BRADENTON, Fla. -- Dozens of prospects have filled the halls, classrooms and workout facilities at Pirate City over the past few weeks for the Forge High Performance Camp.

None of them are built like Tony Blanco Jr.

Then again, Blanco this week said he’s 6-foot-7, 290 pounds. There aren't many baseball players in Bradenton or anywhere else on the planet who look like offensive tackles.

And, of course, possess the power to go along with that imposing build.

"His ability to impact the ball is at the top of Minor League Baseball in terms of the raw power, exit velocities that he gets, hard-hit rate, etc." said Pirates director of coaching and player development Michael Chernow. "When he touches it, it goes a long way. It goes really far."

Blanco has literally and figuratively been a gigantic project for the Pirates. But the 21-year-old first baseman also enjoyed his best season yet in 2026, more than doubling what he’s done since his Dominican Summer League debut in 2022.

The games played, the production, the learning, the staying healthy. That's what matters most with Blanco.

In 84 contests -- all but four at High-A Greensboro -- Blanco hit .253 with an .896 OPS. He finished with 25 home runs, 17 doubles, and 60 RBIs, slugging .558.

Among Pirates prospects, only Murf Gray, Jhonny Severino, Edward Florentino and Lonnie White Jr. homered more. But those guys averaged 114 games -- 30 more than Blanco.

Which frames part of the narrative here: Can Blanco stay healthy long enough to gain traction?

Prior to this year, Blanco’s high-water mark for games played in a season was 40 in Rookie ball in 2024. He missed the first three months in 2025 and about a month last year due to hamstring injuries.

It’s why Chernow said the No. 1 focus with Blanco involves staying on the field.

“The thing that’s super intriguing about him -- this plays into staying on the field; obviously we want guys staying on the field -- is that the more plate appearances he’s gotten over time, he’s showing us signs that he possesses the ability to be a well-rounded hitter,” Chernow said.

Blanco’s physical tools certainly impressive.

A year ago in the Arizona Fall League, Blanco had a 464-foot homer and a 120.4 mph double on back-to-back days. Blanco won the Home Run Derby, blasting one 122.9 mph in the process.

To Chernow’s point, the list of people who can hit a baseball as hard and far as Blanco is very short -- Oneil Cruz, Aaron Judge, Giancarlo Stanton and maybe a few others.

“I thank God for allowing me to have that power,” Blanco said, with mental performance coach Jose Corrales translating. “It feels good to hit the ball hard and far.”

Blanco also knows success involves more than power, hence why he’s been pouring his efforts into the Forge camp.

He's working on his body to improve athleticism, sure, but also to perfect routines to prepare every day and maintain health over a full season.

Along with injuries, another point of emphasis with Blanco has been strikeouts.

Given his profile, they’re going to happen. But Blanco feels there was important progress made on that front in 2026, the right-handed hitter cutting his strikeout rate from 35.1% over his previous pro seasons to 29.5% this past summer.

Beyond the numbers, Blanco felt he learned more about patience and how he was being pitched, how pitchers nibbled and tried hard to get him to chase.

That increased the importance of Blanco identifying a plan for success and sticking with it, something he believes he did far better after returning from the hamstring injury on July 24.

“That aspect of game is hard because pitchers know me,” Blanco said. “They know I have power and want to take me away from my plan.

“There was a period of time where I was being too aggressive and chasing too many pitches. But after I got injured and came back, patience was my main focus.”

It’s easy for the Pirates to stay patient with Blanco because of his tantalizing tools: Cruz-like power mixed with occasional signs of well-rounded hitting whenever Blanco has been healthy enough to show it.

Hence the heightened focus on Blanco during this camp, as well as throughout the season when the Pirates have emphasized the need for pacing and consistent habits that’ll hold up over a full season.

“[Staying on the field] is about continued education,” Chernow said. “It’s settings like [the Forge camp] to understand, ‘What are your fueling habits? What do your recovery habits need to look like? What does that work before the game look like?’ It’s all of the things in the workday to make sure your body is physically ready to perform, then recover.

“He’s an intelligent kid, and he’s growing in those areas.”