Pirates All 40: Liover Peguero Left Out of the Log Jam?

This is one in a series of stories breaking down members of the Pittsburgh Pirates’ 40-man roster.

A key player in the Pirates’ exciting and charismatic 2023 youth movement that helped them snap a streak of two 100 loss seasons, shortstop Liover Peguero took just ten at-bats for Pittsburgh this past season.

Even if Oneil Cruz never sets foot at shortstop again, the Pirates have a logjam in their middle infield with 2020 fourth overall pick Nick Gonzales looking to occupy one side of second base for years to come, Isiah Kiner-Falefa signed through at least another season, and prospects like Nick Yorke and Termarr Johnson having already made their big league debuts or getting ready to within a season or two.

For Peguero, who the Pirates picked up from Arizona as part of the Starling Marte trade, that flush of prospects means he might end up on the outside looking in.

With a .237/.280/.370 slash line in 63 career games, including five doubles, a triple and seven home runs, his numbers aren’t horrific by any means for a young player still learning the ropes in the big leagues, but they might not be enough to make him stand out against former first round picks who will naturally receive a longer leash as they figure things out.

His fielding — which could help him catch on in spite of a below average bat, much like fellow infielder Jared Triolo has — isn’t a strong suit either, and a .729 OPS across 128 games for Triple-A Indianapolis in 2024 won’t do much to tempt the Pirates into a long big league audition. A strong Spring Training could get him back in the mix, but his playing time this past season doesn’t bode well moving forward.

Anyone who’s seen Peguero interact with teammates can tell he’s a great clubhouse personality and from that perspective, it’s a shame he’s struggling to catch on with the Pirates.