Cubs Minor Parts: Ivan Pineyro

Ivan Pineyro, righthanded starting pitcher, 6-1, 200

Signed by Nationals as an international free agent in July, 2010 for $16.000.

Acquired by Cubs in the Scott Hairston trade, July 8, 2013

Rule 5 eligible, 2014

Cubs Comp: Having trouble with this one.

Before I talk about Ivan Pineyro, I want to talk about PTBNL trades. They drive me up a tall tree sometimes. I had forgotten the Pineyro-for-Hairston trade was one of those silly trades. Cubs send cash and a PTBNL with Hairston for Pineyro and a PTBNL. The six months are almost finished, and there has been no word on the extras, so it was probably cash. Which way did the cash flow? Grrrrr.

I know it won't ever happen, but here's a way I'd like to see those trades edited. Allow draft picks in the 12-15 round range to be traded. Those types of picks are usually considered throwaways. In my view, they shouldn't be. With the draft now, picks in rounds 1-10 are slotted, hence very important. In rounds 11 and 12, you take your stabs at tough prep signings, or a screaming buy of a college possible. Around round 13, you get about filling your short-season teams. Everyone does it, and that's how it works.

So, if you are good at acquiring little pieces of value, instead of dumping some Quadruple-A pitcher to another squad for a PTBNL, I propose MLB allow (not require, but allow. Some situations might call for dealing a player for a can of cajun bean dip) teams to send this roster-filler guy to the Padres (for instance) for their 14th-round pick.

Who cares about a 14th-round pick?

If you are familiar with Texas Hold 'Em, in tournaments, after a stretch, everyone starts tossing in antes. Initially, they are a mild disturbance. After some time, though, especially if you are a short stack, those antes matter. Especially after they rise. A crafty card player can win the antes often enough to have a valid advantage over other less skilled players.

If a front office knows what they are doing, and they get a few extra 11th- to 15th-round selections, they can add a few fast-risers in their system. Even if they don't pay off big, they can provide solid depth, cover for injuries, and leave a few more arrows in the quiver for the next season's Midwest/South Atlantic League roster. And, the team that has to trade out of the 14th round (or flip their 12 for a 15) gets put at a competitive disadvantage for their next season minor league roster.

And then, BBRef can list what the trades were in toto. Unless it was for some bean dip. Or golf balls.

But I'm a geek that way.

Over the last few weeks, I watched a Pineyro outing in Hagerstown (Nationals) against Hickory (Rangers). Pineyro and C.J. Edwards both pitched well in the series. Pineyro has a "live" fastball, but I can't nail down a velocity that I'm comfortable with. Probably in the 93-95 range, dropping later in the game. His out pitch is a change-up. He fanned Rangers prospect Joey Gallo twice, though Gallo hit a double in the middle at bat.

Pineyro will start in Tennessee, and slotting the order of preference of Pineyro, Pierce Johnson, and Edwards will be tough. I like them all, as well as Corey Black. The consensus will be Pineyro as the No. 3 or No. 4, but don't ignore him. Solid fastballs pair really well with put-away change-ups.

Feel free to submit your Cubs comp, as I'm not thinking of a solid FB/change-up combo through the years. It's a bit embarrassing. Either I'm not remembering, or there haven't been many. Bad either way.

The discussion I remember from 2013 was where Pineyro was telling Johnson, "I wish I had your curve." Johnson responded: "I wish I had your change." Anything further on Pineyro would be pretty much hearsay, as the one game I 'saw' of his was on a single camera behind home plate with a wide enough view that you could see both power alleys.

You'll get better reports when he's pitching in Smokies Park.