This story was excerpted from Alex Stumpf's Pirates Beat newsletter. To read the full newsletter, click here. And subscribe to get it regularly in your inbox.

Bubba Chandler has a phrase for the praise and accolades: ¡°rat poison.¡±

The Pirates¡¯ top prospect remembers his days of being recruited as a quarterback out of high school. He wasn¡¯t on the radar until he got his first collegiate offer, and then he instantly became a four-star recruit. It¡¯s recognition that can get to your head, but Ole Miss head coach Lane Kiffin told Chandler not to look at those outside evaluations. They¡¯re rat poison.

So it seems safe to assume Chandler didn¡¯t see -- or at least much care -- that MLB Pipeline updated its list of the Top 100 Prospects on Friday. If he had, he would see he is the No. 15 prospect in baseball.

¡°The recognition is really cool, but there¡¯s a lot of guys in our organization that should be there,¡± Chandler said at PiratesFest last week. ¡°I don¡¯t look at it anymore. It¡¯s really cool, recognition is great, you want to be recognized for the hard work you put in, but everyone works just as hard.¡±

Hard work has never been an issue for Chandler; finding a routine has been. The first half of 2023 was a trying time for the Pirates¡¯ young stud. Drafted as a two-way player, Chandler was told by the organization before the season that he would only be a pitcher. His results dipped, and that forced him to find a mentality and a process that worked for him.

Chandler wouldn¡¯t look at how other players from his Draft class were advancing more quickly than him. He wouldn¡¯t be consumed with the end goal; he¡¯d focus on himself. The Majors and that next promotion would be pushed to the back of his mind.

¡°I realized there are a lot smarter people than myself that have a better plan for me, so [I] just trust in them,¡± Chandler said. ¡°They drafted me for a reason. Just let them do their job. Once I figured that out, my mind eased a lot and the game got a little nicer to me.¡±

The change worked. Chandler attacked the zone more and was more consistent with his command, which translated to terrific results. He struck out 148 batters over 119 2/3 innings across Double-A Altoona and Triple-A Indianapolis, and he posted a 1.83 ERA in seven starts at the higher level. All four of his pitches -- four-seamer, slider, changeup and curve -- registered a whiff percentage north of 30% while with Indianapolis, putting him seemingly on the precipice of the Majors.

Chandler has the stuff for that jump to the highest level. He also has a support group of fellow pitchers who have worked out together in Bradenton, Fla., this winter. Paul Skenes and Jared Jones are part of that group, so are prospects Thomas Harrington, Hunter Barco, Mike Burrows and Jaden Woods. The makings of Pittsburgh¡¯s next rotation -- or even most of the 2025 starting pitching pool -- are in that group. While some players across baseball will report to camp and need some time to work back into game form, that group of pitchers will be ready when pitchers and catchers report on Feb. 12.

¡°Bubba, he¡¯s in a good spot,¡± Skenes said at PiratesFest. ¡°He has good people around him [and] a good routine. Bubba works. He wants it. Stuff¡¯s good, his body¡¯s good. Super excited to see what he does.¡±

Plenty of people in Pittsburgh share Skenes¡¯ enthusiasm. Mixing in more veteran pitchers like Mitch Keller, Bailey Falter and Johan Oviedo to the young wave of Skenes, Jones, Chandler and more could yield one of the best rotations in the game.

It¡¯s a matter of when Chandler will join the ranks, not if. Until that day, he¡¯s staying clear of the rat poison.

¡°I think we definitely have all the pieces that we need to win,¡± Chandler said. ¡°We are going to try to do that. We are going to have fun doing it. There are a lot of guys in the big league level that are good leaders and have some wits about them that they want to win. If I ever get up there, I would love to be a part of it.¡±