PITTSBURGH (93.7 The Fan) – He's been a successful reliever with the Cardinals this year, but new Pirate pitcher Johan Oviedo is heading to the minors. Only because they have big plans for him soon in the majors.
Bucs GM Ben Cherington said the 24-year-old is still really young and they want him to be a part of their future rotation. Oviedo's last start came on June 4 for St. Louis and they are sending him down to lengthen him out and to work on a few adjustments they believe can help the right-hander.
"We see a starters body," Cherington said. "A starters delivery. A starters repertoire and has already touched the big leagues. We think he is not quite a finished product."
To get to that point Cherington said he needs 'a runway' and they will do that at AAA. He will start with shorter outings and eventually build him back up to be a starter, which he was for all but six games his professional career before this season which started in rookie ball in 2016.
After the June 4 start with the Cardinals, a successful run in relief in the majors giving up six earned runs in 19.2 innings with 21 strikeouts and four walks. Some baseball experts believe he's a better reliever, the Pirates think they can help their rotation.
"He's already been there and done it some," Cherington said Tuesday. "It's sort of more about some final adjustments than it is about years of pitching development. He's someone we are excited to get."
Malcom Nunez
The 21-year-old corner infielder will start in AA, Altoona. The 5'11", 205-pound power bat was seventh in the AA Texas League with 17 home runs and third with 66 RBI. Nunez's average is .255, but the on-base percentage is .360 as he's walked 48 times to 71 strikeouts.
"He's a little bit of something we don't have a lot of," Cherington said. "We feel we have a lot of talent in the organization, but the corner guys with real bat to ball skills with some strength and power. He's been real young for every level he's been at and he's performed."
"Excited to work with him too and see if we can tap into even more of that offensive potential."
From July 26 to 29, Nunez homered in every game and hits .315 against lefties.
Late add
Just before 6p Tuesday, and actually announced after the deadline, the Pirates traded cash to the Blue Jays for pitcher Jeremy Beasley. The 26-year-old was sent to AAA Indianapolis where he will work out of the bullpen. The right-hander went 2-1 with a 1.89 ERA, a 0.82 WHIP and .153 batting average against in 19 appearance in AAA Buffalo. In nine appearances with Toronto, he pitched 15 innings with a 4.80 ERA and 19 strikeouts.
"We really like the four-seam fastball and the slider combination," Cherington said. "We are trying to make sure we stay diverse in our bullpen mix. We have a handful of guys that are a little more sinker, two-seam oriented. He does it differently with a four-seam slider. He will go to Indy and see where it goes."
Nunez has the most upside, already ranked as the 11th best Pirates prospect. Did they get a big haul; probably not. They gave up a couple of pitchers on expiring contracts and got the potential for some future contributors. All of which start their careers in the minors.
