He shows good contact already and has the potential to develop his power. He’ll also look to improve upon his arm strength to become an even better fielder.
Custodio gives the Pirates a bat they will hope turns into one of the better parts of their lineup in the next few seasons.
OF Jeancer Custodio [Dominican Republic] ($900,000)
MLB Pipeline Ranking: Seventh Overall, Fourth Outfielder. Baseball America: 54th overall, 23rd outfielder
MLB Pipeline Scouting Grades: Hit: 65 | Power: 55 | Run: 45 | Arm: 50 | Field: 45 | Overall: 55
Custodio gives the Pirates a bat they will hope turns into one of the better parts of their lineup in the next few seasons.
He also stands 5-foot-10, but 185 pounds, and is a strong hitter, with MLB Pipeline giving him a “65” hit grade and a “55” power grade.
Custodio featured with the Dominican Republic at the U-18 World Cup Americas Qualifier in 2024. He slashed .333/.429/.375 for an OPS of .804, with four stolen bases, eight hits, a double and three RBI.
His best skill set right now is his approach to hitting, with good vision that makes him a hitter that can go for power. Scouts see this as an area that, if he works on, will become a top bat for the future.
SS Alexander Pio [Dominican Republic]
Pio stands 6-foot-3, 200 pounds and is a right-handed batter. Big power bat that could eventionally transition to third base due to his strong arm.
OF Juan Figueroa [Venezuela]
Figueroa stands 6-foot-2, 170 pounds, and has solid speed with the ability to develop into a home run hitter.
OF Carlos Tejera [Dominican Republic]
Tijera stands 6-foot-2, 190 pounds. Left-handed batter with good contact, potential for top speed and a decent arm.
C Angel Nieto [Panama]
Scouts see Nieto as a top, defensive catcher from behind the plate and has a great knowledge of the game. Right-handed bat with the potential to develop into a consistent, solid hitter.
RHP Mingxuan Zhang [China]
Zhang commands a domineering presence when he steps on the mound at 6-foot-7, 220 pounds. Fastball sits in the low 90s-mph, has a slider that could develop into his signature pitch. Has also pitched in the MLB Development Center in China and the United States.
RHP Neomar Urbana [Dominican Republic]
Another big pitcher, Urbana stands 6-foot-4 and 190 pounds, with his fastball already reaching 94 mph. Also throws a changeup and a slider.
Ben Badler of Baseball America has confirmed the signings and provided scouting reports for these players.
What is the International Signing Period?
This includes players that are already 16 before they sign and not older than 17 before Sept. 1 of the next year, meaning they have to be born between Sept. 1, 2008 to Aug. 31, 2009.
MLB teams have a certain amount of money to spend, a bonus pool, based on a variety of factors like revenue, market size and money earned from trades. Teams can only spend what they’re allotted pool and nothing more.
The Pirates have the highest pool of $8,034,900, which the Arizona Diamondbacks, Baltimore Orioles, Cleveland Guardians, Colorado Rockies, Kansas City Royals and St. Louis Cardinals all have as well.
Deals for $10,000 or less don’t count against the bonus pool, so teams can use that money on just one player, like the Los Angeles Dodgers did with Japanese right-handed pitcher Roki Sasaki.
Some of the better players for the Pirates came from international signings, like catcher Manny Sanguillen, outfielder Starling Marte and third baseman Aramis RamÃrez.