Pittsburgh Pirates minor leaguers pushing for a promotion
Five Pirates minor leaguers that could be up for a promotion
The ‘first half’ of the regular season is over, and teams that didn’t earn a playoff bid this time will look to dial things up for the second half run.
Last year, we saw some movement around the Pirates after the first half mark, and while we haven’t gotten anything as a result of that this year, there could be some here in the coming weeks.
We have seen a few moves happen. Konnor Griffin and Will Taylor jumped to High-A Greensboro from Bradenton. Wyatt Sanford went from the Complex to the Marauders.
With those names already moving on, here are a few more that could be looking to change levels in the middle of the season.
Edward Florentino
It took him a bit to get settled in, but Edward Florentino is very much looking like the breakout candidate many, including myself, thought he could be going into the season.
Through the first 28 games this season in the Florida Complex League, Florentino has hit .348/.440/.652 with a 13.8% walk rate, a 189 wRC+, and a strikeout rate of 20.2%.
He struggled the first couple of weeks of the season, punching out 35% of the time over the first 10 games. Since then, he’s struck out 12.5% of the time, and has even walked more times than he has been rung up.
The only argument that could be made about keeping him in the FCL is that he is 18, and the jump from the Complex to Single-A is significantly larger than it used to be. Even so, Florentino is really looking like he needs a new challenge.
Axiel Plaz
This one would involve some mass movement at the catcher position, but you could argue that there are a few that could be ready for that kind of push.
Axiel Plaz has cut back on his strikeouts, swinging strike rate, and has an improved contact rate while playing in Bradenton at 19.
He isn’t hitting home runs at the same rate he did last year, but that wasn’t likely to happen. Plaz seemed to adjust things at the plate to allow for more contact, and while it hurt the home run numbers, initially, the exit velocity numbers were either the same or better.
There are still some chase concerns, and he is still just a teenager, but he might be ready for a new challenge.
Omar Alfonzo
This one could go in unison with the Plaz promotion, both being catchers. Omar Alfonzo had a rough stretch this season with Greensboro, but seems to be turning the corner as of late. The strikeouts are higher than you’d want to see, especially with someone like Alfonzo, but the contact rate is slightly better than last year, and the Swinging Strike rate has also dipped under 10%.
So, the contact is better than what the K-rate and his batting average might be saying. He’s also on pace to easily surpass his career-high home run total from a year ago.
Esmerlyn Valdez
Those who watched Esmerlyn Valdez last year knew the kind of damage he could do playing in the South Atlantic League, and he hasn’t disappointed. He leads the Pirates’ minor leaguers with 17 home runs. Few have more home runs than he has in ALL of minor league baseball.
That wasn’t going to be the key for Valdez going into 2025, it was cutting back on a strikeout rate that was just shy of 31% last year.
He’s cut that down just under 10%, while batting over .300 with an OPS barely south of 1.000. The contact rates and swinging strike rate have gone in the right direction, and he seems to be moving better in the outfield.
Javier Rivas
The swinging strike rate is still a little too high, but a swing change, plus another year filling out in his massive 6’6” frame, has allowed Javier Rivas to tap into more of that raw power he flashed in previous years.
Add in the fact he’s elevating the ball more, the power surge doesn’t appear to be completely thanks to playing in the South Atlantic League.
He went into a bit of a strikeout slump towards the end of May, but is starting to show signs of adjusting to whatever the pitchers were throwing at him.
Ultimately, that’s the kind of thing you want to see from a player you are considering promoting, adjust to the adjustments made to you.
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Plaz evidently is hurt. Hasn’t played since Tuesday. He got hit on the hand in that game. (Ump missed the call. Marauders got hosed repeatedly in that game. I even got photographic proof of one blown call.). Anyway, Plaz finished the game, even hit a double. Maybe it swelled overnight or something. He’s not on IL, so hopefully no fracture.
A potential late-season promotion is FCL LHP Reinold Navarro. AM just pointed out to me that he’s pitching today. First time in a couple weeks, so that’s a relief. Had a typical FCL inning in the first: 2 BB, 3 K. UPDATE: And he K’d the side in the second.
….and Konnor Griffin.