The Pittsburgh Pirates added their 31st international signing since July 2nd on Monday night. They signed 16-year-old shortstop Isaias Dipre, who was born in the Dominican Republic and trained at the Miguel Tejada Academy.
Dipre turned 16 back in early June. He was one of the July 2nd targets of the Pirates, but his contract wasn’t officially signed until last night. We are talking about the talent of a first day player here, despite signing six weeks later. He stands in at 6’1″, 165 pounds and currently plays shortstop, but it sounds like he could possibly end up in center field, where his athleticism really plays up. He’s considered a plus runner (ran a 6.7 in the 60 yard dash), who has good bat speed from the right side and potential for a nice OBP/power combo. He’s a good athlete with a great baseball body that has plenty of room to fill out.
His arm is average, which could necessitate the move to the outfield, but the Pirates also signed five other shortstops with the skills/potential to stick at the position. One will be in the U.S. next year, but that still leaves four others who will split time at the spot with the two DSL affiliates. So I’d expect Dipre to play at least some outfield.
Here’s a photo courtesy of Murray Sports
