may not offer much of that patience. A potential MLB lockout could quickly squeeze the Pirates leverage and limit what they can do if negotiations stall, turning what looked like a measured pursuit into a more urgent one. If the market tightens and Lowe remains available, Pittsburgh may have to decide sooner than planned whether to push hard for him or risk watching its top offseason need linger deeper into the winter. [Read more 🡒]
Pirates Still Lack The Late-Game Edge Contenders Rely On
The Pirates gave themselves something to build on with an 82-80 finish in 2026, their first winning season since 2018, but the run only sharpened the conversation around what still separates a good club from a true contender. In a year when the bullpen showed its flaws, Pittsburgh leaned on arms like Mason Montgomery and Yohan Ramrez, yet the late innings often looked more fragile than teams with October expectations can afford.
For a club trying to turn a modest step forward into a real jump, the relief corps remains the part of the roster that most needs sharpening. The Pirates have enough evidence now to know that better late-game run prevention is not just a luxury, and the next few moves will reveal whether they can turn a promising season into one with staying power. [Read more 🡒]