Jared Jones Makes Pirates’ Opening Day Roster

Jared Jones, one of the top prospects for the Pittsburgh Pirates, has cracked the club’s opening day roster after a terrific spring training.

The 22-year-old will be joined by Mitch Keller, Martín Pérez, Marco Gonzales as the known four pitchers in the Pirates’ starting rotation to begin the season.

Jones made six appearances, three of which were starts, during Grapefruit League action. The right-hander didn’t get charged with a single earned run across 16.1 innings pitched and struck out 15 batters. He yielded nine hits, walked eight and allowed three unearned runs. Opponents hit a miniscule .167 against him.

The Pirates drafted Jones in the second round of the 2020 draft out of La Mirada High School outside of Anaheim, Calif.

Jones has spent three seasons in the Pirates’ organization and has totaled a 13-22 record with a 4.31 ERA across 70 appearances/66 starts. In 315 minor-league innings, Jones has struck out 391 batters and walked 135.

He split last season between Double-A Altoona and Triple-A Indianapolis. Combined between the two levels, Jones posted a 3.85 ERA with 146 strikeouts in 126.1 innings pitched.

Jones has an impressive pitch arsenal, led by his power fastball that is capable of touching triple digits. He did so on several occasions during spring training. The young righty also has a slider, curveball and changeup.

The biggest knock on Jones has been his ability to throw strikes, but he’s improved in that regard as he’s continued to develop as a professional.

MLB Pipeline considers Jones to be the third-best prospect in the Pirates’ system behind fellow right-handed pitcher Paul Skenes and infielder Termarr Johnson. He’s also listed as the No. 62 prospect overall. Baseball America also has Jones as one of their top 100 prospects.

The Pittsburgh Pirates will begin their 2024 regular season on the road against the Miami Marlins on Thursday for the start of a four-game series. The Pirates will then head to Washington D.C. for three games with the Nationals before their home opener against the Baltimore Orioles on Apr. 5.

The news was announced to reporters at spring training, including Jason Mackey of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.