Pitching prospect Luis Escobar joined the Pittsburgh Pirates today, so now it’s time for another one of our “Book On” articles, which tells you how the player went from signing with the Pirates to making the majors.
Escobar was signed out of Colombia by the Pirates in July of 2013 for a $150,000 bonus. He was originally a third baseman who wasn’t getting much attention, so he was switched to the mound, where his plus arm made him an intriguing player from the start. He was hitting 94 MPH when the Pirates saw him, though he was obviously very raw on the mound and had a lot of filling out to do still. He’s still listed at his original 155 pounds in some places, but he has put up quite a lot of weight and muscle, really adding strength to his lower half.
Escobar went to the Dominican Summer League in 2014 and was one of the better pitchers there, especially after a very shaky early outing that saw him give up ten runs. He was pitching well until the end, but his season ended early due to an appendectomy. He actually started feeling the effects during his last start, which understandably didn’t go well. The Pirates liked what they saw from Escobar and invited him to the Fall Instructional League, even though he wasn’t able to participate.
In 2015, we got our first look at Escobar during Spring Training and then saw him sporadically through the year, as he pitched in Extended Spring Training games and in the Gulf Coast League. You could see the fastball was strong from the start and he had the makings of a plus curveball already. We also saw that control was probably going to be an issue early on in his career. He was a big arm with upside though, and it started translating to the stat sheet. He posted a 3.54 ERA, a 1.03 WHIP and 37 strikeouts in 40.2 innings in the GCL, then moved up to Morgantown to make two more starts. The Pirates give that type of push to prospects who they really like, and the 19-year-old from Colombia was moving up their list in a hurry.
Escobar spent 2016 in Extended Spring Training before reporting to Morgantown when the short-season schedule started. We got a lot of looks at him that year, both live and through the magic of MiLB.tv. Escobar began throwing 93-95 MPH around this time, with a big curveball and a solid changeup. He was getting a lot of swinging strikes each game, but those strikes hid his control issues. He wasn’t throwing many pitches in the strike zone. That works fine against impatient hitters at the lower level when you’re dealing with the three-pitch mix he had back then, but he would need to show better control at the upper levels. He had a 2.93 ERA in 67.1 innings, with 61 strikeouts and a .208 BAA.
The 2017 season in West Virginia was another one where we got plenty of looks at Escobar. It was more of the same from the previous season, where he would have outstanding results against undisciplined teams, but a patient team could get to him and run up his pitch count. The stuff was there to be successful though. His fastball touched 97 MPH in starts that year and his changeup was a much stronger third pitch, giving him three offerings that he could use for strikeouts. He was still getting a lot of chases on pitches that wouldn’t work at higher levels, though that led to a team record 168 strikeouts in 131.2 innings.
The Pirates added Escobar to the 40-man roster over that winter and he reported to Bradenton, where we started seeing the effects of his pitching style, which forced him to throw more strikes, without actually having command in the strike zone. His strikeout rate went from 11.5 in West Virginia to 8.3 with the Marauders, while his ERA went up a few ticks in the pitcher-friendly league. Despite mediocre results, the Pirates moved him to Altoona late in the season where he made seven starts. His walk rate went up in Double-A and his strikeouts continued to dip. His season ended on a low note due to a team suspension for a rules violation that cost him his last start and a chance at pitching in the playoffs.
The 2019 season saw Escobar move to relief after he was sent down to minor league camp during Spring Training. It wasn’t just the move to the bullpen that was different. He was also demoted back to Bradenton. Escobar dominated in relief back in High-A, throwing 13.1 shutout innings. The Pirates promoted him right to the Indianapolis bullpen on May 9th and two months later he will be joining the Major League bullpen. He didn’t take the conventional path though. In his third appearance in Triple-A, Escobar was moved back to the starting role. He would make five starts, getting fully stretched out by the end, while posting a 1.61 ERA and an 0.90 WHIP.
Despite the success and the Pirates needing starters at that time, he went back to the bullpen on June 16th, where his results haven’t been strong. In his last six outings leading up to this promotion, Escobar has a 2.14 WHIP and opponents have put up an .848 OPS. So as far as timing goes, he’s not debuting at an ideal time.
The Scouting Report
Escobar has better control than in the past. He will throw more pitches in the strike zone, but he also can get wild at times and run up his pitch count. His big league debut could be one of those times because he’s the type of pitcher who gets the adrenaline going on the mound. His fastball sits in the 93-95 range as a starter, ticking up as a reliever. Don’t be surprised if you see 98 MPH, especially early when he might be prone to overthrow a few pitches before settling down.
The fastball gets nice downward motion, and he will get nice run in on right-handed batters low and inside that often results in swinging strikes. He will also get chases just above the zone, though a patient team will lay off of those pitches. His curveball is a true strikeout pitch in the 78-80 MPH range with a big break. He’s been better at starting it in the zone to get strikeouts, as opposed to the lower levels where guys would chase the pitch without it ever being in the zone. His changeup might be the best one in the system and he uses it often as a strikeout pitch. It shows nice separation and a late drop. Batters have a hard time differentiating it from the fastball and swing over the top. It’s also the pitch he controls the best.
He doesn’t have the cleanest delivery and was trying to make a change to his mechanics to help that out this spring. He has a drop and drive style, with a long stride and he can get inconsistent at times. It’s a high effort delivery, which is basically the complete opposite of the last right-hander we profiled here, Dario Agrazal.
The debut for Escobar could be an adventure, but once he gets settled down and in a zone he is fun to watch. I’ve seen plenty of at-bats where he will get a quick strikeout by using all three of his pitches for strikes.
