Ortiz: A Power Pitcher with Potential

Luis L. Ortiz is a 25-year-old Dominican righty with premium arm strength and a huge slider. Despite some strike-throwing issues in the minors, his stuff is big enough to play a high-leverage bullpen role. In 2024, he began as a long reliever and was later shifted back into a starting role. After struggling with walks in the upper minors, Ortiz became a more efficient strike-thrower in the majors, walking just 7.8% of batters. His four-seamer, sinker, cutter, slider, and occasional changeup create a diverse pitch mix. The Pirates tinkered with his sinker/four-seam usage in 2023, and the cutter was a new addition in 2024. This combination of fastballs helps him work efficiently, especially with his 58% groundball rate on the sinker. His slider, with ridiculous horizontal movement in the 83-87 mph range, was the only pitch in his repertoire to generate an above-average swinging strike rate of 14% in 2024. If Cleveland can add another dynamic pitch or enhance an aspect of his repertoire, Ortiz could more clearly profile as a starter. The Guardians, known for their excellent pitcher development track record, will now try to optimize his prodigious stuff.

Ortiz's physical traits, such as his 6-foot-2, 240-pound frame and powerful lower body, contribute to his impressive athleticism. His low three-quarters delivery produces pitches with mostly lateral action. Despite not missing many big league bats as a reliever, his stuff is still potent. If he can continue to develop and reach his potential, he could become a key contributor to the Guardians' pitching staff.

Kennedy: A Commanding Lefty with Promise

Michael Kennedy is a 20-year-old squat lefty with advanced command of two good off-speed pitches and well-below-average fastball velocity, sitting at 88-91 mph. He was a 2022 over-slot fourth-rounder who signed for $1 million instead of going to LSU. In 2024, he pitched his way to High-A. His short-levered 6-foot-1 frame and low-to-the-ground delivery help his fastball punch above its weight. The flat line to the plate makes it tough for hitters to get on top of. His 77-83 mph breaking ball, with vertical snap and 11-to-5 movement, plays nicely off his fastball. Kennedy commands both pitches and likes to alter his leg kick to mess with hitters' timing. His feel for locating his 82-84 mph changeup improved in 2024, generating above-average chase and miss. This is a high-floored back-end starter prospect with a potential debut in 2027. With the Guardians' ability to coax more arm strength out of seemingly unprojectable players, if they can do the same with Kennedy while maintaining his great command, he could break out and look more like a mid-rotation candidate.

Kennedy still has some physical projection left based on his athleticism, despite his frame. The Guardians will be looking to help him reach his full potential and integrate him into their pitching staff.

Hartle: A Project with Unrealized Potential

Josh Hartle is a 6-foot-5 lefty with exciting physical projection throughout his prospect career but has yet to deliver. He had a lot of profile in high school and was expected to benefit from Wake Forest's pitching development program and potentially be a first-round draft pick in 2024. As a sophomore, he seemed to be making a leap, but his performance declined during his junior year. Despite having a broad-shouldered 6-foot-5 frame, a very repeatable delivery, and starter-quality repertoire depth and command, his fastball averaged only 90 mph during the 2024 college season. He gave up a lot of hits and was drafted in the third round. His five-pitch mix mostly lives in the bottom of the zone. His sweeping breaking ball and changeup (both low-to-mid-80s) generated roughly average miss in 2024, while his fastball and cutter were below average. This is grounder-getting fifth-starter stuff.

However, Hartle still has the potential to develop and reach his full potential. The Guardians will be working with him to help him unlock his talent and integrate him into their pitching staff.

Although none of these players are likely to match the peak Giménez has had, the Guardians stand a good chance of getting at least two integral members of their pitching staff out of this trade. Ortiz will play a role right away, and either Hartle or Kennedy could potentially make it to the big leagues by the end of the season if they show an increase in arm strength. The Pirates, on the other hand, got a hitter in Horwitz, who they badly needed and is a clear upgrade at first base. This trade has the potential to significantly impact both teams' pitching staffs in the coming years.