February 15, 2022

By Steve Schuster

Winnipeg Goldeyes

The Winnipeg Goldeyes signed right-handed pitchers Zac Ryan and Erasmo Pinales on Tuesday.

Ryan returns to the Goldeyes after joining the club in August 2021. The Merrillville, Ind., native struck out 19 batters in 11 1/3 innings, and did not allow a run in nine of his 12 appearances.

Ryan opened the season with the triple-A West’s Salt Lake Bees (Los Angeles Angels) where he struck out 39 over 31 innings. During his time in Salt Lake, the 27-year-old’s fastball produced a 30 per cent swing-and-miss rate (the average across the affiliated minor leagues since 2018 is 22 per cent).

“Zac and Erasmo add valuable bullpen depth to our pitching staff,” said Goldeyes manager Rick Forney. “Zac showed a powerful arm with a wipeout slider last year.”

The Angels drafted Ryan in the 23rd round in 2017 out of Georgia Tech University (Atlanta, Ga.), and is entering his fifth season of professional baseball. Ryan owns a 4.37 ERA in 136 appearances (135 in relief), and has struck out 27 per cent of opposing batters in 203 2/3 professional innings. The 6-foot-1, 201-pound right-hander has twice reached the triple-A level, and was voted a High-A California League All-Star in 2018 while pitching for the Inland Empire 66ers. Since his professional career began, Ryan’s fastball has averaged 94.1 miles per hour, while his slider has averaged more than 2,500 revolutions per minute.

Pinales (pronounced pin-YAHL-es) last pitched in 2019 where he posted a 4.00 ERA with 31 strikeouts in 18 relief innings for the double-A Texas League’s Corpus Christi Hooks (Houston Astros). In 2018, the La Vega, Dominican Republic native fanned 72 in just 55 2/3 innings for Corpus Christi, and was assigned to the prestigious Arizona Fall League at the conclusion of the season. Pinales had signed with the Arizona Diamondbacks in 2020 and was scheduled to return to the double-A level before the season was cut short due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

“This will be Erasmo’s first indy ball experience,” said Forney. “He had a lot of success in the Astros’ organization, showing a nice fastball and slider mix. Both Zac and Erasmo have the ability to pitch high-leverage innings for our club in 2022.”

Pinales heads into his eighth season of professional baseball, and has a lifetime 3.31 ERA in 120 appearances (97 in relief). The 27-year-old originally signed with the Astros as an international free agent in 2013, and has struck out 300 while allowing just 18 home runs in 277 professional innings.

Left-handed batters have hit just .205 against Pinales (385 at bats), while right-handed bats have managed a .216 mark (629 at bats). The 5-foot-11, 180-pound right-hander’s fastball has averaged 94.9 miles per hour and over 2,500 revolutions per minute as a professional, while his slider has averaged more than 2600 rpms.

Additionally, the Goldeyes have traded right-handed pitcher Dylan Burns to the Pioneer League’s Ogden Raptors in exchange for a player to be named later. Burns was 1-2 with a 5.59 ERA in 29 innings for the Goldeyes as a true rookie in 2021.

The Winnipeg Goldeyes now have 13 players signed to contracts for the 2022 season. American Association clubs may carry up to 30 players during spring training, which begins May 5.

2022 Winnipeg Goldeyes Player Signings

RHP Freisis Adames

C Hidekel Gonzalez

OF Logan Hill

IF Kevin Lachance

RHP Josh Lucas

OF Max Murphy

RHP Erasmo Pinales

RHP Luis Ramirez

RHP Zac Ryan

LHP Travis Seabrooke (Peterborough, Ont.)

LHP Tasker Strobel

RHP Jhon Vargas

1B David Washington

The Winnipeg Goldeyes open the 2022 season on Friday, May 13 versus the Fargo-Moorhead RedHawks at Shaw Park.