Action from across winter ball over the last couple days for Pittsburgh Pirates players in seven different leagues.
Thursday
In Venezuela, Elias Diaz caught his fourth game and went 0-for-4 with a strikeout. This was the first game that runners attempted to steal against him and they were successful on both tries. Diaz is 3-for-14 with a double, an RBI and a walk. He still hasn’t played back-to-back days, which is due to restrictions placed on him by the Pirates. He isn’t allowed to play consecutive days until after his first two weeks are over. Then the Pirates will let him expand his playing time to two days on and one day off according to Diaz’s manager (link is in Spanish). Diaz told the local press that he hopes to continue playing throughout the winter so he can be ready for the regular season.
Jose Osuna went 2-for-4 with two singles and two strikeouts. He is hitting .247/.323/.370 through 39 games.
Jhondaniel Medina pitched a scoreless inning of relief. He allowed one hit and struck out Jose Osuna. Medina is still a free agent.
Julio Vivas was traded on Thursday in the Venezuelan league, getting shipped to Navegantes del Magallanes. He has pitched for Aguilas del Zulia the last three seasons, posting a 5.00 ERA in nine innings over ten appearances this season.
In Mexico, Carlos Munoz walked as a pinch-hitter in the ninth, then left for a pinch-runner, as his team trailed 4-3 at the time. They would end up tying the score, then losing in the bottom of the ninth.
Friday
In Mexico, Luis Heredia was back to the bullpen after making a spot start last week. He went 1.2 innings without allowing a walk or hit (one batter reached on an error), before giving up a single and then walking a batter. Heredia was replaced by former Pirates minor leaguer Jesus Barraza, who stranded both runners. Heredia now has a 5.56 ERA through 22.2 inning.
In the Dominican, Edwin Espinal went 0-for-1 with a walk before being pinch-hit for in the sixth inning. Espinal is hitting .167 through 14 games, with two doubles, two homers and five walks.
Alen Hanson remains out with his wrist injury, which occurred on November 14th. Eric Wood hasn’t played since Tuesday, though he isn’t injured. His team has been rained out twice (including Friday) and had off on Thursday. The Dominican league was going to give Wood more time in front of scouts before the Rule 5 draft, but the draft is now just 12 days away and he’s only played two games.
In Australia, Sam Kennelly went 0-for-2 with two walks. He played his sixth game at third base and committed his first error.
In Colombia, Henrry Rosario went 1-for-3 with a three walks, a run and an RBI. He has a .245/.351/.306 slash line through 49 at-bats.
In Nicaragua, Anderson Feliz is hitting .303/.404/.416 through 20 games. That has him 19th in the league in average, 11th in on base and 16th in slugging.
In Puerto Rico, Danny Ortiz went 3-for-4 with a double, giving him a .375 average through 16 games. He is still a free agent.
Saturday
In Australia, Sam Kennelly went 0-for-1 with a walk, a strikeout and a sacrifice bunt. He played second base for the first time.
In the minor leagues in Mexico (Liga Peninsular), DSL Pirates pitcher Eumir Sepulveda leads the league with a 1.38 ERA. He has missed time due to injury, but Sepulveda has a low-90s fastball and a nice curve/change combo to go with it, giving him a solid three-pitch mix.
