The Pittsburgh Pirates landed two of the best international prospects in all of baseball this week.
On Thursday, the Pirates announced they had signed 25 players to begin the 2026 international signing period.
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The class included two athletes from the Dominican Republic ranked on MLB Pipeline’s Top 50 prospects list.
Pittsburgh acquired No. 7 prospect Jeancer Custodio and No. 7 Wilton Guerrero Jr. in the first day of international deals.
A 17-year-old outfielder, Custodio is a 5-foot-10 right-handed hitter who prospects with a 65 overall strike tool.
He is from BanĂ, the same town as Jose Ramirez and former MLB stars Miguel Tejada and Jose Bautista. Custodio has a 55-grade power tool and hit .333 with a .429 on-base percentage on the 18U World Cup qualifying team.
Guerrero Jr. has a familiar last name to baseball fans around the world. Wilton Guerrero Jr. is the nephew of Vladimir Guerrero Sr. and cousin of Blue Jays star Vladimir Guerrero Jr.
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His father, Wilton Guerrero Sr., played eight years in Major League Baseball and retired to become a member of the MLB Coaching Partnership Program in Nizao, Dominican Republic, according to MLB Pipeline.
At just 16 years old, Wilton Guerrero Jr. is a 5-foot-10 shortstop with a 50 strike tool and 70 speed.
The deals mark two landmark additions for vice president of international scouting Max Kwan, who was hired ahead of the 2025 season.
The Pirates signed 12 additional players from the Dominican Republic, seven from Venezuela and one each from Brazil, Cuba, Nicaragua and Panama. Pittsburgh can still sign international players, but the start of the international signing period is a key indicator of which top players will sign with all 30 different organizations.
