ARGENIS DIAZ

2/12/87; NDFA '03 (Boston); Venezuela
R/R; 5-11, 155

Level
BA
OBP
SA
AB
2B
3B
HR
BB
K
SB
CS
2006 R (Bos)
.263
.300
.293
133
2
1
0
6
23
3
1
2007 A (Bos)
.279
.342
.380
405
25
5
2
36
92
5
9
2008 AA (Bos)
.288
.336
.417
139
8
2
2
10
30
0
1
2008 A+ (Bos)
.281
.330
.363
256
9
6
0
20
60
3
2
2009 AAA
.233
.273
.240
146
1
0
0
8
27
1
1
2009 AA (Bos)
.253
.309
.310
277
14
1
0
21
60
7
4

The Pirates acquired Diaz and RHP Hunter Strickland from the Red Sox in a near-deadline deal for Adam LaRoche.  Diaz was considered the best defensive player in the Sox' farm system.  He doesn't run especially well (neither does Jack Wilson), but he has exceptional range, good hands and a strong arm.  He may be a little erratic still; he had 18 errors (misstated in some places as 23) at the time of the trade.*  Minor league error totals, especially for shortstops and thirdbasemen, aren't terribly meaningful, though, given the mediocre field condition of many fields and the much lower quality of the firstbasemen.  The big concern about Diaz, however, is his bat.  He seemed to be coming around in 2007-08, but was having a miserable time in 2009.  So far he hasn't shown very good plate discipline and appears to have very little power.

The Pirates sent Diaz straight to Indianapolis and played him every day at short.  The intent of the move may have been to create an option in the event of a Jack Wilson trade.  The acquisition and surprisingly good play of Ronny Cedeno, however, reduced the urgency.  Obviously, Diaz is a long ways from being prepared to face major league pitching.  He was already on the Red Sox' 40-man roster.  The Pirates now have Diaz, Brian Bixler and Luis Cruz, all more or less at the same level, plus Brian Friday probably moving up from Altoona.  That's way more depth than they need, especially considering that none of the four looks like more than a utility player, if even that.

*  Diaz' error totals—18 at the time of the trade and 23 the previous year—created consternation among some Pirate fans on the internet, who took them as evidence that he's unfocused or "can't make the routine play."  These are not unusual totals.  Jack Wilson committed 34 errors in class A; he was the same age at that level as Diaz was.  Wilson committed 19 the following year.  Jimmy Rollins, a Gold Glove winner, committed 29 errors in high A, 23 the following year when he played mostly in AA, and 26 in AAA.  Jason Bartlett committed 29 in class A, 20 in AA, and 19 in half a season in AAA.  Rafael Furcal committed 34 in class A.  Erick Aybar committed 32 in low A, 32 in high A, 32 in AA, and 22 in two-thirds of a season in AAA.  (Diaz committed six more in 43 games after the trade, which isn't a bad total at all.)  Players simply commit more errors in the minors , although not nearly as many as fans who cite statistics without having a clue what they mean.

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