Norkis Marcos

WTM’s PLAYER PROFILE

2018
DSL:  230/373/263, 209 AB, 3 2B, 2 3B, 45 BB, 50 K, 14-15 SB

Marcos just held his own at the plate in his debut, showing no power at all.  He drew a lot of walks but also struck out a lot; he may need to get more aggressive as he moves up.  He did very well at stealing bases.  In the field he had 18 errors and an .898 fielding percentage at short, which isn’t really alarming for a 17-year-old in the DSL.  He drew good reviews otherwise for his defense.  Marcos played short nearly all the time, with four games at second.

2019
R:  239/299/331, 142 AB, 3 2B, 2 3B, 2 HR, 11 BB, 50 K, 12-16 SB

Marcos was the principal shortstop in the GCL, although he also saw a little time at second.  He struggled badly at the plate until August, when he put up a 333/356/474 line.  The patience he’d shown in the DSL, though, dropped off sharply and he had major problems making contact throughout.  He continued to show some speed on the bases.

2020
DNP

2021
R:  194/360/250, 108 AB, 4 2B, 1 3B, 24 BB, 38 K, 8-12 SB
A:  193/315/244, 119 AB, 4 2B, 1 3B, 21 BB, 50 K, 7-10 SB

Marcos opened the season at Bradenton, where he played semi-regularly, spending time at all four infield positions.  In late June, the Pirates sent him down to the FCL, where he played mainly first and third.  The shift to playing a lot at first probably doesn’t bode well for him, as the Pirates have a puzzling, long-standing pattern of playing non-prospects there, especially in the low minors.  Marcos put up almost exactly the same offensive numbers at the two levels, with very high walk rates and extremely high K rates.

2022
A:  182/277/315, 165 AB, 3 2B, 2 3B, 5 HR, 20 BB, 68 K, 12-16 SB

Marcos joined Bradenton in early June and spent the rest of the season there as a utility player.  His playing time and position depended heavily on the other players available.  His hitting was the same as before, with fewer walks but more power.  He had a good month in August, batting 259/328/500, but went 0-for-15 in September.  Marcos split his time more or less evenly between first, second and third.  The fact that he started 15 games at first illustrates the Pirates’ practice of treating the position as a throw-away spot rather than one to employ in developing prospects.  It’s an example of why their production from the position in the majors in 2022 was historically awful.

Marcos has good defensive ability, but just hasn’t gotten the bat on the ball enough.  He’s a good organizational utility player.