Prospect Watch: Pedro Vasquez Shining as He Moves to Triple-A
As we head into the 2020 season, the Indianapolis Indians starting rotation is about to get a boost. It comes in the form of Pirates prospect Pedro Vasquez, who will be starting his first full season at Triple-A Indianapolis. After joining the Pirates while still in rookie ball, Vasquez has had success at every level of the Minor Leagues and looks to continue that success as he takes the next step to becoming a Major League pitcher. He got his feet wet in Triple-A last season, due to injury, and had a career-year with the Altoona Curve that earned him an Eastern League Mid-Season all-star award.
However, Vasquez did not bring with him the success that had followed him throughout his career. He appeared in two games for the Indians, making one start, and posted a 7.71 ERA in 9.1 innings of work. However, he was striking out batters at a high rate with 10 in that time frame while walking four batters. He was sent back down to Double-A following his two-game stint, where he would finish his season strong, earning him the All-Star game nod. Vasquez's career is unlike most of his predecessors from the Dominican Republic, but it has led him on a path that will more than likely end in the Major Leagues.
Vasquez was born in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic, and, like many of his peers, was surrounded by baseball his entire life. While many players sign in their teens, Vasquez stayed behind and continued to develop. He caught the eye of the Seattle Mariners when he turned 20 and signed his first professional contract in 2015. He would start his professional career right in his hometown playing for the Dominican Summer League Mariners. He made his professional debut on June 6th, 2015, throwing four innings allowing three unearned runs while striking out a batter. It would kickstart an impressive rookie season for the 20-year old that saw him go 8-2 with a 2.08 ERA in 91 innings of work.
Vasquez featured a fastball that averaged from 90-93 miles per hour and showed a quality that is invaluable in many young players, good command! He walked just 10 batters in his 91 innings of work and only threw one wild pitch all season long. His strikeout numbers weren't that impressive, with 71 in those 91 innings of work, but he was missing bats at a high rate only allowing 70 hits all season. The success did not go unnoticed by the organization, and Vasquez made his first trip to the states in 2016 to pitch for the Arizona Rookie League Mariners, where he continued to show the same success he had in the Dominican Republic.
It was a short stint with the Arizona Rookie League Mariners, lasting just five games, but it was an effective stint. He appeared in five games, four starts, and went 2-2 with a 2.22 ERA in 26.1 innings of work. Of his four starts, he lasted six innings three times and turned in three quality starts. His only other appearance was out of the bullpen in the 2016 season opener where he pitched 5.2 scoreless innings allowing one hit. He raised his strikeout rate fanning 22 batters while keeping his strong command walking just five. His rookie ball success would be rewarded as he got the call to the Class-A Clinton Lumberjacks in July of that season.
He came into Class-A baseball with a bang allowing one run over five innings of work in his Lumberjack debut and, aside from a slip-up in his second start, never looked back. He would appear in eight games for the Lumberjacks and went 3-2 with a 2.28 ERA in 43.1 innings of work. Vasquez was hitting his stride as a professional pitcher, and an up and coming prospect, as he turned in eight quality starts that season. He lasted more than five innings in all but two starts that season and set a career-high when he lasted eight innings allowing one run in a win against the West Michigan White Caps. However, changes were coming to Vasquez's career as he headed to the off-season
Vasquez, along with Mariners pitching prospect Jake Brentz, was traded to the Pirates to complete the deal that sent former Pirates reliever Arquimedes Caminero to the Seattle Mariners. For Vasquez, it meant a change of scenery as he would be sent to the Advanced-A Bradenton Marauders to start the 2017 season. It would be a new career-high workload for Vasquez as he pitched 137.2 innings that year, but he handled it well going 9-7 with a 3.73 ERA. He continued to miss opponents' bats at a high rate allowing just 135 hits in those 137+ innings of work while keeping the strong command from the years before. He also set a new career-high striking out 107 batters while picking up 17 quality starts.
However, his ERA was a bit inflated as Vasquez struggled over his final three starts of 2017. He pitched well up to that point, but over his final 15 innings of work, he posted an abysmal 9.60 ERA. It was the first real stumble of Vasquez's career, and he would head into the off-season trying to improve himself. Despite his late-season struggles, Vasquez found himself promoted to Double-A Altoona to start the 2018 season. However, things didn't go well for Vasquez as he posted a career-high 5.12 ERA while going just 2-6 in 13 games, 12 starts. He threw 63.1 innings for the Curve and allowed 36 earned runs on 70 hits. In his final start for the Curve that season, he allowed four runs on nine hits in just 1.1 innings of work, and he was sent back down to Bradenton after the game.
Most would have taken the demotion as a death sentence for their careers, but Vasquez took it as an opportunity to better himself on the mound. After struggling through his first four appearances in Bradenton, he was able to get back to his old ways to end the season. He allowed just two runs over his final 10.1 innings of work while striking out ten as he headed into the off-season on a positive note. After working on bettering himself down at Advanced-A, he was rewarded with a promotion back to Double-A Altoona to start 2019. It was a crucial move for Vasquez and, if he failed this time, there might not be many chances left.
With this in mind, Vasquez went out and had his best professional season since his time in Rookie Ball. He was a completely different pitcher from the one in 2018 going 8-5 with a 2.71 ERA in 123 innings of work. He was back to his old self missing bats at a high rate allowing just 107 hits while striking out 91 batters. He also continued the one quality that hasn't failed him walking just 29 batters in those 123 innings of work. Because of his success, Vasquez was called to Triple-A when there was an injury and appeared in two games, making one start. Once his stint was over, he returned to Altoona where he finished the season strong and was named an Eastern League Mid-Season All-Star, along with fellow prospects Jason Delay and Beau Sulser.
With a goal to continue his development, Vasquez was assigned to the Dominican Winter League where he played for the Toro del Este. His results weren't as good as he would have liked as he posted a 4.91 ERA in 11 innings of work while striking out seven and walking two. He would get his first opportunity to appear in front of Big League coaches when he pitched in three Big League Spring Training games this season before the lockdown. He allowed one earned run in 1.2 innings of work while striking out three and walking a batter. It was a chance for Vasquez to get around the Big League club and learn from some of the veteran arms the Pirates have in their bullpen.
As we await the 2020 season, Vasquez will probably get most of his work done in Triple-A this season as he continues his development. With two years of Double-A baseball under his belt, it is time for Vasquez to make the jump to Triple-A and prove he has what it takes to make an impact for the Pirates. He is not currently on the Pittsburgh Pirates top-30 prospect list, but he will definitely be an arm to watch as we head into the 2020 season. If he can continue the strong command and his ability to miss bats, he could provide starting rotation depth as early as this season. Until then, he will continue to develop his arm as he looks to go from Dominican Republic prospect to Major League pitcher.
It is still uncertain as to when the 2020 MLB season is set to begin, but we at Buccos Cove are determined to continue to bring you strong content. Until the 2020 season begins, we will continue looking at the players who make up the 2020 Pirates organization and how they will impact the organization this season.
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