Ryan Vilade

WTM’s PLAYER PROFILE

2017
R+:  308/438/496, 117 AB, 3 2B, 2 3B, 5 HR, 27 BB, 31 K, 5-10 SB

Vilade played short in advanced rookie ball and hit very well.  Baseball America ranked him 9th among Rockies’ prospects.

2018
A:  274/353/378, 457 AB, 20 2B, 4 3B, 5 HR, 49 BB, 96 K, 17-30 SB

Vilade spent the season in Low Class A, still playing short full-time.  The power wasn’t there, but he was still only 19.  BA again ranked him 9th.

2019
A+:  303/367/466, 509 AB, 27 2B, 10 3B, 12 HR, 56 BB, 95 K, 24-31 SB

Vilade had what’s proven to be his best year so far, as the power started to come around and he hit very well overall.  The Rockies played him at third about a third of the time and he had serious error problems both there and at short.  BA ranked him 8th in the system.

2020
DNP

Vilade didn’t play during the pendemic year, but the Rockies did add him to the 40-man roster afterward.

2021
AAA:  284/339/410, 468 AB, 28 2B, 5 3B, 7 HR, 38 BB, 92 K, 12-17 SB
MLB:  000/143/000, 6 AB, 1 BB, 1 K

Colorado jumped Vilade up to AAA, where he played mostly in the outfield corners.  He held his own as a 22-year-old, but the stats have to be viewed in the context of the high-offense Pacific Coast League.  Vilade’s OPS was 40 points below the average on his team, Albuquerque, and 60 points below average for the league.  BA nevertheless ranked him 6th in the Rockies’ system.

2022
R:  300/364/700, 10 AB, 1 2B, 1 HR, 1 BB, 3 K, 1-2 SB
AAA:  249/345/352, 369 AB, 15 2B, 4 3B, 5 HR, 52 BB, 69 K, 12-16 SB

Vilade took a significant step backward, hitting far below the league average.  His walked almost as much as he struck out, but his power mostly disappeared.  The Rockies removed him from the 40-man roster after the season and the Pirates claimed him.

Vilade just hasn’t developed as hoped and he’s a defensive liability.  He’s also a poor fit as anything other than depth because he’s a corner outfielder with little power.  The Pirates are loaded with upper-level outfield depth; like most of Ben Cherington’s moves, especially his incessant waiver claims, this pickup made no sense and, of course, added to roster congestion at a time when the Pirates were at risk of losing talent in the Rule 5 draft.  And, in fact, they lost Blake Sabol, who appears to be a far better prospect than Vilade.  Not surprisingly, Vilade showed little in spring training and was designated for assignment to create roster space.  Not surprisingly, he cleared waivers.