Juan Machado
Juan Machado
Position: OF
Height: 5’11”
Weight: 145 lbs
Bats/Throws: L/R
Born: 06/04/2003
Country: Venezuela
How Acquired: International Free Agent, 2020
Bonus: N/A
40-man Roster: No
Rule 5 Eligible: 2025
Minor League Free Agency: 2027
Options Left: 3
Overview
Machado is a very speedy outfielder who, so far, has gotten on base a ton due to extremely high walk rates. He played a little at second in his debut season and in 2023.
2021-23
Machado didn’t play a lot in his debut in 2021, but he did have a .403 OBP thanks to a lot of walks. He divided his time mainly between left field and second base. In 2022 he played a little more but still not regularly, hampered by missing nearly a month with an injury. He got on base in nearly half of his plate appearances, helped by a walk rate and a BABIP (.411) that were both off the charts. He showed no power at all, but did well at stealing bases, going 16-for-20.
The Pirates sent Machado back to the DSL in 2023 and he had a big season, finally showing some power and hitting 291/483/441. He stole 29 bases in 36 tries. Of course, a big caveat is that it was his third season there and he played the season at age 20.
2024
The Pirates activated Machado and assigned him to the FCL Pirates about a month into their season. He played semi-regularly after that, strictly in the outfield corners. At the plate, he produced some odd numbers as he walked or struck out in 55% of his plate appearances. He also had the same number of walks as strikeouts. He finished with 23 walks and just seven hits, all singles, giving him a .123 batting average. Machado stole ten bases in ten tries.
Stats
Transactions
September 28, 2020: Signed by the Pittsburgh Pirates as an international free agent.