Pedro Ciriaco

Pedro Joel Ciriaco Leguisamon

• Bats Right, Throws Right
• Height 6' 0", Weight 160 lb.
• High School Liceo Sor Ana Nolan
• Debut September 8, 2010
• Final Game October 4, 2015
• Born September 27, 1985 in San Pedro de Macoris, San Pedro de Macoris D.R.

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Biographical Information

Brother of Audy Ciriaco and Moises Ciriaco and cousin of Juan Aneuris Ciriaco and Juan Manuel Ciriaco, Pedro Ciriaco played every position but pitcher and catcher in parts of six big league seasons.

Ciriaco was signed by Arizona Diamondbacks scout Junior Noboa at 17. He made his debut with the 2003 DSL Diamondbacks, hitting .231/.290/.294. He returned to the same club in 2004, hitting .349/.401/.437. He finished fourth in the Dominican Summer League in average and led his team in six offensive categories. Coming stateside in 2005 with the Missoula Osprey, Pedro fell to .240/.264/.331. His 34 errors led the Pioneer League's shortstops and he fielded .899. With the 2006 South Bend Silver Hawks, he improved to .264/.308/.320 and scored 77 runs with 19 steals in 27 tries. His fielding improved to .927 but he still made 45 errors, a minor league leading total. Baseball America rated Pedro possessing the top infield arm in the Arizona organization entering 2007. That year, he hit .251/.286/.322 for the Visalia Oaks, cutting his error total to a California League-leading 32 but raising his fielding percentage to .938. Returning to Visalia in 2008, Ciriaco made major strides, making the league All-Star team at shortstop by hitting .310/.333/.408 with 40 steals in 49 tries, 85 runs scored and .949 fielding percentage (23 errors). His biggest problem was plate discipline, only drawing 18 walks in 124 games. Pedro tied Mike Paulk for sixth in the California League in average and was third in hits (161, 25 behind Cedric Hunter) and steals (10 behind Peter Bourjos). He led Diamondbacks minor leaguers in swipes. For the first time in his four US seasons, he did not lead his loop in errors; he had fewer than half of Marcus Lemon's total at shortstop.

Baseball America rated Pedro the best defensive infielder and the best infield arm in the Arizona organization entering 2009. He batted .296/.319/.367 for the Mobile Bay Bears with 38 stolen bases (second best in the league) in 48 tries, making only 17 errors and leading Southern League shortstops in fielding percentage (.960), earning another All-Star berth. He was rated by Baseball America the best defensive infielder and best infield arm in the SL. He had a busy winter, hitting .258 for the Scottsdale Scorpions with five swipes in 15 games then .320 for the Toros del Este. Opening 2010 with the Reno Aces, Ciriaco was hitting .243/.264/.391 after 58 games while fielding .963 at short, making the World Team for the 2010 Futures Game. Shortly thereafter, Arizona dealt him, with $3 million and catcher Chris Snyder, to the Pittsburgh Pirates for D.J. Carrasco, Bobby Crosby and Ryan Church. Ciriaco was assigned to the Indianapolis Indians, where he batted .281/.288/.372 and just two walks in 32 games while fielding .931 at shortstop.

A September call up, Pedro made his MLB debut as a pinch-hitter for Chan-ho Park. Facing Cristhian Martinez, he doubled home fellow rookie Pedro Alvarez and scored on a hit by another September call up, Brandon Moss. He was solid in limited Bucco play, enjoying his finest season after moving to the Boston Red Sox in 2012. He played 76 games, batting .293 while drawing only 8 walks against 259 at bats. Pedro soon became minor league depth, bouncing around before seeing his most action in his final big league look, 84 games with the 2015 Atlanta Braves. In 649 career plate appearances, Pedro only drew 24 walks, 4 of which were intentional.

Sources

• 2010 Diamondbacks Media Guide
• 2005-2010 Baseball Almanacs

Related Sites

• Pedro Ciriaco on mlb.com