Brewers: Selloff begins—breaking down the Aramis Ramirez trade
By Phil Watson
Who Is Yhonathan Barrios?
Barrios is a 23-year-old right-hander who the Pirates signed as an international free agent from Colombia in 2009 … as an infielder.
He hit .241/.309/.346 in 54 games for the Pirates in the Venezuelan Summer League in 2009, with 11 doubles, two homers and 13 RBI, before missing the entire 2010 season with an undisclosed injury.
He played the 2011 season with the Pirates’ Rookie-level affiliate in the Gulf Coast League and hit .299/.382/.433 in 25 games, with four doubles, three triples, a home run and 11 RBI.
And that was just about the last his bat was seen.
In 2012 at Class-A short-season State College, he hit just .196/.255/.217 in 44 games and in 11 games at Jamestown at the same level in 2013, he was off to a 4-for-28 start at the plate when he was sent back to the Gulf Coast League to convert to the mound.
Barrios wasn’t considered a top prospect in the Pittsburgh organization, but at just 5-foot-10 and 200 pounds, he possesses a fastball that has cracked the 100-mph barrier and is considered to have a lot of upside because he is still learning to pitch and already has a decent changeup and is working on a slider.
J.J. Cooper of Baseball America referred to Barrios as a “lottery ticket” after the trade:
Brewers get a lottery ticket in Yhonathan Barrios. Big arm. But no quality secondary stuff and iffy control. Not a significant prospect.
— JJ Cooper (@jjcoop36) July 23, 2015
In 10 relief appearances in the GCL in 2013, Barrios had a 0.82 ERA and 0.909 WHIP in 11 innings, with 10 strikeouts.
He started 2014 at Class-A West Virginia, where he posted a 4.60 ERA and 1.748 WHIP in 38.1 innings, striking out 38 and posting four saves. Promoted to Advanced-A Bradenton, he made 15 appearances and saved 11 games with a 2.25 ERA and 0.950 WHIP in 20 innings, fanning 12.
Barrios opened this season at Double-A Altoona and had a 1.46 ERA and 10 saves in 20 appearances, posting a 1.054 WHIP and 12 strikeouts in 24.2 innings.
Promoted to Triple-A Indianapolis last month, the 23-year-old had a 4.60 ERA and 1.723 WHIP in 15.2 innings over 13 appearances, striking out nine and earning a save.
He was assigned to Double-A Biloxi and was not added to the 40-man roster.
“Good arm,” general manager Doug Melvin told MLB.com. “He shot through the system pretty quick to Triple-A, but we’re going to send him to Biloxi. He needs some work with his delivery, just because he’s only pitched 100 innings.”
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