The Pittsburgh Pirates today named Edward Florentino the organization’s Rookie-Level Player of the Year. The announcement was made by Director of Coaching and Player Development Michael Chernow.
The 18-year-old Florentino batted .347 (33-for-95) with six doubles, two triples, six home runs, 23 RBI, 16 walks, six stolen bases, 23 runs scored, a .442 on-base percentage, a .642 slugging percentage and a 1.084 OPS in 29 games with the Florida Complex League Pirates before earning a promotion to Low-A Bradenton on June 21.
At the time of his promotion to the Marauders, Florentino ranked second in the Florida Complex League in both home runs and total bases (61), tied for second in extra-base hits (14), tied for third in runs scored, tied for fourth in RBI and fifth in hits. Florentino, who played his final game with the FCL Pirates on June 20, was tabbed as the league’s “Top MLB Prospect” at the conclusion of the season.
Florentino went on to play in 54 games with the Marauders, batting .262 (51-for-195) with 17 doubles, 10 home runs, 36 RBI, 33 walks, 29 stolen bases, 37 runs scored and an .883 OPS. From the time of his Bradenton debut on June 21 through the end of the season, he ranked second in the Florida State League in stolen bases, runs scored, extra-base hits (27) and total bases (98), as well as third in both home runs and slugging (.503), tied for third in RBI, fourth in OPS (.883), tied for fifth in hits, seventh in OBP and tied for seventh in walks.
Florentino, who is currently rated by both MLB Pipeline (No. 81) and Baseball America (No. 94) as a top-100 prospect, was named the FSL’s July Player of the Month. He appeared in 23 games during the month, leading the league in home runs (eight), RBI (23), slugging (.663), OPS (1.096), extra-base hits (14) and total bases (55). Florentino was also tied for the league lead in both runs scored (20) and stolen bases (16) during July.
Florentino, who was named to the FSL’s post-season All-Star team, hit a combined .290 (84-for-290) with 23 doubles, two triples, 16 home runs, 59 RBI, 49 walks, 35 stolen bases, 60 runs scored and a .948 OPS in 83 games split between the FCL Pirates and Bradenton. He ranked third among all Pirates minor-league players in stolen bases, as well as fifth in both home runs and extra-base hits and tied for seventh in both RBI and walks.