Pirates Prospect Daily: Thomas Harrington, Come on Down

Since there are no Pirates’ Minor League games or prospects to talk about until July 22nd, we had to get a little creative here the Pirates Prospect Daily. Although they haven’t signed officially with the Pirates, we should talk about Thomas Harrington. Harrington was the 36th overall pick by the Pirates and is a right-handed pitching prospect from Campbell University. Is anyone else intrigued by Harrington… No, just me?

Harrington went from a walk-on to the Big South Freshman of the Year in 2021 and even went five near flawless innings against the eventual NCAA Champion Mississippi Bulldogs. You may not be easily impressed, that’s fine; Harrington also broke Campbell school records for wins in a season (12) and strikeouts for a season (111).

Overall, Harrington went a combined 18-5 over two years with an ERA of 2.94 in 168.1 innings at Campbell University. One of the more impressive stats from Harrington was the lack of home runs against him. Over his two years in college, Harrington allowed just seven homers.

“[Harrington] is intelligent, a learner, and can pick things up quickly,” said Pirates’ Senior Scout Director Joe DelliCarri. “Harrington was a two-sport athlete, which has allowed him to do some things in the past to stay athletic and make adjustments quickly on the mound. I think Harrington has some natural ability and we see plenty more tap into in many fronts with him.”

DelliCarri clarified that they want to tap into many aspects with Harrington, like his pitches and training. DelliCarri felt extremely confident in handing him over to the Pirates’ staff and training him the right way to tap into his potential. 

One of the biggest things that stood out during that Zoom meeting with Pirates general manager Ben Cherington and Dellicarri regarding Harrington was the constant mention of the pitcher’s intelligence and his constant work on the most minute details. 

With a 60-grade changeup and a mid-90s fastball to work with, Harrington may be ahead of this Pirates’ crop of college pitchers. A changeup is the pitcher’s biggest dragon to slay, and Harrington may have the proper tools to slay that dragon.