When Jose Pirela started his rehab assignment with Class A Tampa and Double-A Trenton, a 1-14 start at the plate was not what he was hoping for.
But when the Yankees moved his rehab assignment to Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes Barre, the 25-year-old has been swinging a very hot bat.
In his four games for Scranton/Wilkes Barre, Pirela is hitting .579 (11-19) with four doubles and a home run. He continued to swing a hot bat on Sunday afternoon, picking up four of those hits, three of which were doubles.
When asked about what the Yankees would do with Pirela once his rehab assignment was complete, General Manager Brian Cashman would not commit to where the young Venezuelan prospect would play, saying that it was yet to be determined.
But for the sake of the big league club, the best move would be to bring him to the Bronx.
Let’s face facts: Didi Gregorius, Stephen Drew and Gregorio Petit (in his small sample size) have struggled offensively, and if this pattern continues, the Yankees will be in a very bad spot.
If the Yankees feel that he is a better option than Petit, then the club should give it a chance. Pirela, who hit .333 in seven games with the big league club last season as a September call-up, could provide an offensive spark that the team could definitely benefit from, and his defensive versatility is very valuable as well.
Moving Pirela up to the big league club makes even more sense now, as manager Joe Girardi confirmed on Sunday that Brendan Ryan, who was projected to be the team’s utility man, will be sidelined another week due to a hamstring injury. With Ryan’s injury history, especially recently, it is hard to believe that Ryan can stay healthy for an extended period of time.
So as the signs keep pointing to it, the Yankees should realize that once his rehab assignment is complete, Jose Pirela should be given a chance to win a spot on the big league roster. As the team searches for the future second baseman, they could have him available and major league ready right now,but we won’t know that until he gets a shot to crack the roster.
