Pirates bet $2.4 million on Auburn's bat-speed machine

The Pirates farm system is about to get a jolt of pure bat speed. Pittsburgh has signed Chris Rembert, its supplemental second-round pick out of Auburn, for a reported $2.4 million, according to MLB.com's Jim Callis. That's a real bump over the assigned slot value of $1,938,100 for the 51st overall selection, which tells you Pittsburgh wasn't messing around to get this deal done.

Jim Callis

@jimcallisMLB

Supplemental 2nd-rder Chris Rembert signs w/@Pirates for $2.4 million (slot 51 value = $1,938,100). @AuburnBaseball 2B, some of best bat speed in @MLBDraft , advanced approach, lots of Howie Kendrick comps.

So who is Chris Rembert? He spent 2 seasons mashing in the SEC, and the numbers back up the hype. Rembert hit.343/.399/.459 in 58 games for Auburn in 2026, adding 13 doubles, four homers, 46 RBIs and 12 steals on his way to All-SEC first-team honors. A year earlier, as a freshman, he ran a 1.022 OPS. That's not a guy who snuck up on scouts — he's been on the radar since he stepped on campus.

The carrying tool here is the bat speed. Evaluators have flagged Rembert as having some of the best bat speed of any hitter in this draft class, paired with an advanced approach and a knack for spraying line drives gap to gap. The Howie Kendrick comp gets thrown around a lot, and it fits: a compact, contact-oriented right-handed swing that controls the zone well, even if the current profile leans more doubles-and-average than 20-homer thump. The question scouts keep raising is whether he adds enough loft to turn some of that groundball contact into real over-the-fence power.

Defensively, Rembert's future is second base, not shortstop, where he played in high school. He's an average runner with an average arm, the kind of profile that puts the pressure back on the bat to carry the value. That's not a knock — it's just the blueprint the Pirates are betting on: pay a little over slot for a polished college hitter who can move fast if the hit tool translates.

For a Pirates organization that's leaned heavily on pitching development and cheap roster-building in recent years, adding a instant-offense infield bat with this kind of pedigree is notable. Expect Rembert to start his pro clock somewhere in the short-season or Low-A ranks this summer, with the bat speed and approach as the calling cards scouts will be watching to see translate against pro arms.