The Pittsburgh Pirates started the second day of the MLB Draft by picking the top prospect out of Puerto Rico.

The Pirates selected 17-year-old shortstop Gustavo Melendez out of Colegio Nuestra Senora de la Merced in Cayey, P.R., in the fourth round. The slot value for the No. 113 pick is $674,300.

The 5-foot-8, 160-pound right-handed hitter, a Wake Forest recruit who doesn’t turn 18 until Oct. 20, has played on an international stage for the USA in the U-12 World Cup in 2019 and for Puerto Rico in the U-15 World Cup in 2022. Melendez is considered a solid defender with surprising pop at the plate. He is ranked the No. 123 prospect by Baseball America and No. 140 by MLB Pipeline.

“Don’t let the height fool you. There is some juice in the bat from the right side,” MLB Pipeline draft analyst Jonathan Mayo said. “Gives off a little Ozzie Albies type of vibe, though not quite the same power. He’s going to stay at shortstop. He slows the game down when he needs to, so this is a really exciting middle infield prospect.”In the fifth round, the Pirates picked Arizona catcher Adonys Guzman. The 5-11, 220-pound Bronx, N.Y., native has an 80-grade arm on the 20-80 scouting scale but was undrafted out of high school and started his college career at Boston College.

The 21-year-old Guzman shined after transferring to Arizona, where he batted .328/.411/.496 last season while throwing out 31% of base stealers. Ranked the No. 314 prospect by Baseball America, he could be an under-slot signing for the No. 144 pick that comes with a slot bonus value of $499,000.

“What made him a little bit more interesting this year is the bat took a step forward, an OPS over .900 so maybe he’s more than a defensive-minded backup,” Mayo said. “If the bat is real, the gains he made there, he has a chance to be a regular. His ability to control the running game and catch and receive and block will give him every chance to make it to the big-league level.”

The Pirates added another right-handed pitcher in the sixth round, selecting Jack Anker of Fresno State. The 6-2, 200-pounder was the Bulldogs’ Friday night starter in 2025, going 9-5 with a 5.46 ERA in 91 1/3 innings and a .293 batting average against, but posted career-bests with a 24.3% strikeout rate and 4.6% walk rate. That included a 16-strikeout performance in eight innings of a combined 7-0 shutout win over San Diego State on April 11, which earned him USA Baseball’s Golden Spikes Award player of the week honors. MLB Pipeline ranks Anker as the No. 198 prospect. Slot value for the No. 173 pick is $380,500.

“The Pirates like taking college arms like this,” Mayo said. “They hope to tease a little more out of. He’s mostly around 91-92 (mph) with the fastball, can reach back for 94-95 and it’s got some run to it. He throws a low-80s changeup with a ton of depth. He’s got a big curve that he had back in high school that’s occasionally good. There’s also a cutter in there. It’s a lot of strikes but too many strikes, which is why he got hit as much as he did.”

On the first day of the draft Sunday night, the Pirates picked a pair of right-handed prep pitchers from southern California in Seth Hernandez (No. 6) and Angel Cervantes (No. 50) and college sluggers in Fresno State third baseman Murf Gray (No. 73) and Oklahoma catcher Easton Carmichael (No. 82).

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