There was plenty of dominance this season. Excitement, too.
But when it came to suspense, Seth Hernandez and Murf Gray didn't offer much, as Young Bucs week concluded Thursday with the Pirates announcing Hernandez as their Bob Friend Pitcher of the Year and Gray as the Honus Wagner Player of the Year.
Hernandez and Gray are two premium prospects who established themselves in a big way on the national stage in 2026, Hernandez ascending to the No. 9 ranking by MLB Pipeline, Gray to No. 89.
They're also hungry for more.
Here's how both Pirates prospects arrived at this point and what they think about their future with the organization.
Clear goal for Hernandez
Though he was plenty busy with his own journey, dominating at Low-A Bradenton and High-A Greensboro, Hernandez paid plenty of attention to the Major League team.
He saw electric stuff and power arms. Hernandez also observed the struggles of the starting staff and how Paul Skenes and Co. navigated them.
The whole thing was encouraging to Hernandez, who doesn't believe he's that far away.
"The staff they have up there is pretty electric," said Hernandez, who's considered the best right-handed pitching prospect in baseball. "To see they’re not perfect, it's definitely interesting, especially with the stuff they have.
"I’m excited to get up there next year.”
Hernandez certainly did what was necessary in 2026 to make that happen, pitching well, improving a bunch and later navigating an oblique injury that shortened his season.
In 18 starts for Low-A Bradenton and High-A Greensboro, Hernandez went 6-1 with a 2.43 ERA to go along with 118 strikeouts, a .181 batting average against and 1.05 WHIP.
Unfortunately for the 20-year-old right-hander and the Pirates, he suffered a Grade 3 left oblique strain on July 24 and was lost for the season due to his recovery timeline (6-8 weeks).
Speaking Tuesday, Pirates director of coaching and player development Michael Chernow said the injury offered an opportunity for Hernandez and the team to re-assess his routine. But otherwise, it’s not a huge concern.
“The way he’s attacked his rehab, the questions he's continued to ask, the access he gets to our really strong performance group and the people there, he's only going to be better getting out of this,” Chernow said.
After weighing around 212 pounds this season, Hernandez said he currently weighs 220, and he might bump up to 225 — an intentional move to better absorb wear and tear.
Aside from learning that a little more bulk could help, Hernandez said a smaller ballpark in Greensboro taught him how to pitch with a smaller margin for error and rebound well from mistakes.
When it comes to his pitch mix, Hernandez adjusted his changeup grip shortly after arriving at High-A.
The small tweak made the pitch even nastier, while some improved definition to his curveball resulted in more swing and miss.
“Credit to the Pirates and the coaching staff,” Hernandez said. “They really know how to get those pitches dialed in for me. The slider was another pitch going into the year where we needed to get it better. It can still get better throughout the offseason going into next year, so that’s going to be one of my goals.”
The Pirates selected Hernandez out of Corona (CA) High School with the sixth overall pick of the 2025 MLB draft, and midway through his first pro season, Hernandez represented the Pirates at the MLB All-Star Futures Game at Citizens Bank Park in Philadelphia.
At the time he was placed on the injured list, Hernandez’s strikeout total was the second-most among all MiLB pitchers.
Hernandez is back home in California now, the oblique fully healed. He's grateful for the lessons learned this year and certainly enjoyed his first season of pro ball. But Hernandez also has much bigger goals.
"I think the biggest takeaway was kind of getting the first one out of the way," Hernandez said. "Now I’m going into next year with a new mindset, new goals in mind. That’s really it.”
Big-time growth for Gray
After three college seasons at Fresno State, Gray had a pretty good idea of what to expect from professional baseball. However, the power-hitting third baseman even surprised himself with everything he accomplished in 2026.
"I was proud of myself and the process because that's what it took," Gray said. "It took believing in myself and also trusting in my teammates and people the Pirates provided around the organization.”
Gray, 22, hit a combined .305 with 27 doubles, 32 home runs, 97 RBI, a .969 OPS and 100 runs scored in 126 games for Low-A Bradenton, High-A Greensboro and Double-A Altoona.
Since 1999, only Brad Eldred (38 in 2004), Mason Martin (35 in 2019) and Craig Wilson (33 in 2000) had better home run seasons among Pirates Minor Leaguers than Gray, who made his professional debut on April 3 and never looked back.
During a Zoom call Thursday afternoon, Gray talked a lot about appreciating the opportunity the Pirates gave him, how he’s learned to rely on his preparation and also the ultimate goal being the Major Leagues in 2027, the same as Hernandez.
"It's gonna take a lot of hard work," Gray said. "And I think we're both willing to do that."
While Gray garnered attention for offense, his work ethic and smarts are what resonated most with Pirates director of coaching and player development Michael Chernow.
“The way he’s grown and has continued to improve is what has been most impressive about Murf,” Chernow said. “His ability to understand the different concepts we’re putting in front of him, whether it’s defensively or offensively in the box, he’s demonstrating really strong aptitude in addition to the tools he possesses, which we were able to see this year.”
Along with some gaudy numbers, of course.
During his time with Low-A Bradenton, Gray led the Florida State League in hits (51), RBI (34), slugging (.606), OPS (1.042) and total bases (86) while ranking second in batting (.359) and runs scored (29).
Gray reached High-A on May 19 and led the South Atlantic League in total bases (105) and ranked tied for first in home runs (15) with Greensboro.
July 17 marked Gray's Double-A debut, and he ranked third in the Eastern League in on-base percentage (.395), tied for fourth in runs (34), seventh in OPS (.879) and tied for eighth in walks (29) from July 17-Sept. 13.
"Each level I climbed, I learned how to add on to my game and get better, preparing myself for whenever that game starts," Gray said, describing how much pre-scouting and self-evaluation helped with his routine.
Baseball America recognized Gray as the Pirates’ Minor League Player of the Year after he led Pittsburgh farmhands in hits, home runs, RBI, slugging, runs, extra-bas hits (59) and total bases (266) in his first pro season.
MLB Pipeline considers Gray the No. 3 third-base prospect in baseball behind Caleb Bonemer of the White Sox and Jefferson Rojas of the Mets.
Gray has become one of the system's best stories, a bonafide offensive prospect with a terrific combination of physical and mental abilities and the willingness to put in the work.
"I'm ready to do whatever I can for the Pirates," Gray said. "If you're in the lineup, you better be thankful because each at-bat you get it's something to be thankful for."
Jason Mackey: Jason.Mackey@pirates.com and @JMackey_PGH on X.