What Is the Future of Liover Peguero with the Pirates?
In terms of Pirates prospects, Liover Peguero became one of the first to be acquired by Ben Cherington, in the very early stages of his Pirates GM tenure.
On January 27th, 2020, the Pirates obtained Peguero from the Arizona Diamondbacks, as part of the Starling Marte trade.
Heading into the 2022 season, Peguero was rated the fifth best prospect in the Pirates’ farm system. In addition, he was also a consensus Top 100 prospect, with Baseball Prospectus ranking him the highest at 38.
Peguero would make his unexpected big league debut at PNC Park on June 18th, 2022, when Tucupita Marcano was sent to the Covid list. Because Peguero was in Altoona, the move became convenient. Facing the San Francisco Giants, Peguero collected his first MLB hit off veteran lefty Alex Wood. Shortly after, Peguero was optioned back to Altoona.
The beginning of 2023 for Peguero was with the Curve. In 318 plate appearances, he batted .260/.333/.453, before getting promoted to AAA Indianapolis on July 4th. While with the Indians, he had a slash of .259/.333/.556 in 30 plate appearances.
It was on July 17th that Peguero would make his return to the Pirates. With Oneil Cruz out with a season-ending, fibula injury, manager Derek Shelton was looking for alternative options at shortstop. Although Peguero hit seven home runs in 213 plate appearances, his offensive production was subpar, posting a slash line of .237/.280/.374. Defensively, Peguero wasn’t any better, as he registered a -3 Defensive Runs Saved at shortstop. He also struggled at second base, with a -4 DRS.
Peguero arrived to 2024 spring training in competition for the second base job, alongside Nick Gonzales and Jared Triolo. Despite a good Grapefruit League showing, it wasn’t enough to make the Pirates’ Opening Day roster, and he was optioned back to Indianapolis.
Currently, Peguero has been putting up decent numbers with the Indians, slashing .275/.337/.392 in 196 plate appearances.
At this point, how do the Pirates view Peguero moving forward?
Although Peguero is no longer of prospect status, he’s only 23, so he still has age on his side. There really isn’t an opportunity right now for Peguero to be a starter in Pittsburgh, given how well Gonzales has performed at second base since his recall, and Cruz cemented at shortstop, with seemingly no indication of him moving to another position.
Peguero isn’t the defensive infielder that Alika Williams is, however, he presents more offensive upside than Williams, which might lead to a Peguero recall, and being placed in a reserve infield role.
Going into this season, the Pirates’ bullpen was thought be a big strength for them. Instead, it’s been a combination of regression, as well as key injuries. If Cherington feels the team can stick around to be playoff contenders, then perhaps an idea would be to trade Peguero, in order to obtain needed bullpen help.
How the rest of this year plays out for Peguero will certainly be something to keep tabs on.