North Shore Nine

On 2/27/24 it was reported by Francys Romero, here, that Naykel Cruz has left Cuba to seek an MLB opportunity. Cruz pitched for the U-23 Cuba squad in ’21 and ’22, and in ’23 was on the Cuban team in the World Baseball Classic. Cruz is a 24-year-old left-hander who stands six feet tall and weighs 185 pounds. He has a fastball that sits steadily in the 91-93 MPH zone and has flashed as high as 94. He is also reported to have a curve that is “quite steep and moving.” Furthermore, an MLB evaluator stated, “Cruz has the potential to climb the Major League Baseball system. He’s got good breaking pitches and spin rates on the curveball.”

These are the types of players the Pirates need to gamble on: younger talent who might not be on the radar of every MLB team, but who have good potential. The Pirates, sadly, are almost always in a position where they could provide a “more legitimate” or “quicker” shot at the Majors than the bigger clubs. This should theoretically give them a leg up over other suitors for these players.

The Pirates reportedly went heavy after Yariel Rodriguez and by those same reports “just missed” on signing him. So, when a guy like Cruz comes along in a similar yet not-so-similar situation, they need to pounce. Though, when it comes to Rodriguez, he has played more meaningful baseball over the last few seasons, pitching very well in those games (in Japan). Cruz, on the other hand, comes in pitching in much less meaningful leagues, as well as pitching rather poorly in those opportunities. In 2022, Cruz pitched in the Mexican Independent League, the Cuban Elite League, and the Cuban National Series. Between those leagues, he pitched to a 7-5 record with a 4.62 ERA and a 1.745 WHIP, while walking 57, hitting 6, and striking out 76 batters (in 87.3 IP). This was not the same impressive stat line that Rodriguez put up in the Japan Central League over the last few seasons.  Furthermore, when Rodriguez pitched in those leagues that Cruz pitched in at the same age, his stat line was more impressive. Rodriguez went 8-4 with a 2.90 ERA, a 1.069 WHIP, walking 35, hitting 8, and striking out 102 (in 96 IP). Rodriguez was clearly better with limiting walks and hits, but we can only speculate on the difference, if there was any, between hitting talent faced in those years. None of this should, however, detract the Pirates from Cruz.

It would be a gamble for the Pirates, especially if it would take an MLB contract to sign Cruz; however, there are plenty of people on the current 40-man roster that could be released to make room. Furthermore, the fans wouldn’t even realize those players were suddenly gone. Pirates need to jump-start themselves by finding surprise talent. Bringing in a young pitcher who could turn into a very pleasant surprise, and who was good enough for the Cuban national team, should be an easy decision. Additionally, creating a pipeline by signing these types of players and getting them to the MLB quickly, could help them sign more in the future. Since the Pirates cannot lure MLB FA to Pittsburgh, this might be the next best thing.