When the Yankees spent over $450 million this past offseason, it underscored the lack of major league-ready talent in the team’s farm system.
Indeed, only one of the organization’s top 10 prospects (as rated by Baseball America) has reached so far as Triple-A this season, and that would be catcher John Ryan Murphy, who hit .286 in a brief spell in the majors earlier this season.
Despite the dearth of top prospects, there is a player at Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre who could warrant a call-up: Jose Pirela, who has shaken off a slow start (he hit .230 in his first 19 games) to post a .328 batting average since late April, with an .838 OPS.
“He’s not a bad player,” a National League scout said. “He’s a Triple-A, emergency call-up kind of guy that can help you…Not a bad player, but he’d be a utility player.”
The 24-year-old second baseman, who hails from Valera, Venezuela, was signed before the 2008 season for $300,000 and has slowly climbed the organizational ladder, reaching Double-A Trenton in 2011 and spending the next three seasons there before receiving a call-up to Triple-A late last season.
Pirela, whose highest batting average in the minors is .295, which he achieved in Charleston in 2009, is having a career year. He entered Friday with a .308 batting average, eight homers and 41 RBIs.
“Physically, he can play the game,” Scranton/Wilkes-Barre hitting coach Butch Wynegar said. “[He can] swing the bat, use the whole field. [He has] good hands when he slows himself down. Sometimes he gets a little fast and jumpy. He has some power in his bat, he’s more of a line-drive, gap-to-gap type hitter.
“His bat is his best asset. He’s improved a lot at second base. He’s even played a little first base. The kid is an athlete, you could put him anywhere.”
Indeed, the RailRiders have put Pirela everywhere. He has seen time at first base, second base, shortstop, left field and right field. He has proven to be a steady fielder, with a .976 fielding percentage at his predominant position of second base.
“Defense is going to be an area to work on,” Wynegar said. “He feels so comfortable with a bat in his hands, defense has lagged behind just a hair…He needs to work on continuing to turn the double play.”
Wynegar said if Pirela gets called up to the Yankees, he could give Joe Girardi a lot of options.
“I could see him [eventually] being a No. 2 hitter,” he said. “When he first gets there, to get his feet wet, he’ll be at the bottom part of the order. I think he can play second and give the manager some real options in terms of versatility.”