
Outfielder Solomon Maguire
The Pirates signed Solomon Maguire during the 2019-2020 international signing period. The Australian outfielder was one of their highlights from this period. They landed him to a $594,000 bonus, which came as part of the Starling Marte trade. So in the end, the Pittsburgh Pirates were able to get Liover Peguero, a guy who’s now considered a consensus top 100 prospect, Brennan Malone, a very high-ceiling pitcher who was picked with the 33rd pick in the 2019 draft, and one of the draft’s top high school arms, and a noteworthy international outfield prospect in Maguire.
According to MLB.com, Maguire was highly praised for his athleticism. Maguire was heavily watched by scouts, even as early as his middle school-aged days. The outfielder showed what he he could do at the U18 Baseball World Cup where he got rave reviews for his performance.
Along with his athleticism, Maguire showed a strong arm, and some good pop for a then 16-year-old kid who stood at 5-11″, 168 pounds. Maguire generates some of that power through his bat speed, another item that received praise by scouting. Even as he gets bigger and older, many still believe he can remain a center fielder.
Maguire turned 18-years-old at the beginning of March 2021. While his first taste of professional action hasn’t been all that great, it’s a small sample size of less than 20 games and 100 plate appearances, and again, he’s still a very young player. It’ll be a few years before we see Maguire push for a major league promotion, but he should be considered a high-ceiling prospect within the Pirates’ system and one that could rise through the ranks across the next 2-4 years.