Position: RHP
Height: 6’0”
Weight: 175 lbs
Bats/Throws: R/R
Born: 11/07/1999
Country: Dominican Republic
Signed: International Free Agent, 2016 (Yankees)
How Acquired: Trade (with Miguel Yajure, Canaan Smith-Njigba and Maikol Escotto to Yankees for Jameson Taillon)
Bonus: $250,000
40-man Roster: No
Rule 5 Eligible: Yes
Minor League Free Agency: 2024
Options Left: 0
Overview
Contreras was one of the Yankees’ top signings in the 2016-17 international signing period, when they were limited to bonuses of $300,000 or less. He throws a fastball, slider, curve and change. Conteras was well regarded before the Pirates acquired him in a trade, but afterward his fastball jumped from 92-95 mph to 96-97, and he started missing a lot more bats. The slider is a swing-and-miss pitch and he throws it a lot. The curve is also a good pitch. He doesn’t throw the change much. The Pirates got him in the Jameson Taillon trade.
2017-20
Contreras pitched well at two rookie levels in 2017 and briefly in short-season ball in 2018, then made seven starts in low A that year. He was the youngest pitcher in each 2018 league. He went back to low A in 2019 and spent the year there, pitching well without dominating. Baseball America ranked him the team’s ninth best prospect. In 2020, the Yankees did not bring him to their alternate site, but they did add him to the 40-man roster that fall. Then the Taillon trade happened in January.
2021-22
Contreras had a breakout season for the Pirates. His fastball velocity increased to the mid- to upper-90s and his secondary stuff became more effective. In his first two games with Altoona, he fanned 11 in each, in 11 total innings. In the second one he allowed no hits over six innings. He missed all of July and August with forearm tightness, but it turned out not to be serious. At the end of the season Contreras made one start for the Pirates and threw three shutout innings.
In 2022, Contreras opened the season in the Pirates’ bullpen, but went to AAA after three appearances. The Pirates brought him back up in late May and he stayed in their rotation until early July. At that point, the Pirates sent him down for “workload management,” i.e., service time manipulation. With Contreras beyond the possibility of “super two” status and Bob Nutting’s profit margin safe, Contreras spent the last month and a half of the season in the major league rotation. Contreras generally pitched well and often looked dominant, but he had some rough stretches that may have resulted from him tipping his pitches. Of more concern, Contreras’ velocity declined a little, from 96-98 in June to 94-96 in Aug/Sept.
2023
Contreras’ 2023 season was a disaster. From the start, his stuff was nowhere near what it was previously. His fastball was down from the 96-97 range to 94-95 and, according to Statcast, wasn’t effective at all. His slider also was much less effective. The Pirates eventually tried him in the bullpen and that didn’t help. In early July, with his ERA at 6.59, they sent him to Pirate City. He emerged with Bradenton a month later and then moved up to Indianapolis, where he spent the season’s last six weeks. His stuff didn’t rebound there. He was a little more effective, posting a 1.19 WHIP, but he had gopher ball problems, allowing one every four innings. His K/9 of 8.3 was far below the 12.1 it’d been in 2022.
Out of options, Contreras opened 2024 with the Pirates as a reliever. He pitched poorly, still without showing the stuff he’d shown two years earlier. In early May, the Pirates designated Contreras for assignment to clear roster space for Paul Skenes.
Stats
Transactions
July 2, 2016: Signed as an international free agent by the New York Yankees.
November 20, 2020: Contract purchased by the New York Yankees.
January 24, 2021: Traded by the New York Yankees with Miguel Yajure, Canaan Smith-Njigba and Maikol Escotto to the Pittsburgh Pirates for Jameson Taillon.
May 11, 2024: Designated for assignment by the Pittsburgh Pirates.