In the Dominican, Alen Hanson was the only player from the Pirates to see action on Monday in all of winter ball. He went 0-for-3 in that game, then followed it up with another 0-for-3 on Tuesday, though he drove in the winning run in a 2-0 victory. Hanson is hitting .278 through 24 games.
Pedro Florimon had his best game of winter ball, going 2-for-4 with two triples and a walk. His team won 11-1 and he drove in two runs.
Mel Rojas Jr. was used as a pinch-runner on Tuesday and didn’t get a chance to bat.
Wilkin Castillo played for the first time in 11 days and went 0-for-3, dropping him to 1-for-19 on the season.
According to the article, both Starling Marte and Gregory Polanco have expressed desire to play winter ball this season for Leones del Escogido. Neither of them played last winter, but both played for Escogido the previous two off-seasons. However, Polanco’s agent told me on Tuesday night that the reports were untrue and Polanco is “Focused on getting his knee 100% and having a big 2016”. I was told from a source that Marte hasn’t done any baseball activities since the season ended, plus it’s unlikely the Pirates would give him permission to play, so it sounds like the article is just providing false hope for fans of Escogido.
Indianapolis Indians manager Dean Treanor has taken over managing Estrellas de Oriente, where he has managed the past few years. He replaces interim manager Mendy Lopez, who is the manager of the DSL Pirates during the regular season. Treanor returning is significant in that he provides an extra set of eyes for possible free agents to sign. In the past, the Pirates have signed multiple players from his team over the off-season.
In Venezuela, Elias Diaz went 0-for-3 with two strikeouts and an RBI. Diaz threw out the only runner who attempted to steal and he has shutdown the opposing runners all winter to the point they’re barely attempting steals. Opponents are 1-for-5 in steals against him through ten games.
Jose Osuna went 1-for-4 with a run scored and two strikeouts. He split the game between left field and first base, something that has happened a lot recently. He is hitting .336/.401/.463 in 38 games.
One last Junior Sosa update, as he has signed as a minor league free agent with the Marlins after spending his first eight seasons of pro ball with the Pirates. Sosa moved to left field on defense when Osuna moved to first base. He didn’t get to bat. As with all players who sign elsewhere, he now gets dropped from the winter coverage.
Elvis Escobar was used as a pinch-runner on Tuesday and finished the game in center field on defense without an at-bat. He had an impressive exhibition game at Marlins Park over the weekend if you missed it live on MLB Network. He showed excellent speed and hustle, a strong arm and gap power on a triple.
Gorkys Hernandez went 1-for-3 with a HBP. He has a .757 OPS through 39 games.
A.J. Morris faced three batters, allowing one unearned run on two hits, while picking up a strikeout for his only out.
Deolis Guerra retired the only two batters he faced, one by strikeout. This was his first official game this winter, though he pitched in an exhibition game over the weekend at Marlins Park.
Wilfredo Boscan got hit hard in his 4.2 innings, allowing six runs(four earned) on ten hits, with two walks and two strikeouts. In four starts, he has a 5.74 ERA over 15.2 innings.
In Puerto Rico, Danny Ortiz went 1-for-6 with an error during a doubleheader, though he drove in three runs during a 4-1 victory in game two on Tuesday night. If you missed it and you’re wondering who Danny Ortiz is, he signed as a minor league free agent this week.
In Mexico, Luis Heredia faced eight batters over 2.1 innings and the ball never left the infield. He walked one batter and gave up a steal, but he needed just 23 pitches to get through his outing. Heredia got five ground outs, a pop out to second base and a liner to shortstop for his seven outs. In his last outing, he walked two of the three batters he faced. In the prior game, he threw three shutout innings, and before that he had two straight appearances in which he walked or hit every batter he faced. He is facing tougher competition than he saw in Bradenton this season, but in 15.1 innings, he has a 4.70 ERA and 13 walks, with just six strikeouts.
Sebastian Valle recently returned to the lineup after playing just once in the previous 33 days. He went 0-for-2 with a sacrifice fly. He is hitting .235 in 13 games, though he’s driven in a run in four straight games.
