Ramón Aguero

From BR Bullpen

Ramon Aristides Aguero previously listed as Samuel Vazquez

BR Minors page

Biographical Information[edit]

Ramon Aguero was signed by Latin American scouting director Rene Gayo and Dominican scouting supervisor Josue Herrera for the Pittsburgh Pirates in July 2005 at age 20, relatively old for a Dominican signee. At the time, he was listed with a birthdate of 3/10/88 and the name of Samuel Vazquez. In 2006, he was 1-1 with a 3.41 ERA for the DSL Pirates. The next year, with the same club, Aguero went 5-2 with a 2.26 ERA and 81 strikeouts in 76 innings.

In 2008, Ramon made his US debut and used his real name for the first time. He was 1-10 with a 6.75 ERA for the State College Spikes, allowing a .308 average. He led the New York-Penn League in losses. He split 2009 between three stops - the West Virginia Power (1-2, 4.71, .294 opponent average), Lynchburg Hillcats (1-0, 2.49, 22 K in 21 2/3 IP) and the Altoona Curve (0-2, 4 Sv, 2.84, 13 K in 12 2/3 IP), oddly improving as he moved up the ladder. That winter, he was added to the Pirates' 40-man roster, replacing Jeff Karstens.