Pittsburgh Pirates 2024 Winter League update
A look at how the prospects are performing in the Winter Leagues
Winter Leagues are underway, and like every year, the Pirates have multiple players getting some extra work in to prepare for the 2025 season.
Currently, 14 players in the Pirates organization are playing this winter: 10 hitters and four pitchers.
Most of the time, it isn’t a huge sample size, especially for the pitchers, but any extra work is generally good. Here’s a look at those out playing and how they are performing so far (statistics as of the morning of 12/20):
Pitchers
Geronimo Franzua
He’s been busy in the Dominican Winter League, pitching 16 games out of the bullpen for the first-place Estrellas Orientales. He’s allowed just an earned run (0.59 ERA) in 15.1 innings pitched, striking out 13 and walking one.
Nick Dombkowski
Another lefty reliever in the system, Dombkowski, has pitched twice for the Gigantes. The only hit he has allowed was a home run, and he has walked two with a strikeout in 2.2 innings pitched.
Carlos Jimenez
After playing in Australia last offseason, Jimenez has traveled to Venezuela to play for the Cardenales de Lara with some former Pirates like Gorkys Hernandez, Ali Sanchez, Jose Ascanio, Diego Moreno, and Luis Oviedo. He’s pitched twice, allowing two earned runs on four hits and a walk while striking out three.
Wilkin Ramos
Back with the Pirates after signing as a minor league free agent, Ramos has pitched in 10 games and has allowed two runs on four hits and six walks while striking out six across eight innings pitched.
Cristofer Melendez
He recently resigned from the Pirates on a minor-league deal. Melendez has allowed four runs on five hits and eight walks, striking out six in seven innings pitched. That’s good for a 5.14 ERA and 23.5% walk rate.
Hitters
Yoyner Fajardo
The outfielder has played in nine games with the Gigantes in the Dominican Winter League and has hit .130/.222/.217 (3-23) with a triple, four RBI and three walks.
Liover Peguero
This could be a big year for Peguero, and while it hasn’t been the worst performance from him with Licey, there are things you’d like to see him doing better with. He’s slashing .269/.329/.328 with four doubles and five RBI in 18 games, but he’s also struck out 29.7% of his plate appearances.
Andres Alvarez
He’s been the busiest of the bunch, playing for Culican in the Mexican Winter League. In 44 games, Alvarez has hit .290/.346/.500 with seven home runs (18 XBH) and 11 stolen bases.
Solomon Maguire
Playing in his home country of Australia, Maguire has flashed some power, with two home runs, five extra-base hits, and a slugging percentage of .476 in 14 games. He’s also struck out 26% of the time, hitting .238 with a .289 on-base percentage.
Omar Alfonzo
He’s playing on the same team with former Pirates’ prospect Noe Toribio. He has four hits in 16 at-bats (.250), but two have gone for home runs. He’s also drawn three walks to four strikeouts.
Defensively, he’s thrown out three of the five base runners attempting to steal for a 60% caught stealing rate.
Shawn Ross
After leading the South Atlantic League in home runs, Ross headed to Puerto Rico for another stint in their winter league. In two games (six plate appearances), Ross has not picked up a hit and has struck out four times.
John Lopez
The 15th-round pick for the Pirates in 2023, Lopez has played sparingly early in his pro career, and that carried over to his time with San Juan in Puerto Rico. He’s been credited with appearing in three games but has just one plate appearance, which he struck out in. He’s also scored a run, likely as a pinch runner, and has logged 2.2 innings behind the plate.
Enmanuel Valdez
Valdez, recently acquired in a trade from the Red Sox, struggled in the Dominican this winter. In 32 games with the Estrellas, Valdez has hit .175/.280/.272 with two home runs. If there is a positive out of that, it isn’t a strikeout issue he’s having, as he’s been punched out 14.4% of his 118 plate appearances.
Kervin Pichardo
After playing in the Arizona Fall League, Pichardo has gone 0-1 with a strikeout for the Gigantes de Cibao.
Oneil Cruz
Cruz, the biggest name the Pirates have down there, recently started to get into games for Licey and has struggled. He’s gone 2-16 with eight strikeouts in four games played.
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"Gorkys Hernandez"
Good lord . . . .
It was originally said that Cruz was out due to a stomach ailment, but I've been reading from fans of the team who are saying he is no longer with the club. He hasn't played in a week. His winter experience always has something. It never goes normal.