BRADENTON, Fla. -- Earlier this spring, Derek Shelton said the Pirates¡¯ focus when building a rotation was making sure bringing ¡°the best club north is gonna be important to us.¡±

After watching Jared Jones pitch this spring, it¡¯s fairly irrefutable that the team¡¯s No. 3 prospect was one of their five best starting pitchers. Regardless, Shelton did mess with Jones a bit before telling him the news that he had made the Opening Day roster.

¡°They started the meeting with ¡®I had thrown 120 innings the past couple years and they want to do right by me and not extend me too much,¡¯¡± Jones said. ¡°I was like, ¡®Rip the band-aid off, tell me I¡¯m going to Triple-A,¡¯ but I looked over to Shelton and he goes, ¡®Congrats, man.¡¯

¡°I¡¯m like, ¡®what?¡¯ He said, ¡®You¡¯re coming to Miami with us.¡¯¡±

Jones wowed this spring, not allowing an earned run over 16 1/3 innings and striking out 15, firing triple-digit heat and high-spin breaking balls.

¡°Just like all of you saw, he performed really well in Spring Training,¡± Pirates general manager Ben Cherington said. ¡°More than the surface performance, though, continued progress in the work he was doing between starts, coming into the game, in terms of execution, usage of all of his pitches. Obviously we know the competitor. Believe in him, and believe he makes our team better by being on it to start the season.¡±

Jones¡¯ first Major League start will be game three against the Marlins on Saturday.

Jones was a second-round pick in 2020 and currently ranks as the No. 62 prospect in the game, according to MLB Pipeline. He went 5-9 with a 3.85 ERA last season over 26 games split between Double-A Altoona and Triple-A Indianapolis.

While he still has plenty of room to grow as a player, he felt he showed growth this spring by coming through in higher leverage situations.

¡°I¡¯m a competitor, man,¡± Jones said. ¡°That¡¯s just who I am on the mound. I¡¯m the fiery little guy. That¡¯s what I like to call myself.¡±

His teammates and his pitching coach, Oscar Marin, saw that fire. More importantly, they saw him be able to channel it. Henry Davis jokes that Jones is the easiest mound visit because he just needs to get him angry to get him back on track.

"It's the F-you attitude,¡± Marin said. ¡°That's what makes him so good. There's no hesitation to come at you with his stuff."

Jones tried to downplay what exactly making the Pirates¡¯ Opening Day roster would mean to him this spring, but now that he has made the team, an emotional and visibly relieved Jones could finally open up about it.

¡°It means everything,¡± Jones said. ¡°I had tears in my eyes the whole day yesterday. I¡¯m tearing up right now about it. It¡¯s awesome. I love it.¡±

While Jones waited for the news yesterday, Davis, who has been a vocal supporter of his friend this spring, sat alongside him. It turns out the two, who started last season together in Double-A Altoona, will share their first Opening Day together.

¡°He didn¡¯t know or anything like that,¡± Jones said. ¡°Just wanted the news along with me. He was really excited for me. I¡¯m glad to be doing it with him.¡±

While Jones may still be a bit of an unknown to Major League hitters and some Pirates fans, those who have caught him know the potential he brings.

¡°Just watch,¡± said catcher Grant Koch, who caught Jones in Triple-A. ¡°He¡¯s going to keep growing. It¡¯s scary to think about what he can be.¡±

This will be the fifth straight year the Pirates break camp with a rookie that didn¡¯t have previous Major League experience (JT Brubaker in 2020, Luis Oviedo in 2021, Diego Castillo in 2022 and Jose Hernandez in 2023). None of those prospects were as highly rated as Jones, though. The Pirates have been vocal about having higher expectations this year, but their decision extended beyond just that.

¡°It¡¯s mostly about Jared Jones, I would say,¡± Cherington answered. ¡°With pitching, we can usually be a little more accurate in assessing what the arsenal is and how that¡¯s going to project into a Major League game. On top of that, we know this person and competitor and how far he¡¯s come since signing. I think it¡¯s mostly about Jared Jones. We¡¯re excited.¡±