CESAR LOPEZ | RIGHT HANDED PITCHER |
 | Born: December 3, 1990 Height: 6′ 3″ Weight: 210 Bats: Right Throws: Right Signed: Int. FA, Pittsburgh Pirates How Acquired: Int. FA Birthplace: Cuba Agent: N/A |
WTM’S PIRATE PLAYER PROFILES |
| Lopez was the Pirates’ first serious attempt to sign a real talent out of Cuba. Obviously, I’m excluding Dave Littlefield’s publicity stunt with Yoslan Herrera. Lopez has variously been described as a sinker/slider pitcher with a fastball that reaches the low 90s, or a pitcher who sits at 90-92 with a good change and slider. When I saw him in Pirate City in March 2011, he wasn’t throwing that hard, although a year later his fastball was reaching 90-91. He was probably coming back from a lengthy layoff in early 2011, as he signed in September 2010 but the deal wasn’t finalized due to visa issues until months later. 2011 Lopez stayed in extended spring training until the middle of the GCL season, then joined the GCL rotation for seven starts. His control was good, but opponents hit .308 against him and his K rate was low. He moved up to State College for one relief appearance, which didn’t go very well. His velocity in that appearance was 86-90, but he was getting pitches up. He threw a curve that showed some promise. Lopez is an example of how you can’t always take scouting reports too literally, especially with Cuban prospects. It’s possible he needed time to get back to his peak, but he’d had a fair amount of time by his appearance with State College. He started off 2012 in extended spring training and could return to State College. It’s impossible to say at this point whether he’s a real prospect. |
STATS |
| Baseball Reference — Minors Fangraphs MiLB.com |
CONTRACT INFORMATION |
| 2012: Minor League Contract |
PLAYER INFORMATION |
| Signing Bonus: $600,000 MiLB Debut: 2011 MLB Debut: N/A MiLB FA Eligible: 2017 MLB FA Eligible: N/A Rule 5 Eligible: 2015 Added to 40-Man: N/A Options Remaining: 3 MLB Service Time: 0.000 |
TRANSACTIONS |
| September 11, 2010: Signed by the Pittsburgh Pirates as an international free agent. |
