Pirates mine international lode of baseball talents
Team’s scouts span the globe
It’s something every Major League Baseball team desires when it comes to the international free agent market. Anywhere the sport is being played, they want to be there. And, of course, find good players.
As this year’s international signing period kicked off Sunday, the Pirates seemingly accomplished both goals. They brought in 22 players from eight countries, including the Dominican Republic, Venezuela, South Korea, Colombia, Mexico, Cuba, Aruba and Uganda.
The haul was headlined, of course, by 18-year-old right- hander Jun- Seok Shim, the 10th-best prospect available according to MLB Pipeline. But it’s deeper — and more legitimately international — than just one player.
“International, that’s what we’re about,” said Pirates director of international scouting Junior Vizcaino.
“I’m proud of our scouts. We go after what we think are really good prospects for the Pittsburgh Pirates. We’re not just signing kids from different countries to fill a quota.”
With that in mind, here are five takeaways from Sunday and Vizcaino’s Zoom call.
• Keep an eye on Shim. Seriously. This kid could be special. It’s also been a journey for the Pirates to ultimately sign him after he battled elbow, back and toe issues in high school.
The Pirates have been following Shim for years and have gotten to know his family well. His injuries and usage over the past few years did not scare them off.
“It was really difficult to watch him pitch over there the way he was being handled and the way they were using him,” Vizcaino said. “Once he gets some consistency in his repertoire and [with] the way he’s being taught and trained, he might develop quicker than expected.”
• Shim’s fastball sits around 94-96 mph and has reached triple digits. Vizcaino also described a unique look to the pitch, one with plenty of late life. It’s a variation of when baseball people say someone throws a heavy ball, with the pitch appearing faster at the end.
The Pirates like Shim’s delivery because he wasn’t over-efforting or grunting — potential signs of flawed mechanics or eventual arm trouble. The ball came out clean. Velocity was achieved relatively easily.
“The second half of the flight of the ball was different,” Vizcaino said. “It almost gives the illusion that it goes up instead of down because it has so much backspin and so much velocity behind it.
“If we’re seeing that, I’m sure hitters are seeing that. Hopefully we can get him over here with our pitching people and get him even better.”
• When asked about a potential sleeper, Vizcaino cited outfielder Angel Aquino, who’s from Bani, Dominican Republic. Aquino is 6- foot- 5 and weighs 207 pounds. Vizcaino praised his power potential and athleticism.
There’s room to add more weight, Vizcaino said. Aquino already is fairly mature at the plate. His uncle is actually former MLB infielder Cristian Guzman.
“He’s a tall, lanky kid who’s going to get stronger,” Vizcaino said. “We think he’s going to be able to play corner outfield and hit for power.”
• The signing of Shim furthered a strong recent South Korean connection with the Pirates, one that includes Ji Hwan Bae, Ji-Man Choi and Jung Ho Kang.
It also links back to Chan Ho Park, the first South Korean to play in MLB, who finished his career with the Pirates in 2010. Shim has been compared a lot already to Park.
The Kang situation obviously ended poorly. Who knows what happens with Bae and Choi, but they could be productive players. If nothing else, it shows the Pirates will give opportunity to anyone who could potentially help.
“It definitely doesn’t hurt,” Vizcaino said. “I’m sure those kids know each other, played against each other and communicate with each other. I’m sure that parents talk to each other also. Why wouldn’t they, right? If you’re going to send your son across the world, you want to know how he’s going to be treated. What better way to find out than ask someone who has been through it?”
• If the Pirates are going to turn this around, they must leverage the international market. The past three years have seen them sign four players ranked inside of MLB Pipeline’s top 12.
That matches the Dodgers. No other MLB club has signed more than two such players. Add to that Oneil Cruz, Bae, Rodolfo Castro, Luis Ortiz and other young international talents, and Vizcaino is a happy man right now.
One expecting this to continue.
“The Pirates are going to win because we have a good international department, and we develop international players,” Vizcaino said. “That’s one-third of what we need. The domestic guys, they’re going to do a great job. And then the trades are going to be great. When everything comes together, we’ll see the results in Pittsburgh.
“Ortiz getting up there, Castro getting up there, Oneil getting up there is just a preview of what I hope is going to keep coming.”