Prospect Watch: Adrian Valerio's Defense Tries to Carve Him Path to Major Leagues
During the early 2010s, the Pittsburgh Pirates were one of the most active teams in the foreign free-agent market. The Pirates knew there was some great talent across the globe and they felt that their Minor League system was good enough to develop them into Major League caliber players. One of the best defensive players that the team signed was infielder Adrian Valerio. When the Pirates signed him during the 2013 season, he was highly regarded as one of the best defensive players in the foreign market. However, his bat left little to be desired and it wasn't known if his bat would ever catch up to his defensive ability.
After seeing a rise in his offense during the 2016 and 2017 seasons, 2019 was the second consecutive year that Valerio saw his offensive stats go down. He split time between Altoona and Bradenton, playing in mostly a defensive role, and hit .231 with two home runs and 28 RBI in 102 games played. When he was on base, he used his speed to his advantage, taking 13 bases in 17 opportunities. The problem, he didn't get on base much with an on-base percentage of just .297. He struck out way too much and had poor plate discipline throughout the year. Defensively, he was as advertised committing just four errors at second base and five at shortstop. His bat has always been behind his glove, but his defensive game has been a sure thing.
Valerio was born in Salcedo, Dominican Republic, and had played baseball his entire life. While he was an ok batter, his true calling came on the defensive side of the ball, particularly in the middle infield. He had plus speed, which allowed him to get to almost every ball up the middle. The Pirates, who were after strong defensive players, took notice of the young middle infielder as they were looking to bolster their Minor League Middle Infield depth. The team had strong players in the upper levels, but little talent in Low-A and Rookie Ball during the 2013 season. They ended up signing him to a 400,000 dollar signing bonus and he would make his Minor League debut the next season.
He would start with the Dominican Summer League Pirates, as most international free agents do, and came basically as advertised. On the offensive side of the ball, Valerio hit .240 with one home run and 29 RBI in 250 at-bats. Despite his low batting average, he did show one thing that hadn't been in his scouting report, power. Not necessarily home run power, but he was able to use the gaps to his advantage. He picked up 17 extra-base hits, including 14 doubles, and used his speed to be able to take that extra base. However, he was undisciplined when it came to stealing bases and he took six stolen bases in 12 chances.
However, on the defensive side of the ball, he continued to play well committing 19 errors in 519.1 innings of work. He collected 124 outputs and 188 assists while being one of the top double play turners in the Dominican Summer League with 29 turned. The Pirates were definitely getting the defensive-minded player that they wanted, and the power that Valerio was showing was definitely a plus that the Pirates had not accounted for. The 2015 season would see Valerio move to the states as he would begin the season with the Gulf Coast League Pirates looking to continue his power surge.
His offensive numbers would decrease in all three offensive categories as he hit .218 with one home run and 17 RBI. He continued to collect his extra-base hits in droves, with 15 on the season, but his plate discipline started to decrease drastically in his second full season of pro ball. His strikeout rate sat at 16.8%, up four percent from the year before, while he walked three fewer times than the year. Before. Valerio's drop-in plate discipline was concerning because that eliminates one of his biggest offensive assets, his speed. He started to perfect the art of the stolen base, taking seven in seven chances, but he wasn't on base nearly as much as he was the year before, limiting his opportunities to show off that side of his game.
While his offense was going down, his defense was on the rise as he became a more mature shortstop. His fielding percentage went up by more than 15 points, and he committed eleven fewer errors than the year before. He continued to specialize in turning the double play, turning 20 for the second consecutive season. However, Valerio's offensive struggles were moving him to more of a bench role as other guys were getting a chance. Valerie would appear in 56 games for the Pirates that season but only made 48 starts as he started being used more as a defensive replacement late in games.
With defense proving to be the role that Valerio would play in the Minor Leagues, he was focused on adding some versatility to his game in 2016. He began to transition to second base with the Bristol Pirates of the Appalachian League and, for the third season in a row, his defensive numbers went on the rise. He appeared in just five games as a second baseman for the Curve and was perfect not committing an error in 40 innings of work. However, most of his playing time came at shortstop where he once again raised his fielding percentage to .966. He less Bristol with 31 double plays turned that season while playing in 501.1 innings. The move to second base allowed him to see more playing time than he had in the past, and he appeared in a career-high 64 games played.
