Pirates GM Ben Cherington emphasizes the 'need to be better' in international scouting

A day after Luis Ortiz tossed six one-hit innings against the Cleveland Guardians, Pittsburgh Pirates general manager Ben Cherington touted the right-hander as one of their international signing success stories and an example for recent changes in that department.

Cherington addressed the firings of international scouting director Junior Vizcaino and senior advisor of Latin American operations Luis Silverino on Sunday during his weekly radio show, calling it an area of development where the Pirates “need to be better.”

“One of the things clearly we need to do is produce talent out of the international space, and there’s no other area where scouting and player development overlap more strongly, I would say, than in international,” Cherington said on 93.7 FM.

“I would say that in the context that in the age of the players we’re involved in, the fact that it’s not a draft and you have a chance to follow players for a period of time before you actually sign them, it’s really a symbiotic relationship between scouting and player development when it comes to international players. But it’s an area where we not only need to be good at but there’s no reason we can’t be good at. There’s no headwind against the Pirates being really good at international. We have the resources.”

Cherington emphasized that the Pirates will “invest in people and infrastructure, not just in Latin America but around the world,” pointing to the quality of their baseball academy in the Dominican Republic and willingness to spend their international signing bonus pool every year.

The Pirates had an international bonus pool of $7,114,800 last year, when they signed 21 prospects from seven countries. That included giving seven-figure deals to two teenage prospects in one class for the first time in outfielder Brayln Brazoban ($2 million) and infielder Adbiel Feliz ($1.2 million). Both players struggled in the Dominican Summer League, however, and neither is ranked among the Pirates’ top 30 prospects by Baseball America or MLB Pipeline.

None of the players the Pirates have signed in international free agency is ranked higher than No. 12 on either top-30 prospect lists. And that player, Double-A Altoona middle infielder Tsung-Che Cheng, is their only international prospect playing above High-A Greensboro.

The Pirates also traded a top-20 prospect by sending South Korean right-hander Jun-Seok Shim to the Miami Marlins for outfielder Bryan De La Cruz last month. Shim hasn’t pitched since 2023, when he made four starts in the Florida Complex League, because of a shoulder injury.

Some of the most high-profile signings under Vizcaino, who replaced Rene Gayo as the Pirates’ international scouting director in 2017, have struggled in the minors.

Taiwanese right-handed pitcher Po-Yu Chen, who signed for a $1.25 million bonus in 2020, is 4-10 with a 4.08 ERA and 1.28 WHIP in 25 appearances (23 starts) as a 22-year-old at Altoona. Cheng isn’t ranked among the Pirates’ top 30 prospects.

Dominican outfielder Shalin Polanco, who signed for $2.35 million in 2021, is batting .186/.273/.338 with 19 doubles, 11 home runs and 47 RBIs in 100 games as a 20-year-old at Low-A Bradenton. Polanco is ranked No. 22 by MLB Pipeline but not ranked by Baseball America.

“After scrutinizing this area over a number of years, we got this determination that we’re not producing at the level we need to, at the level we believe we can,” Cherington said. “And, to be clear, that is not one person’s responsibility, for sure. We all bear responsibility in that. Certainly I do. But we did feel like, in order to take a step forward — and not just a step forward but take several steps forward — we got to the point where we felt like it would give us a better chance to do that if we made a change in the leadership position.”

Cherington said the Pirates would begin a search for Vizcaino’s successor but emphasized it’s not the only position with need for improvement.

“We need to be humming on all cylinders on the scouting side and development side to be better and to produce more talent out of the international market,” Cherington said. “I think we not just need to but will. This is one step toward it.”

The Pirates celebrated Vizcaino only two years ago, when infielder Rodolfo Castro cracked the starting lineup and Ortiz made a dazzling debut. While Castro was traded last year to the Philadelphia Phillies for lefty starter Bailey Falter, Ortiz spent time in Triple A and the bullpen before earning a spot in the starting rotation this season. The 25-year-old right-hander is 6-4 with a 3.19 ERA and 1.10 WHIP in 33 appearances, including 11 starts, this season.

“Luis Ortiz clearly is a success story,” Cherington said, “and we need more of those on the pitching and player side.”

Cherington noted that Ortiz was part of the “passed-over market,” as the Pirates signed him at age 18. He has developed from a sinker-slider power pitcher in the minors into one who now has a four-pitch arsenal, which is why Cherington suggested the club take a more “open-minded” approach to scouting international prospects.

“That’s actually a good lesson in itself; it really takes no stone unturned,” Cherington said. “We should not be relying on a single part in the market. We should not be relying on a single part of a demographic.

“Luis himself is not just a passed-over player who has gone on to become a valuable major-league pitcher but also one who didn’t get a giant signing bonus as an amateur. We see a lot of examples of that, with pitchers in particular coming out of Latin America. We need more of that open-minded, no-stone-unturned (mentality). Just because you’re not 14 or 15 and on every publication’s top prospects list means that you can’t be a good major leaguer.”

The Pirates have another late riser in right-hander Wilber Dotel, who signed as an 18-year-old out of the Dominican Republic in 2020. Dotel, who turns 22 on Sept. 25, is 9-5 with a 5.49 ERA, 1.42 WHIP and 103 strikeouts in 103 1/3 innings over 24 starts at High-A Greensboro and is ranked their No. 26 prospect by Baseball America.

They also have a pair of 19-year-olds, shortstop Yordanny De Los Santos ($1.2 million) and first baseman/outfielder Tony Blanco ($900,000), who signed for big bonuses and have shown signs of stardom in the rookie-level Florida Complex League. MLB Pipeline ranks De Los Santos No. 13 and Blanco No. 20 among Pirates prospects, whereas Baseball America ranks both in its top 30.

The key for the Pirates, Cherington said, is for their international scouting department to work with the research and development group and coaching staff to identify the physical and baseball traits that are most predictive for teenagers to have a chance to become major leaguers and where they can find ways to improve.

“That gets back to that relationship between scouting and development,” Cherington said. “This is exciting to me because I think we have a real opportunity to advance our process in international scouting in time — and time is a key word — I believe it needs to turn into more results. Time is a key word, as you know, because we’re talking about players who literally take years to turn up on anyone’s radar and turn into a valuable major-league pitcher like Luis Ortiz.”