Intrigue Abounds

Another curious discovery...

Dejan reports in today's paper that one of the players the Pirates signed to a minor league contract is Chris Aguila, late of the Florida Marlins.

Here we have a guy who, when he was first drafted back in '97, was coming off setting a national record for most home runs by a high-schooler. It's obvious that was a bit of fluff, since he has been anything but a power hitter since then. He isn't devoid, however. Strange numbers, though. Over the past three seasons:

AAA 770 AB's, .322 AVG, 29 HR, 142 RBI
MLB 215AB's, .239 AVG, 0 HR, 12 RBI

So why in the world would the Pirates take a run at this 27 year old? Hopefully, a "let's see what you really got" type approach is what we have. Judging by the numbers, it is rather obvious (even if it is the PCL) that Aguila doesn't have much more, if anything, to prove at the minor league level. I looked into his numbers, and I think it is safe to say that 1) 215 AB's over three seasons hardly counts as a usable sample size, especially when almost 1/3 of those at-bats were pinch-hit at-bats sprinkled over periods of time, and 2) at least part of this lack of time was due to being behind Jeremy Hermida on the Marlin's depth chart, and then eventually behind Josh Wilingham too. It should be interesting to see if he could manage a 15-20 HR, 70-80 RBI, .280-.290 AVG - y'know, the production we only pray mcclouth or gerut could provide?

Just saying, keep an eye on him this year.