Pirates' return in Martín Pérez trade could be worth watching

The Pittsburgh Pirates found a way to unload veteran southpaw Martín Pérez at the trade deadline, sending him to the San Diego Padres. The Bucs signed him to a one-year deal to help stabilize what looked like an unstable rotation at the time. But with the Pirates seeing many of their top prospects make a name for themselves this year in the bigs, both Bailey Falter and Luis Ortiz breaking out, and Pérez being the worst starter among the Pirates’ options, they felt it was better to move on from him.

The Padres have become quite a familiar trade partner in recent years, as these two teams have now made a trade in three of the last four trade deadlines. Although the Pirates had to eat some of Pérez’s remaining salary, what they got in return could be worth watching over the coming years.

They received one prospect for Pérez, along with some cash: left-hander Ronaldys Jimenez. The Padres had signed Jimenez out of the Dominican Republic in June of 2023. The southpaw is young at 18 years old and stands at 5’11”/165 pounds. His professional career has consisted of six innings, one earned run, eight strikeouts, and two walks allowed. All of his playing time has come with the Padres’ Dominican Summer League affiliate.

But Jimenez’s scouting report should raise some eyebrows. According to Baseball America, Jimenez hits 93 MPH on average, with a slider that comes in around the low 80s. Sitting 93 MPH at just 18 is certainly intriguing, especially given that he’s a lefty. The one thing that stands out is that he’s already throwing so hard despite his smaller stature. He’s under six-foot. For reference, the average height for MLB pitchers in 2023 was 6’2”.

Jimenez is only a lottery ticket at this point, but one that should still garner some attention. He’s a lefty who can sit 93 well before his 20th birthday. If he adds some velocity, this low-risk lottery ticket could end up being something of note. Only time will tell, but given the improvements the Pirates have made to pitching development over the last few years, Jimenez could definitely be an intriguing arm in the next few years.