The Pirates on Monday announced 11 additional non-roster invitees for spring training, which starts in about a month.
That group includes pitchers Montana DuRapau, Luis Escobar, Williams Jerez, Tom Koehler, James Marvel, Nick Mears, Nik Turley and Blake Weiman; catchers Christian Kelley and Jason Delay; and outfielder Jared Oliva. Other Pirates non-roster invitees for spring training include pitchers Miguel Del Pozo and Hector Noesi; catcher John Ryan Murphy; infielders Jake Elmore and Phillip Evans; and outfielder Socrates Brito.
DuRapau, Escobar, Jerez and Marvel all saw time with the MLB club in 2019, with Marvel winning the organization’s minor league pitcher of the year award after going 16-5 with a 2.94 ERA across two levels. The others were occasionally effective out of the bullpen, Herez specifically against left-handed hitters.
Oliva is an intriguing prospect. After a slow start, he wound up slashing .277/.352/.398 with 36 steals for Class AA Altoona. That momentum continued into the Arizona Fall League, when Oliva really shined.
He led the league with 11 doubles and swiped 11 bases in 26 games while producing a slash line of .312/.413/.473.
While Oliva is likely ticketed for Class AAA, a strong start to the season and one or two injuries with the MLB club could put him in line for an early-season promotion.
Jason Mackey: jmackey@post-gazette.com and Twitter @JMackeyPG.
First Published: January 20, 2020, 10:48 p.m.