Pirates Get Second Rule 5 Pick In Trade With Mets

After the Pirates took Jose Soriano with the first overall pick in the Rule 5 draft, they added more pitching depth. They made a trade with the New York Mets to add pitcher Luis Oviedo.

The Pittsburgh Pirates kicked off the 2020 - 2021 Rule 5 Draft by taking Jose Soriano from the Los Angeles Angels. However, Been Cherrington's work was not done as he continued to look for ways to improve the Pirates organization. He swung a trade, that was obviously pre-planned, with the New York Mets to acquire the ninth overall pick in the Rule 5 Draft, Luis Oviedo for cash. It is the second pitching prospect that Cherrington added in the Rule 5 Draft and it is the first official trade he has made this off-season. Oviedo is another strong right-handed pitcher who has a fastball that can reach in the high 90s on a consistent basis.

Oviedo pitched at Class-A Lake County for the Cleveland Indians in 2019 and was the team's #11 overall prospect. He also cracked Baseball America's Top 100 prospect list prior to the 2019 season, making him the highest-ranked prospect acquitted by the Pirates during the Rule 5 Draft. Because he was acquired via trade, the Pirates do not have to keel him on the Major League roster in 2021 and can send him down to the Minor Leagues to continue his development. Anytime you can get a pitcher who hits in the upper 90s, you can consider yourself lucky. Oviedo has a high ceiling for his future in the MLB, and with a little work on his command, he could be an impact arm for the Pirates in the years to come.

Indians Power Arm

The Cleveland Indians discovered Oviedo when he was just 16-years-old in Barquisimeto, Venezuela. At the time, he was a tall lanky right-hander, who had a plus fastball that was averaging about 93 to 94 miles per hour. He trained in the same camp that produced Indians star pitcher Carlos Carrasco, so the Indians knew his training was good and decided to sign the right-hander to a professional contact. So, Oviedo's pro ball career began as he flew to the Dominican Republic to join the DSL Indians starting rotation. While he was still a young raw talent on paper, the Indians saw potential in the young live arm and knew he still had some developing to do.

Being that he was just 16-years-old he was one of the youngest pitchers in the DSL during the 2016 season. It was quite an adjustment for the young pitcher, and as a result, he struggled throughout the season. He made 14 starts for the DSL Indians and ended up going just 2-8 with a 4.00 ERA in 63 innings of work. He was already showing good stamina, working five or more innings in nine of his 14 starts. However, two bad outings in mid-June and early July killed his momentum during that first year. Even though he was a young pitcher, one thing he didn't struggle with during that first year was his command. He walked just 6.2% of the batters he faced while striking out 56 batters. However, he wasn't missing as many bats as you would like to see, with a .247 opponents average while allowing 22 extra-base hits that season.

With age seemingly being one of the biggest factors in his struggles the Indians promoted him to the AZL Indians for the 2016 season.  However, his struggles continued as he went 4-2 with a 7.14 ERA while splitting time between the starting rotation and the bullpen. However, he seemingly found his strikeout pitch as he set down 28% of the batters he faced on strikes. It was hit or miss throughout the season for Oviedo as he either pitched really well or terrible. He gave up three earned runs or less in nine outings, but in his other outings he gave up at least five earned runs. It wasn't until he officially made the move to A Ball that he finally figured everything out.

He started in short season Mahoning Valley in 2018 and absolutely dominated the Midwest League. He went 4-2 with a 1.88 ERA over nine starts with Mahoning Valley and put himself on the Indian's radar. In 48 innings of work, he walked just 14 batters and struck out 61. His changeup was developing into his best secondary pitch, and the change of speeds was helping him collect more strikeouts. He held opponents to just a .190 batting average against and was names the Indian's #19 overall prospect after the season. He pitched in Class-A Lake County full time in 2019 and over 19 starts went 6-6 with a 5.28 ERA. His biggest issue was that he walked 40 batters in a career-high 87 innings of work.

Oviedo in Pittsburgh

The good thing about acquiring Oviedo is that because he was part of a trade, the Pirates do not have to keep him on the active roster all season. He can head straight to the Minor Leagues and get back on track to where he was before the 2019 season. He has a live fastball and, after showing some success in Low-A in 2018, look for the Pirates to send him to Advanced-A Greensboro in 2021. He will continue his progression as a starting pitcher and look to continue to develop his off-speed pitches so that he can effectively change speeds throughout his outing. While his high heat is good to have, being able to slow it down and have hitters out in front will take him to that elite status.

Oviedo is another young right-handed pitcher with high upside picked up by Ben Cherrington and his staff. With his fastball averaging between 92 and 96 miles per hour and topping out at 98, he has the ability to blow his fastball by hitters. However, if he can learn to control it better like he did in rookie ball, it will make him that much more effective as he moves up the Minor League ladder. He is also developing a slider and a change-up to complement that fastball and make him a more diverse pitcher. Having a nice three-pitch repertoire will help him mix things up as he moves to Advanced-A and beyond. Oviedo is probably the more exciting of the two prospects picked up, but both have high ceilings and look to be a part of the Pirate's rotation of the future.

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