The Pirates started rolling out their minor league honors by recognizing two players who made strong impressions at the lowest levels of the system, while also saluting a longtime organizational staple behind the scenes.
Right-hander Irwin Ramírez was named the club’s 2026 Rookie-Level Pitcher of the Year, and infielder Johan De Los Santos earned 2026 Rookie-Level Player of the Year. Pittsburgh also selected Cecilio Beltre as Staff Member of the Year.
Beltre has spent 25 years with the organization and the last nine as senior advisor/mentor for the Dominican Summer League.
More awards are on the way. The Pirates will announce the Willie Stargell Slugger of the Year, the Kent Tekulve Reliever of the Year and Bill Mazeroski Defender of the Year on Oct. 21, then reveal the Honus Wagner Player of the Year and the Bob Friend Pitcher of the Year on Oct. 22.
Ramírez, who signed with Pittsburgh during the 2024 International Signing Period for $395,000, is in his third year in the organization. The Venezuelan righty impressed in the Florida Complex League, where he went 1-1 with a 3.67 ERA in eight starts over 27 innings. He struck out 27, walked 23, held opponents to a .157 batting average against and posted a 1.30 WHIP.
His season got tougher after a June 23 promotion to Single-A Bradenton. There, Ramírez finished 0-5 with a 6.75 ERA in nine starts and 11 appearances, covering 41.1 innings. He recorded 41 strikeouts, 36 walks, a .301 BAA and a 1.98 WHIP.
Even with the rougher stretch, there were signs to build on. His 36 strikeouts ranked third on Bradenton, behind Reinold Navarro, who had 51, and Levi Sterling, who had 41.
Both were moved up to High-A Greensboro in late August. Ramírez generally worked three-to-five inning outings, and the club saw improvement late in the year.
The fastball is already a weapon, sitting at 96.8 mph, and he also posted a 34.0% whiff rate and a 1.9% barrel rate. The next step is obvious: trim the walks. If he does that, he could join Edward Florentino and Navarro as successful outcomes from Pittsburgh’s 2024 international class.
De Los Santos came into the system as a major investment. The Pirates gave him their largest signing bonus in 2025, $2.25 million, making him the headliner of that international period.
He had already shown plenty in the Dominican Summer League in 2025, when he hit .353/.451/.460 for a .911 OPS, and he carried that momentum into the FCL in 2026. Over 31 games there, he batted .310/.431/.434 with an .865 OPS, collecting 35 hits in 113 at-bats. He also posted four triples, two homers, 10 RBI, 22 walks, 11 strikeouts and 26 steals in 31 tries.
His time at Bradenton was less productive, though. In two stints with the club, he hit .218/.258/.310 for a .568 OPS in 21 games. Still, he was only 18, and the Pirates have plenty to like in the profile: contact over power, limited strikeouts, speed on the bases and an aggressive style of play.
Defensively, De Los Santos is considered solid and can handle both shortstop and second base. He is ranked 11th by MLB Pipeline and 13th by Baseball America among Pirates prospects.
He’ll need to adapt better to Single-A next season, but he’s young enough that there’s time for the bat and the rest of his game to keep moving forward.
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