The promising side of Valerio's promotion was that his offensive numbers were starting to rebound. His batting average jumped to .247, and he started to show glimpses of home run power hitting two home runs while driving in 29 batters. With the increase in power also came an increase in strikeouts as he went down 46 times in 251 at-bats and his strikeout rate went up once again to 17%. Valerio didn't collect as many extra-base hits as the year before, and his speed was becoming less of a weapon. With Valerio standing at 5'11, it was thought that he would grow into that body and be able to generate more power.
He would do just that in 2017, as he made the move to full-season baseball and the Class Low-A West Virginia Power. It would be a breakout year offensively for the then 20-year old, and he would set career-highs in all three offensive categories. He would hit .271 with 11 home runs and 34 RBI in 81 games played. It was the first time in his professional career that Valerio would hit double-digit home runs and hit for a high average. He picked up a career-high 31 extra-base hits and earned the starting shortstop role with the Power that season. It was the first time in his career that his bat and his glove seemed to be at the same level.
While he was still getting his reps in as a second baseman, he focused mostly on shortstop for the 2017 season. He ended the year committing 13 errors in a career-high 40 double plays, leading the Power, and the South Atlantic League, while picking up 201 assists. 2017 saw another first for Valerio, as he ended up with two separate stints on the injured list that season. His first came in early June where he missed a little over a week, and his second came in late July and he was out from the 23rd through August 1st. With momentum on his side, Valerio would once again earn a promotion during the 2018 season, moving to Class Advanced-A Bradenton.
However, his offensive numbers would not follow him to the highest level of Class A ball as he hit just .242 with six home runs and 49 RBI. It was a new career-high in terms of run production for Valerio, and he started focusing more on using the gaps than hitting the ball over the wall. He set a career-high hitting 26 doubles and totaling 33 extra-base hits. However, he continued to be plagued by his strikeouts going down at a rate of 20.2%, the highest mark of his career. Despite only hitting .240 in 2018, that can be overlooked because of his continued hard work on the defensive side of the ball, especially at shortstop.
He tied his career-high with a .966 fielding percentage committing just 16 errors in over 955 innings of work. His double-play numbers were at an all-time high as he turned 76 double plays, once again leading the Florida State League while picking up 164 putouts and 294 assists. Valerio would head to the Dominican Winter League in the off-season to continue working on the offensive side of his game. However, because of his lack of success offensively, he would start last season back with the Bradenton Marauders as he continued to try and improve his game.
The 2019 season once again saw Valerio's offensive stats go down as he hit just .247 with two home runs and 18 RBI for the Marauders. With defense being his primary tool, he started splitting time between shortstop and second base and had pretty much an even split at each position. He improved greatly at both positions and committed a combined six errors between the two positions for Bradenton. His glove was going to be his ticket to the upper levels of Minor League baseball, especially at a position where defense comes first. Valerio has been highly regarded for his defensive skills and it earned him several promotions to Double-A Altoona throughout the season due to injury and other promotions on the Altoona Curve team.
He would end up having to fill in as Altoona's starting shortstop at the end of the 2019 season due to the shoulder injury that ended Stephen Alemais's season. He would commit just one error at shortstop during that time and posted a .985 fielding percentage. He turned a total of 22 double plays with the Altoona Curve and provided a solid presence up the middle. However, his bat would once again lag behind as he hit just .198 with 10 RBI in his 33 games with the Curve. He seemed to have lost the power that he was showing in the lower levels of the Minor Leagues, and his strikeout rate was higher than ever as he went down 29 times in 106 at-bats. When baseball resumes, look for Valerio to return to Double-A Altoona as he looks to have a full year of development under his belt. It will help him continue to improve his defensive game, and hopefully help his bat make the upward turn that it needs.
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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