Scouting Report

Scouting grades: Hit: 40 | Power: 55 | Run: 30 | Arm: 55 | Field: 45 | Overall: 40

After signing for $350,000 in January 2022, Plaz immediately raised the expectations bar by hitting .382 with a 1.206 OPS in 32 Dominican Summer League games. There were some bumps, both of the production and injury variety, when he came to the United States, though he did start to find his power stroke in 2024 when he homered 15 times in the Florida State League, albeit with a ton of swing-and-miss. The injury bug bit again in 2025 with a fractured finger on his left hand limiting him to just 66 games, though he made up for lost time and swung the bat well in the Arizona Fall League.

When Plaz is healthy and squares up the ball, the right-handed batter hits the ball really hard. He was in the upper echelon of Florida State League hitters in terms of data like exit velocity, barrel and hard-hit percentages. In 2025, he even cut down his strikeout rate, which had been an issue, while sticking to a better overall approach. There’s plenty of power to spare and to all fields, but he’s going to have to learn better pitch recognition after a 40 percent chase rate last season.

There’s work to be done for Plaz on the defensive side of things as well. He has plenty of arm for the position, but the consistency of his receiving has been lacking. His power bat might profile at first base, but there aren’t too many sub-6-foot right-right players at that infield corner in the big leagues.

Scouting grades: Hit: 40 | Power: 55 | Run: 30 | Arm: 55 | Field: 45 | Overall: 40

Yordany De Los Santos and Tony Blanco Jr. were the top two bonus-getters in the 2022 international class for the Pirates, but they gave out 14 bonuses of six figures or higher. Plaz, hailing from San Felix, Venezuela, was in that mix, getting $350,000 in January and then putting up huge numbers in the Dominican Summer League. He followed up that 1.206 OPS summer with a rough go of it stateside, limited to 33 games because of injuries and finishing with a .144/.359/.237 line. He was one of the better power hitters in the Florida State League in 2024, finishing with 15 homers, but also showed what he needs to work on both in the box and behind the plate.

Strong and compact, Plaz can really impact the ball with quality hard contact from the right side of the plate. He has good bat speed but is a bit of a free swinger, leading to a 28.4 percent strikeout rate and overall high miss-and-chase rates while with Bradenton. He does draw walks, but he'll need to refine his approach so he can get to his power more consistently with the ability to drive the ball to all fields, though most of his over-the-fence pop has come to his pull side.

Plaz's best tool defensively is his arm, which is at least above average, but the rest of his catching needs work. Some of it is focus-related and could improve with maturity and more reps, but he doesn't always block or receive well and has seen time at first, where a right-right 5-foot-11 profile might be tough. If the light switches on, he could be a power-first, power-armed backstop in the big leagues.

Scouting grades: Hit: 40 | Power: 55 | Run: 30 | Arm: 45 | Field: 45 | Overall: 40

San Felix, Venezuela, is the old town section of Ciudad Guayana in the state of Bolívar on the eastern side of the country. Five big leaguers have come from there, including right-hander Deolis Guerra, who made his Major League debut with the Pirates in 2015. Plaz looks to become the latest in that lineage, having signed with Pittsburgh for $350,000 when the 2022 international signing period opened. He tore through the Dominican Summer League that year with a .382/.500/.706 slash line before spending the majority of this past season with Single-A Bradenton, his first exposure to full-season ball stateside.

Having just turned 19 years old earlier this summer, there is plenty of time for Plaz to continue honing his right-handed swing, which has shown some sizable power gains. Despite being listed at just 165 pounds, Plaz has an electric swing that produced eight balls in excess of 110+ mph during Florida State League action. While his line-drive rate left room for improvement (23.6 percent), his elevated flyball rate (41.6 percent) led to a 15-homer campaign, making him one of just two primary catchers to reach the plateau at the Single-A level in 2024. On the flip side, he struck out at a 29.2 percent clip and hit just .207 with a .235 BABIP, raising some questions about how he'll handle elevated competition.

Signed as a catcher, and initially sent out as a backstop in the DSL and Arizona Complex League, Plaz nearly split time at first base this past year with Bradenton. He is largely a non-factor on the basepaths, having attempted just four steals over his three pro seasons. There's a lot to like about Plaz's offensive-minded profile and whether some of his "under the hood" metrics can stand up to the test of advanced pitching.

Awards

DSL Mid-Season All-Star

Year	Team
2022

DSL Player of the Week

Week	Team
06/26/2022

Transactions

Team	Date	Transaction
	06/10/2026	Greensboro Grasshoppers activated C Axiel Plaz from the 7-day injured list.
	03/05/2026	C Axiel Plaz assigned to Pittsburgh Pirates Prospects.
	02/21/2026	C Axiel Plaz assigned to Pittsburgh Pirates.
	02/21/2026	C Axiel Plaz roster status changed by Pittsburgh Pirates.
	02/21/2026	C Axiel Plaz roster status changed by Pittsburgh Pirates.
	10/05/2025	C Axiel Plaz assigned to Scottsdale Scorpions.
	09/24/2025	Greensboro Grasshoppers activated C Axiel Plaz from the 7-day injured list.
	09/24/2025	Greensboro Grasshoppers activated C Axiel Plaz from the 7-day injured list.
	08/19/2025	C Axiel Plaz assigned to Greensboro Grasshoppers from Bradenton Marauders.
	08/19/2025	Greensboro Grasshoppers placed C Axiel Plaz on the 7-day injured list.
	06/19/2025	Bradenton Marauders placed C Axiel Plaz on the 7-day injured list.
	03/06/2025	activated C Axiel Plaz.
	05/17/2024	C Axiel Plaz assigned to Bradenton Marauders from FCL Pirates.
	05/17/2024	Bradenton Marauders activated C Axiel Plaz.
	05/17/2024	Bradenton Marauders activated C Axiel Plaz.
	05/17/2024	Bradenton Marauders activated C Axiel Plaz.
	05/17/2024	Bradenton Marauders activated C Axiel Plaz.
	03/07/2024	Pittsburgh Pirates Prospects activated C Axiel Plaz.
	06/29/2023	FCL Pirates activated C Axiel Plaz from the 7-day injured list.
	06/21/2023	FCL Pirates placed C Axiel Plaz on the 7-day injured list.
	06/05/2023	C Axiel Plaz assigned to FCL Pirates.
	04/27/2023	Pirates Organization activated C Axiel Plaz.
	07/23/2022	C Axiel Plaz, and assigned to DSL NL All-Stars.
	06/05/2022	C Axiel Plaz assigned to DSL PIT Gold.
	01/15/2022	Pittsburgh Pirates signed free agent C Axiel Plaz to a minor league contract.